Despite Its Tiny Size The Kia EV2 Concept Has The Perfect Seats For Canoodling
At its EV Day event in Spain this week, Kia revealed the production versions of the EV4 sedan and PV5 van, both hugely important electric vehicles for the brand. Kia used the opportunity to also unveil a concept version of its upcoming EV2, a really tiny SUV aimed at European cities. Its adorable exterior is a close preview of what to expect from the production EV2 that will come out next year, and while the interior of the Concept EV2 is definitely more, well, concept-y than the outside, it has one real standout feature that I must highlight: the seats.
If you've been missing the old Honda Fit's Magic Seats, you're in luck, because the EV2 concept has an evolution of the same idea. As it's based on the same E-GMP platform as other Hyundai Motor Group vehicles, the EV2 has a totally flat floor that Kia's designers took full advantage of. The base of the rear seat can flip up, allowing the front bench to slide all the way back, leaving a ton of room between you and the dashboard. Kia says it's perfect for relaxing or stretching your legs, and that you can sit on the flat floor to enjoy a meal, but we all know what this is really good for. If you're trying to cuddle up at a drive-in theater or get naughty at lover's lane, this seems like a way more spacious solution than getting into the back seat.
When you open up the Concept EV2's front sliding and rear-hinged rear doors, sections slide out of the ends of the bench to add additional seating areas and storage compartments. While the production EV2 will certainly have four normal, front-hinged doors, the flip-up bench and sliding front seat doesn't seem far-fetched to me. In other markets, cars like the Kia EV9 and Hyundai Ioniq 9 have second-row captain's chairs that swivel around to face the third row, and Hyundai has shown off how you can slide and recline the Ioniq 9's front passenger seat pretty far back, right up against the second-row seat, for a great lounge experience.
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Kia says the EV2's interior "blends practicality and emotion," but it's really not too different from its current offerings, or even that concept-y. The orange metal surface running along the dash incorporates power outlets and a wireless charger along with some physical media or climate controls, and the only other piece of hardware on the dash is the seamless widescreen display. Kia doesn't say what sort of orange fabric is covering the front section of the interior, only that the EV2 uses sustainable materials, but the color split looks great.
The triangular speakers in the door cards are actually removable and portable, like what you get in a Rivian. There are also pop-up sliding luggage dividers and straps, sections in the windows that display text messages to pedestrians or other road users, and animated LEDs in the dash. To go along with the door speakers there are lots of triangular motifs throughout, like the headrest shapes and the metal straps that appear to hold the seatbacks in place.
While the EV2 might not look quite as outrageous as some of Kia's other recent EVs on the outside, it's definitely distinctive and has a lot of cool elements. It's the first instance we've seen of Kia using a pair of vertical headlights on each side, which sit above a bumper that looks like a sports person's mouth guard.
Crisp lines run along broad shoulders that have prominent angular wheel arches, and the EV2's boxy silhouette and upright stance give me Soul vibes. The C-pillar shape is a new motif for Kia that works well here, and my favorite element are the weird taillights that are mounted quite low down on the rear end.
Kia says the EV2 will launch in Europe and "other regions" in 2026, and the production model has already been spied looking basically identical to the concept, at least from the outside. Sadly, it doesn't seem like the U.S. will be one of those "other regions." The company hasn't given exact dimensions but Kia says the EV2 is a B-segment SUV, of which there are barely any in America — think cars like the Nissan Juke and Ford EcoSport. We could see the production version of the EV2 be revealed at some point later this year.
Read the original article on Jalopnik.
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