After showing off the outside of its new electric PV5 van last week, Kia has now shared more information about it for Europe and South Korea. The PV5 is made on a modular chassis and will be available in various configurations, such as passenger, freight, and wheelchair-accessible vehicles. The PV5 features a front-mounted 161-horsepower electric motor and boasts an estimated range exceeding 200 miles. Over a year ago, at CES 2024, Kia first hinted that it might want to get into the electric commercial vehicle market by showing off three van designs. The PV1 was the smallest, and the PV7 was the largest. At its EV Day event in Spain, Kia revealed all the details about the mid-size PV5. This came after showing off a design that was ready for production last week. The new van will come in a number of different body styles and has a range of about 250 miles. The interior is also very flexible. A Versatile Framework The PV5 is the first car that Kia’s new PBV (Platform Beyond Vehicle) company will make. It will be driven by a new platform called E-GMP.S., which is a variation of Hyundai-Kia’s battery design that looks like a skateboard. This is possible because the E-GMP.S platform is flexible. Kia can connect different bodies to a flat base. Kia says putting together the PV5’s “Flexible Body System” is like putting together a puzzle. The Kia PV5 will come in three body styles: chassis cab, cargo, and passenger. The passenger version has a roomy cabin with three rows of seats that can be folded up and down to make different arrangements. Kia thinks that the passenger-spec PV5 is best for ride-hailing services because it worked closely with Uber to make the van, but it also thinks that the van is great for personal use. There will be standard, long, and high-roof versions of the PV5 cargo model. The high-roof model will also have a walk-through for businesses that need quick and easy entry to the cargo hold. Kia says the PV5 is 184.8 inches long from nose to tail, which is a lot longer than small vans like the Ford Transit Connect. Kia says the PV5 cargo has a maximum cargo capacity of just over 180 cubic feet, which is a little more space than other small vans. It can fit two Euro-sized pallets. The PV5 will also have vehicle-to-load features, which will let owners power tools right from the trunk. Lastly, the PV5 chassis cab will be for sale as an unfinished car that can be changed in many ways. The chassis cab connects the front of the PV5 payload with a flat piece and protects the batteries in case of a side collision. It also has mounting brackets for installations like a normal box van or freezer box layout. In the future, there will be many new models, such as the wheelchair-accessible PV5 WAV and the PV5 crew, which have both seating and storage for goods. There will also be a camping model. Kia shared new details about the PV5 WAV. It will have a side door with a ramp that can lift up to 661 pounds, which wheelchair users can use to get into the van from the curb. Kia says the WAV model has comfortable third-row tip-up seats so other people can travel with a wheelchair user and an easy-to-use universal wheelchair belt-fastening system. Modern Cabin Design with Electric Motors There will be three kinds of batteries for the PV5. Nickel-manganese-cobalt batteries with 51.5 kWh or 71.2 kWh capacities will be used in most electric van types. The PV5 freight type will also have a 43.3-kWh unit with lithium-iron-phosphate chemistry. There is one front-mounted electric motor that makes 161 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque. All of the batteries will power it. Kia says that the PV5’s peak range will be about 248 miles when equipped with the 71.2-kWh battery in the passenger form. Based on the hopeful European WLTP test cycle and the EPA’s method, the number means a 211-mile range. Kia says that the PV5 can charge from 10% to 80% in as little as 30 minutes, but it doesn’t say which battery this promise applies to. There are different colors for the cabin, ranging from Deep Navy to Terracotta Brown and Iceberg Green. It looks current and nice for a van. Kia says it uses materials that are good for the environment, last a long time, and are easy to clean. The “driver zone” is the identical for all PV5 versions and consists of a 12.9-inch infotainment screen running the Android Automotive operating system and a 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster. In line with the idea of being flexible, the car company has released “Kia AddGear,” a modular cabin adds line. The PV5 will be assembled at South Korea’s new EVO Plant, a specialized manufacturing center. Sales will start in South Korea and Europe in the second half of 2025 and spread to other parts of the world in 2026. The “chicken tax,” a 25% import tax on light cars, means that the PV5 will not be sold in the United States.
