What a giant! The Kia EV9 is definitely a car to look out for: big, wide and square, with small LED headlights. And then the large object hums with a quiet electrical noise. With both aspects (a hammer design and electric drive in all vehicle classes), Kia has become a tough opponent for VW, Skoda and company.

Kia combustion engine versus electric Kia: who is better?

After the commotion of the VW ID, another car arrives on the market that will supposedly replace the combustion engine in XL cars. But can it be so? I wanted to find out and pitted the EV9 against my own Kia Sorento, which has been the family car for almost two years. There are points in each category and the score is settled at the end. Come on!

1. Body and interior

Design is a matter of taste. At least one thing is clear: the EV9 attracts more attention than the Sorento, which is also modern but a little more civilized. However, the XXL body of the Kia EV9, which measures more than five meters wide and with exterior mirrors more than two meters wide, has a major disadvantage. The car is so long and wide that it is difficult to park, especially in parking lots. And the vehicle's turning radius is also generous despite the space-saving electric motors.

The EV9 really has a lot of interior space, even a little more than the Sorento. However, it is also configured differently: the Sorento has a normal rear seat that can be moved and behind it there are individually folding seats. The EV9, on the other hand, has two individual seats in the rear that can be turned 90 degrees to the side or back (swivel seats) and a second bench behind them. This has decisive advantages: as an adult you have a very comfortable space, you can buckle the children more easily in the child seat and you can also do it quite easily on the rear bench, because you can crawl between the two rear seats. The panoramic glass roof (also offered by the Sorento) ensures sufficient headroom. The EV9's huge storage compartments in the center console are also fantastic.

The EV9's boot still holds 333 liters with the seats full, meaning that despite having two adults and three children on board, there is still room for the weekly shop or folded stroller. This is also possible with the Kia Sorento, but then you have to tighten it a lot. The electric giant also surpasses the Sorento in terms of maximum trunk volume, with 2,318 liters (from 2,077 to 2,100 liters, depending on the type of propulsion).

Provisional conclusion EV9 – Sorento: 1:0 – Although the XXL dimensions of the EV9 cause problems on a daily basis, the better space and, above all, the greater variability of the interior make the electric Kia win this chapter.

2. Operation and infotainment

The start of the Sorento is a bit unfair because it came on the market two years ago and the EV9 is new. And two years is a short eternity when it comes to infotainment, as quickly as technology improves. The EV9's huge screen catches your eye at first glance, while the Sorento's screen is significantly smaller. However, the Sorento's cabin ambiance is more upscale. The EV9 gets more hard plastic, so the Koreans had to save money somewhere with their Maxi Stromer. Both vehicles have premium extras such as a head-up display, very good voice control and a high-quality sound system.

An advantage of the electric family truck is the ability to “work” even when stopped. The Kia EV9 has a special mode that continues to run the air conditioning and radio/infotainment in an energy-saving manner. Ideal if there are longer waiting times for children. We also liked the air conditioning programming so that you have the car defrosted and preheated when you leave in the morning.

The retractable door handles are less good. In fact, one of them froze us on a cold winter morning, the door temporarily unable to be opened from the outside. Automakers should stop this design nonsense with recessed handles. Another annoyance is the EU assistance systems that are now required for new cars. Therefore, you have to live with constant warning beeps even if you exceed the speed limit even slightly. Even more annoying is the “attention assistant,” which in the EV9 is overwhelmed when driving on a long, curving country road. The piercing warning with the request to take a break gets on your nerves. And there's something else that's unpleasant about the EV9: the car is so long that you may have trouble getting the CCS fast charger cable to the charging socket (rear right) of the charging station.

Provisional conclusion EV9 – Sorento: 2:1 – Here there is a tie, everyone gets a point. The EV9 is the latest car and as an electric vehicle it has some interesting features that combustion engines don't offer. But sometimes the technology can irritate you without giving you a real advantage over the Sorento.

3. Chassis and handling

The Kia EV9 glides silently, a true colossus. However, the Sorento's combustion engine (in this case not even the plug-in hybrid, but the regular gasoline hybrid 1.6 HEV) also runs quietly and even runs purely electrically over short distances. In addition, the Sorento is more pleasant to drive than the EV9 due to its slightly more urban dimensions (4.8 meters instead of five). The latter weighs an incredible 2.6 tonnes and carries more than half a ton of bacon on it compared to the Sorento. This shows: both SUVs offer plenty of driving comfort, but the Sorento navigates traffic with greater agility and ease despite having less power and torque.

However, the EV9 is ahead in terms of performance. The all-wheel drive version accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.3 seconds, like a Porsche, and the pulling power when overtaking is fantastic. It is possible to reach a maximum speed of 200 km/h. The Sorento, which also has all-wheel drive with a gasoline hybrid, takes nine seconds to accelerate as standard and reaches 193 km/h.

Provisional conclusion EV9 – Sorento: 3:2 – Here also both models get one point each. Performance is not everything. As much fun as the EV9's electric power is, in everyday family SUV life, the EV9's jump-start when parking and sweat in the parking lot aren't worth it. Both cars are comfortable cruisers with a high comfort factor. By the way, our comparison cars were equipped with all-wheel drive, but the Sorento is also available with front-wheel drive and the EV9 with rear-wheel drive. However, we definitely recommend all-wheel drive for such large vehicles, regardless of whether they have a combustion engine or an electric motor under the hood.

4. Engine, propulsion and consumption

On paper, the point is clear: the 283 kW / 385 HP and 700 Newton meters of maximum torque of the electric Kia EV9 should actually be small pieces of the 195 kW / 265 HP and 350 Newton meters of the Sorento Hybrid . But in practice it looks completely different:

• The EV9 can only take the crown when it comes to performance. Apart from the sometimes complicated handling, it is noticeably faster than the combustion engine.
• The murderous argument against The electric car is its enormous hunger for energy. . Despite the almost 100 kWh battery, in practice the maximum range is 400-430 km, and only about 300 km when driving on the highway. During our winter test, consumption ranged from 25 to more than 30 kilowatt hours per 100 km. You can't do less. The Sorento, on the other hand, which has been used daily for two years now, is content even in winter with just under seven liters per 100 kilometers (in summer it is 5.9). In practice, this translates into a range three times greater than that of the EV9, at least 900 km. This means that to travel the same distance on the highway, and we are talking about a maximum of 120-130 km/h, you have to charge the electric EV9 twice on the way. If you are forced to do these charging processes with an expensive fast charger, there is not even a cost advantage.

Provisional conclusion EV9 – Sorento: 3:3 – The time of the combustion engine (hybrid) has arrived and it turns out that the electric drive is not superior in all types of vehicles. Therefore, the chapter clearly goes to the Sorento.

5. Costs and equipment

Both SUVs are not special offers. The Sorento was significantly cheaper when it was launched than it is now; Now you have to pay a whopping 63,000 euros for the hybrid version with 265 HP, all-wheel drive, panoramic glass roof and seven-seater package. But in terms of equipment there are no unfulfilled wishes, everything is really on board. At most, a tow hitch can be considered as an option. The all-wheel drive model with panoramic roof of the Kia EV9 costs an impressive 79,000 euros, although you don't have to pay any major extras either. However, there is still a difference of 16,000 euros: the price of a small car.

Conclusion

The Sorento also wins in the cost department, so the conclusion is: 4:3 for the combustion engine. A few months ago, the price chapter would have been much more favorable to the combustion engine. Unfortunately, the Koreans have now made their cars very expensive, which is probably why the gap with electric models is narrowing a bit.

The EV9 is a stunning luxury cruiser that showcases the possibilities that space-saving electric propulsion offers in interior design. But the Sorento's excellent price-performance ratio simply can't be matched by the electric family hauler. In this size and weight class, the fundamental disadvantages of electric drives become especially clear, at least with current battery technology. Furthermore, the EV9 is too big to be really happy on European streets and squares.