Kia Australia says the entry-level EV2 all-electric crossover is “probably leaning towards no” for a local introduction, citing production and freight costs as key challenges.
Speaking with CarExpert at the launch of the new EV4 Sedan, general manager for product planning at Kia Australia, Roland Rivero, said the local arm will struggle to get the price of the Slovakian-built EV2 under the entry point of the Korean-sourced EV3.
“[The EV2] is probably coming up not at the price point we would like it to be,” Mr Rivero told CarExpert.
“It has to sit comfortably below EV3, and if we can’t get it far enough below an EV3, then we start to question its feasibility for our market.
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“We’ve made mention in the past that, particularly with the likes of BYD introducing the Atto 2 [with a price] starting with a ‘3’, it just has to make logical sense.”
“Every variant that we want to look at, we’ve got to make sure it brings some real value to Kia Australia, whether it be a proper halo product or whether its going to be positioned and priced accordingly as well,” Mr Rivero added.
CarExpert understands that while the EV2 wouldn’t be subject to import tariffs like combustion-engined vehicles from Europe, the higher cost of production from Kia’s Slovakian factory plus the longer and more complex shipping route to get vehicles Down Under are the biggest hurdles affecting the new model’s price point.
For reference, the EV2 is expected to start around the £25,000 (A$49,021) mark in the United Kingdom, whereas the Korean-built EV3 kicks off from just over £33,000 (A$64,708). In Australia, however, the EV3’s base pricing starts from $47,600 plus on-road costs, which poses a significant challenge for the local arm based on direct currency conversion alone.
The 2026 Kia EV2 recently made its global debut at the Brussels motor show, becoming the smallest and most affordable model in Kia’s European EV lineup.
Its distinctive boxy design is augmented by bright exterior and interior colour and trim options, with two battery sizes available in Europe – 42.2kWh and 61.0kWh, offering 317km and 448km of WLTP (pending) range respectively.
Measuring a teeny 4060mm long and 1800mm wide with a 2565mm wheelbase, the EV2 is shorter in length than Kia’s own Stonic crossover. It’s wider, however, and offers up to 403L of cargo capacity by way of its sliding rear bench seats.
Power comes from a 107kW front-mounted electric motor in the Standard Range, while the Long Range gets an (oddly) less powerful 100kW motor. Zero to 100km/h takes between 8.6 and 9.5 seconds, respectively.
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