Kia Is Bringing An All Electric Pickup To Market, And It Should Be Coming To The US

I’ve previously called out that Kia is working on a mid size EV pickup and now a prototype model has been spotted cruising around the freeways of Southern California. Does this mean Kia is imminently planning to bring an all electric pickup truck to market in the US? My magic 8 ball says… Yes, and here’s why: Kia isn’t selling any kind of pickup in the US, currently, which means Kia has zero percent of the most lucrative vehicle segment in the US market. While it might make sense for Kia to bring a hybrid (HEV) or plug-in hybrid (PHEV) pickup truck to market as well or instead, depending, there is presently only one mid side EV pickup available in the US: the Rivian R1T. Thus, Kia wouldn’t have a lot of competition, until one or more of these other brands launches a mid size EV pickup too. Kia’s manufacturing capacity for EVs (in the near term) and battery supply is almost perpetually limited, so it makes sense for Kia to opt for a lower volume entry into the nascent EV pickup market segment. The mid size (rather than full size) pickup market in the US is a smaller, but still lucrative, truck market that also better “translates” to the international truck market too. Finally, by choosing to produce an EV pickup model for the US market, Kia may well be positioning itself to be the new value leader in the electric (or electrified) pickup segment. Kia’s new EV pickup would likely start at least $10,000 lower, if not more like $20,000 lower, than the Rivian1T. Thus, such an EV would immediately garner some fandom from the truck loving population and assuming so this would help Kia meet their EV growth targets while drawing in new customers to the brand.

Not much else is known about the forthcoming Kia EV pickup besides its likely mid size stature, comparable to the Ford Ranger, and possibly its name: the Tasman, though that name may be what Kia uses for a different model not destined for the US which may not be an EV pickup. Note comparing the pickups shown in the electrek.com and the motor1.com links above is difficult due to camouflage, but they appear to be the same truck. They could be the same platform too, potentially, but different models, but these may simply be test mules and not representative of what the final product will be. We can however speculate a little, within reason, about performance specs for the forthcoming electric pickup from Kia. It is common and to be expected that Kia would try to use the same battery pack or modules in this pickup as is used in its other large EVs, especially its current largest model the EV9. The EV9 has two sizes for its battery packs: 76.1 kWh and 99.8 kWh. The smaller size might not be big enough for an EV pickup as it would be less aerodynamic than the EV9 and possibly heavier, which would mean an even lower range. That said, by the time Kia’s pickup goes on sale in the US, the EV9 pack may be on its next generation (and would likely increase its capacity by 10% or more). So it is possible Kia might use an 80-90 kWh pack in the lower priced trims for its new EV pickup, but I would think only if they are offering what might be considered a work truck model with a maximum range of less than 200 miles. Kia may want to simplify matters though, and only offer a single battery pack in its pickup and if so, it would most likely be the larger 99.8 kWh pack if not a new/revised version of that pack with over 100 kWh. Since EV mid size pickups (using the R1T as a comparison) might optimistically average about 2 – 2.3 miles per kWh (when not towing), if Kia opted for a 100 kWh pack, their pickup may barely break into the 200 mile range which is not competitive (other than perhaps for a work truck or base model). As such I fully expect that the smallest pack Kia’s EV pickup might be offered with is the larger 99.8 kWh pack from the EV9, and more likely Kia’s EV pickup will offer a 110 – 130 kWh battery. That would mean ranges anywhere between 220 and about 300 miles on a full charge (and that range would be significantly less while towing, or a bit less when driving 90% or more at freeway speeds). It may be safe to say that Kia would target at least 90% of the towing capacity (if not greater than) of other mid-sized EVs, so I would anticipate a 10,000 – 12,000 lb capacity there (again based on the Rivian R1T). Acceleration times may be slightly less than what Rivian’s truck offers (3.5 to 4.3 seconds to 60 MPH) if we consider how other Kia EVs compare in this metric to say Tesla’s Model 3. I estimate then we might see 4.5 – 5.0 second times for Kia’s truck at the aggressive or sporty end, and 5.5 – 6 seconds at the lower end.

Are you interested in Kia’s forthcoming EV pickup or in mid size electric trucks in general? Why are you interested in them and how would you expect to use one? Are there any concerns you have about such a vehicle’s range and might you be more inclined to favor a hybrid (plug-in or otherwise) mid size pickup instead of an EV? Please leave your questions and comments below.

Images courtesy of Kia, Electrek.com and Kindel Auto.

Justin Hart has owned and driven electric vehicles for over 15 years, including a first generation Nissan LEAF, second generation Chevy Volt, Tesla Model 3, an electric bicycle and most recently a Kia Sorento PHEV. He is also an avid SUP rider, poet, photographer and wine lover. He enjoys taking long EV and PHEV road trips to beautiful and serene places with the people he loves. Follow Justin on Torque News Kia or X for regular electric and hybrid news coverage.