Kia Niro: Launch as a Hybrid

As early as January 2022, the sale of the new Niro Hybrid is set to start in South Korea, with Germany scheduled to be supplied from mid-2022. The drive combines a gasoline engine with 77.2 kW (105 hp) with a 32 kW electric motor: Kia specifies the system output as 104 kW (141 hp), thereby keeping the Niro in line with the values of its predecessor.

For this, the new six-speed dual-clutch transmission is supposed to be lighter and more efficient. However, Kia has not yet provided any consumption data or information about the battery installed in the hybrid model. The two "plug-in versions" PHEV and e-Niro are to follow at a later date. The plug-in is supposed to come with a so-called "Greenzone Drive Mode." A geofencing-based system where the drive automatically switches to E-mode in certain areas, for example in the city or near schools or hospitals. The system is also supposed to recognize the driver's "favorite locations" such as their home or office and set them as "Greenzones." In general, this function is also announced for the hybrid, but due to the limited E-range, the effect is likely to remain very modest.

What does that mean?

Thank you, Kia! For not turning the "faster-higher-further" screw with the Niro, but instead optimizing only details and making the gray-mouse design of the predecessor much wilder. It's just a shame that the program doesn't start with the electric version – which already scored points in the predecessor as an economical quiet mover.