E-Niro test drive

All Kia Niro related discussions
Colin Lambert
Posts: 66
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2019 12:14 pm

Post by Colin Lambert »

Hello all,
I thought you might be interested in my test drive of the E-Niro Yesterday morning at Chalkes of Yeovil. By whom we were very courteously and efficiently dealt.
This is a copy of an email (because I feel lazy! :lol: ) that I wrote to my motorhead friends. Therefore some of the information given will all be well known by most readers here.

Very quick of the mark as, of course, all EVs are) Very comfortable ride and as far as I could tell good roadholding.

The lane keeping was not intrusive and quite useful with a 'ping' and/or a very light tug on the steering wheel to remind you that you are straying.

It came on Michelin Premacy tyres.
There was the usual EV whine from the motor and wind and road noise was at about the same level as the Karoq. i:e:- not bad.
Front seating (black leather heated, as was steering wheel.) very spacious with electric controls for driver, plenty of leg room and adequate steering wheel up/down in/out adjustment.
Very comfortable seats with no lumbar adjustment, but it was not required for either of our less than perfect spines!
Rear seats and tailgate were all manually operated. Seat backs were very heavy to lift back to upright position and do not slide, nor recline and as usual with most modern cars do NOT lie flat in spite of what all the reviewers say.

The whole car seemed very well put together and of good quality.
The whole car including the battery is covered by the standard Kia 7 year warranty.
The re-gen paddles on the steering wheel worked well and would eventually (on strongest re-gen) slow the car right down to less that 1MPH.
The power comnsumption through our 18 milke trip was averaging 3.6Kwh/.mile.
Boot depth( back to front) 30 inches. Flat floor.

Negative points as fasr as I am concerned.
No visible forward distance control, only increasing beeps, As far as I could tell but I didn't have time to delve into the gimmickry
MOST annoying welcome and goodbye chimes.
Contrary to all the reviews I have read the E-Niro Edition (only the one level coming to U,K,) does NOT have a panoramic opening roof
. Choice of colours on a car costing well north of £30K was appalling..(black, white, silver, dark gey and very dark blue) very unimagintive and just as poor as Skoda palette.
Altough it had LED running lights it only had standard halogen bulbs . WHY?? they guzzle electricity.. Surely on an EV you would have LED headlights?? They are available in other markets. Why not the U.K?
Apart from that we were very impressed,
The waiting list is approximately 12 months and a £1,000 deposit is required to get in the queue.

I am not prepared to do this as other options/makes might come out in the next year.The deposit is, I gather, only returnable if buying another Kia rather than the E-Niro. If you decide to buy another make I think you may well loose your deposit. also I am not prepared to nail my colours to the mast until they bring one out with a panoramic opening roof and more interesting colours.
cheers,
Colin
79 cars so far! Now 71 Reg eNiro 4+ Yacht Blue.
Dip Mech Eng (automotive)
Mod Karoq & HR-V forums.

radar2018
Posts: 88
Joined: Sun Jun 24, 2018 5:26 pm

Post by radar2018 »

Was the 3.6kw per mile, surely it was better than that, the £0.30 per KW at some charging stations, comes out at £1 per mile
KIA NIRO PHEV OCT 2018 Gravity Blue
eLTe
Posts: 10
Joined: Mon Dec 24, 2018 8:14 am

Post by eLTe »

radar2018 wrote: Sun Apr 14, 2019 4:13 pm Was the 3.6kw per mile, surely it was better than that, the £0.30 per KW at some charging stations, comes out at £1 per mile
Somebody needs to work on their maths...

30p per kWh works out at 8.3p per mile if 3.6miles per kWh. Still cheaper than most ICE cars can achieve and no one has a long range BEV and charges off rapids only.
Colin Lambert
Posts: 66
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2019 12:14 pm

Post by Colin Lambert »

The dashboard 'fuel' consumption was showing-----Quote. "averaging 3.6Kwh/.mile".
Most reviews of EVs that I have seen consider 4.4 Kw PER MILE to be pretty good.
It's all very confusing for all of us, specially an old f*rt like me who has driven ICEs for longer than a lot of you chaps have lived.
79 cars so far! Now 71 Reg eNiro 4+ Yacht Blue.
Dip Mech Eng (automotive)
Mod Karoq & HR-V forums.
radar2018
Posts: 88
Joined: Sun Jun 24, 2018 5:26 pm

Post by radar2018 »

Surely it must be 3.6 miles per kw or better still 4.4 miles per kw which is about what I get with my PHEV, I put in according to my charger 8.7KW and travel 35-36 miles if it is a warm day, 28-30 if it is cold
KIA NIRO PHEV OCT 2018 Gravity Blue
radar2018
Posts: 88
Joined: Sun Jun 24, 2018 5:26 pm

Post by radar2018 »

Surely it must be 3.6 miles per kw or better still 4.4 miles per kw which is about what I get with my PHEV, I put in according to my charger 8.7KW and travel 35-36 miles if it is a warm day, 28-30 if it is cold

I think my maths are correct, 3.6 kw per mile = 0.30 x 3.6 =1.08
KIA NIRO PHEV OCT 2018 Gravity Blue
jerrytaff
Posts: 120
Joined: Wed Oct 03, 2018 8:28 pm

Post by jerrytaff »

Radar2018's calculations are correct and his hypothesis sounds correct too.

The battery holds 64kWh. 3.6kWh/ mile would only give it a range of 17 miles...half that of my PHEV. 3.6 miles/kWh would give it a range of 240 miles which sounds right.
2018 PHEV 3 in Gravity Blue :D
Previous DS (formerly Citroen) DS5 Prestige BlueHDi S/S Auto 2.0, Jaguar X type 2.0 S Diesel
Colin Lambert
Posts: 66
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2019 12:14 pm

Post by Colin Lambert »

Well, knowing the old duffer that I am and being the first time in a pure EV, I had a Mitsu PHEV a few years ago, I probably mis-read the dashboard. I was trying to look where I was going most of the time and only glanced at the figures.
If so.....Mea Culpa for confusing the situation! :oops:
79 cars so far! Now 71 Reg eNiro 4+ Yacht Blue.
Dip Mech Eng (automotive)
Mod Karoq & HR-V forums.
HaxbyPete
Posts: 55
Joined: Sat Jan 26, 2019 10:18 am

Post by HaxbyPete »

Sorry, duplicated post - oops !
Last edited by HaxbyPete on Mon Apr 15, 2019 2:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
HaxbyPete
Posts: 55
Joined: Sat Jan 26, 2019 10:18 am

Post by HaxbyPete »

I test drove the eNiro at S.G. Petch here in York a week ago.

Although I had no intentions of buying one I thought it would be churlish to turn down their kind invitation. I have had a self-charging Niro for almost three years now and am absolutely delighted with it. I am due for a renewal of lease in September and I may just replace it like for like when the time comes.

However I was very impressed with the eNiro's take-off from the lights and it's ease of handling which compared well to my Niro.

The gap in the floor where a gear stick should normally be found was replaced by a small console with a rotating drive selector which seemed fiddly but I am sure I would quickly get the hang of it. I tried to operate the foot/hand brake only to realise that it wasn't there and found the electric parking brake instead. Felt rather foolish !

But my main beef with KIA UK right now is how we get offered a reduced and rather boring palette of colours compared to other European countries which get the very same models but in more exciting colours ! Why is that ? I am thinking of writing to the UK Marketing Director to ask him who makes these decisions as nobody at my dealership or KIA UK Support Line can tell me.

The demonstrator I drove was in white, white and white which, when they have blanked out the iconic KIA tiger nose radiator grill (because there is no radiator required) makes the e-Niro look very faceless - looked rather like a Lego Car in fact !

My salesman did tell me that there is a 52 weeks delivery (at least) and the £1,000 holding deposit would be followed by an approach at three months from delivery to confirm the order and start on arranging finance etc. Anyone wishing to withdraw would be able to do so at the three months point and have their deposit returned. That is what he said ! Maybe it's a dealer policy - not KIA's - which can change dealer to dealer.

I fully expect there to be a 'black market' in these cars are there is such a long delivery time and such an ever-increasing demand. A lot of 'speculators' will be placing orders around the country and then selling their slot off at a premium when the three months point comes to people who can't be bothered to wait a year..

Meanwhile there is due to be a new upgrade of the HEV Niro this year- but nobody at KIA UK or their dealership can say when, or how much or what colour pallette even yet !

I am becoming very frustrated with KIA UK !!
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