2025 Kia EV6 GT Review: So Close To Being Good, Yet So Far

Forgive me for immediately derailing a review about the Kia EV6 GT to talk about the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N. I’m doing it, though, because the two cars share a common platform and many mechanical bits, so it’s an incredibly worthwhile car to bring up.

You see, we absolutely adore the 5 N at Car Throttle. We bring it up very often (case in point), named it the first truly great performance EV on first review and brought it along to our 2024 Car of the Year showdown.

Yet, the very similar EV6 GT was first. It came a whole year before the 5 N, albeit with less power, but still more than plenty. A dual-motor setup kicked out 577bhp, 0-62mph in 3.5 seconds and the ability to embarrass supercar owners seeing a Kia-badged car keep up with them.

Quick, yes, but the EV6 GT always felt a little confused. While it had sports car pace, the chassis felt like it couldn’t ever make the most of it. It also lacked all the stuff that made the 5 N so great – the clever pretend gearbox, the silly sounds, the full suite of torque vectoring technology.

Now an updated version has arrived, and with a few lessons learned from the well-received Hyundai. For a start, it now has more power, with the wick turned up to the full 641bhp to match the 5 N and torque raised to 568lb ft from 546.

Yet, its 0-62mph hasn’t changed (I presume limited by the tyres already dealing with two tonnes of mass) and oddly, its top speed drops from 162mph to 161mph. Not exactly a dealbreaker.

It still doesn’t have all of the torque vectoring as seen on the rear axle of the 5 N, nor the front of the upcoming Hyundai Ioniq 6 N, but it does get the virtual gear shift. Unlike the Hyundai’s system, this pretends to have six speeds rather than eight. Oh, and while it does get a piped-in sound effect pretending to be an engine, it’s not selectable like with the 5 N, nor is it as bonkers as any of its choices.

As for the rest of the hardware under the skin, it has been set up to be a tad softer than before – partly to make it a better cruiser in Kia’s words, and in our own, I suspect for your bones to survive trying to make any use of the available power.

What does that all lead to? Well, more of the same, to be frank.

Yes, it’s still obscenely quick. Frighteningly so when you press the big green GT button and then remember this is a car from a manufacturer that just 10 years ago hadn’t built anything more exciting than the Proceed GT.

It still lacks that engagement, though, even with the virtual gear shift system enabled. It makes the car more intuitive, no doubt, but its comparatively long ‘ratios’ and general lack of theatre that makes it so fun on the 5 N doesn’t work to the same effect here. It doesn’t really help that its default is buried in several menus and tucked quietly under a settings box, rather than tied to any driving modes, as if Kia doesn’t really want to admit it’s put the system in the car.

Then there’s the suspension setup. It’s too soft for a performance car, yet a little too stiff still for the regular stuff – a problem our esteemed Mike Bartholomew pins on the base car, too. Really, it struggles to be more compelling than the regular EV6 beyond its turn of pace and leaves you wondering why bother with the GT at all.

Its 84kWh battery pack is quoted as returning 279 miles on a single charge. From a week with the car, I think you’d do well to crack 220 miles regularly. You can have the same battery in the regular car, and you will get north of 270 between stops.

I can direct you to Mike’s review of that for thoughts on the interior and whether or not the EV6 as a whole is worth considering, as we’re largely in agreement on those points.

As for the Kia EV6 GT, though? I can think of two reasons why you would buy one over the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N. First, it’s about £5000 cheaper at £59,985 before you tick any options.

Second. It looks sensational. Grown-up even. Compare it with the comparatively yobbish 5, and I’d see why you may want your 641bhp EV to look a little more sensible.

But then, why even bother buying a 641bhp EV from the Hyundai Motor Group in the first place in that case? For everything else, the Ioniq 5 N not only matches but exceeds everything the EV6 can offer.

The Kia EV6 GT is so close to being a good car, and yet, somehow so far.