Kia EV9 wins GCOTY 2024 luxury category

The three-row, seven-seat Kia EV9 electric SUV has won the “Luxury” category for the German Car of the Year 2024 competition.

The GCOTY luxury category encompasses all models with a base price exceeding 70,000 euros, the Kia EV9 winning against eight others, chosen by 27 trade journalists who evaluated 48 new models for the Compact, Premium, Luxury, New Energy, and Performance classes.

The overall winner from the five best-in-class categories will be announced early October.

The EV9 has become the second model to join Kia’s dedicated battery electric vehicle (BEV) line-up, following the multi-award winning EV6 which got European Car of the Year in 2022.

The Kia EV9 has been open for orders in Europe since July, with the first units scheduled for delivery to European customers later this year.

“As Kia’s new flagship, the EV9 plays a pivotal role in transforming our brand into a leading EV provider,” says Kia Europe president Won-Jeong Jeong, adding the win sends a strong signal.

“With its extraordinarily variable and spacious interior, striking design, and ultra-fast charging technology, it sets new standards in the SUV segment.”

The EV9 has 800-volt ultra-fast charging technology, the 99.8kWh battery able to gain up to 239km range in 15 minutes, a rear-wheel-drive option powered by a 150kW motor with a range of standard features including vehicle-to-load (V2L), finger-print recognition, a sensor-controlled tailgate, three-zone automatic climate control, and electrically folding third-row backrests.

Alternatively, it comes as an all-wheel-drive variant powered by twin 141kW electric motors.

The AWD version is also available as the sporty GT-line model, which can get from zero to 100km/h in 5.3 seconds and has a 200km/h top speed, has electrically adjustable front-row ‘relax’ seats.

A driver assistance suite is standard for the GT-line.

Check out our EV9 review.