Kia has announced pricing and specifications for its new EV6 electric flagship, which opens for orders mid-May priced from £40,895.

The UK line-up starts from £40,895 for rear-wheel-drive EV6

The new crossover is the first of 11 new battery electric vehicles due under the ‘Plan S’ strategy first revealed last year and will be offered in a range of versions, including a 585hp performance version.

All feature a 77.4kWh battery pack, giving up to a 316-mile range, along with ultra-fast 800V charging capabilities as standard.

The entry-level £40,895 EV6 is powered by a 228hp motor on the rear axle and features equipment including Drive Mode Select, black vegan leather upholstery, dual automatic air con, rear parking sensors, engine start-stop with smart entry and dark grey 19-inch alloys. Driver assistance tech includes Forward Collision Avoidance Assist (FCA) with city, pedestrian, cyclist and junction-turning functionality, and Highway Driving Assist and it gets Navigation-based Smart Cruise Control with Stop & Go.

The GT-Line models are expected to account for the highest proportion of EV6 sales in the UK, and are available with a choice of drivetrains. The rear-wheel drive model costs £43,895, and is offered with a 228hp rear motor, while all-wheel drive models, priced from £47,395, offer 326hp from their dual-motor drivetrain.

GT-Line models add in various bespoke exterior and interior styling details as well as black 19-inch wheels with diamond-cut finish, memory driver and power front passenger seats, premium ‘relaxation’ seats, front parking sensors, wireless smartphone charger and vehicle-to-load functionality, which is capable of discharging energy from the vehicle battery, supplying up to 3.6kW of power. They also add in Blind-Spot Collision Warning to the ADAS equipment.

GT-Line S models, with additional standard equipment, are priced from £48,395 (rear-wheel drive) and £51,895 (all-wheel drive).

GT-Line S models are available from £48,395 and £51,895 and offer the same choice of rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive configurations respectively but add in extra equipment, such as a power tailgate, panoramic sunroof, 14-speaker Meridian audio system and Augmented Reality (AR) head-up display. They also get additional driver assistance features such as Remote Smart Park Assist, Parking Collision-Avoidance Assist, Blind-Spot View Monitor and Highway Driving Assist 2.

The range-topping GT model, due in the second half of 2022, features a dual-motor drivetrain giving a combined total power output of 585hp and expected to provide a 3.5-second 0-to-62mph sprint. As well as GT exterior styling, which removes the panoramic sunroof, the flagship trim gets bucket seats, electronically controlled suspension, electronic limited-slip differential, drive mode integrated control, a battery heat pump and 21-inch wheels.

All models also feature a curved panoramic display, with twin 12.3-inch touchscreens across the dashboard and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration as standard, as well as Kia’s ‘connected car’ UVO Connect system and a range of dedicated EV displays.

Deliveries of the new Kia EV6 will start from October 2021 for the entry-level models plus GT-Line and GT-Line S and mid-2022 for the GT.