Kia EV3 aces the Australian Open, with March arrival likely for the Hyundai Kona and MG ZS rival

The Kia EV3 lands in Australian dealers from around March this year following the all-electric small SUV’s national debut at Melbourne’s Australian Open tennis.

Full pricing and specification will be announced in coming weeks, but the EV3’s hotly tipped to kick off below $50,000.

Kia Australia’s said most sold here will feature a larger 81.4kWh power pack. A base model uses a smaller 58.3kWh battery.

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The Kia EV3 lands in Australian dealers from around March this year following the all-electric small SUV’s national debut at Melbourne’s Australian Open tennis.

Full pricing and specification will be announced in coming weeks, but the EV3’s hotly tipped to kick off below $50,000.

Kia Australia’s said most sold here will feature a larger 81.4kWh power pack. A base model uses a smaller 58.3kWh battery.

All-wheel drive will also be available from launch, with a GT-Line or GTR version set to come with dual-motors to provide hot hatch levels of acceleration.

More good news is the EV3 will feature Kia’s Smart Regenerative System 3.0 tech, plus vehicle-to-load functionality.

It rides on the same Hyundai Group e-GMP platform as Kia’s larger electric cars (like the EV6) but instead of employing an 800-volt electrical architecture the small SUV will make do with 400V electrics.

That means charging rate will be much lower, with the 81.4kWh battery only capable of receiving a DC charge of up to 128kW. A 10-80 per cent top-up takes around 31 minutes, which is competitive for its class.

While the Standard Range variant should be able to cover around 430km on a charge, the Long Range models should be able to travel up to 600km before the need to plug in.

Primed to mirror the bigger EV5, expect the EV3 to be offered in Air Standard Range, Air Long Range, Earth Long Range and GT-Line Long Range.

All versions, bar the GT-Line or future GT, will come with a single e-motor that produces 150kW and 283Nm of torque.

Unusually, the EV3 will initially be sold alongside the Niro EV and the Niro Hybrid even though it will eventually supersede it in Kia Australia’s line-up.

All-wheel drive will also be available from launch, with a GT-Line or GTR version set to come with dual-motors to provide hot hatch levels of acceleration.

More good news is the EV3 will feature Kia’s Smart Regenerative System 3.0 tech, plus vehicle-to-load functionality.

It rides on the same Hyundai Group e-GMP platform as Kia’s larger electric cars (like the EV6) but instead of employing an 800-volt electrical architecture the small SUV will make do with 400V electrics.

That means charging rate will be much lower, with the 81.4kWh battery only capable of receiving a DC charge of up to 128kW. A 10-80 per cent top-up takes around 31 minutes, which is competitive for its class.

While the Standard Range variant should be able to cover around 430km on a charge, the Long Range models should be able to travel up to 600km before the need to plug in.

Primed to mirror the bigger EV5, expect the EV3 to be offered in Air Standard Range, Air Long Range, Earth Long Range and GT-Line Long Range.

All versions, bar the GT-Line or future GT, will come with a single e-motor that produces 150kW and 283Nm of torque.

Unusually, the EV3 will initially be sold alongside the Niro EV and the Niro Hybrid even though it will eventually supersede it in Kia Australia’s line-up.