The best EV family car is a big title to get, because it has so many different factors to achieve. Not only does it need to be practical but it needs to be affordable and aesthetically pleasing among many other things.

Really, Kia are well versed in making good cars, but to crown this as the king.. I really had to put it to the test.

So what is the EV9?

Ultimately it’s a 7 seater family EV with a 99.8kWh battery which can also come as a 6 seater for the ultimate luxury experience. It has 378PS/700Nm and can get to 62mph in 5.3 seconds. In this 6 seater form, it costs around £77,000 on the road and can be leased monthly for roughly £5-600 a month.

It comes with about as much technology as you could possibly fathom, comfort and luxuries beyond what you could ever need and a drive which isn’t entirely disconnected and does, at times, almost reward you.

So, how does it look?

Aesthetically it’s not really like anything else on the market. It’s a unique Kia design language which is strong and powerful whilst not being overwhelmingly different. As such, the external aesthetics are pleasing, the side profile (whilst huge) flows nicely and the rear design is a nice conclusion of said design.

In a supermarket carpark, this stands out without standing out too much. Really, it’s just a nice and balanced design.

Is the interior really that good?

In a word, yes. From the drivers seat being comfortable, offering massage options as well as heated and cooled backing, to the heads up display telling you your average speed through a camera zone – the interior is well thought out.

As standard, it comes with a Meridian Surround sound system which is by far one of the best on the market, better still considering it’s standard on the EV9. Two sunroofs, spinning captain chairs (on the 6 seat) and a genuinely premium finish which surpasses others in the segment.

With all 6 seats deployed, it gets 333L of boot capacity, however lower these and you’ll find yourself with well over 2,000L of useable boot space. Enough to go camping in, if you’re that way inclined. Oh.. it has a camping mode to keel you warm at night, and you can plug in all of your appliances. Really.. really.. well thought out.

Surely it eats charge?

Depending on your drive cycle, no. If you have a heavy foot, drive in the cold with heating full blast, yes.. it won’t be great. Ultimately it’s a heavy car, but drive considerately, in warmer weather and you’ll achieve 3.5-3.7mi/kWh easily. Even on motorway driving.

The worst I saw was 2.8mi/kWh with 6 people, luggage, aircon on full and driving up hills on a national A road.

It’s huge and can’t drive nicely, surely?

Well, sorry to burst that bubble, but it drives much better than you’d think. Whilst heavy, the power of the electric motors easily moves it to 62mph at about the same rate as a Golf R. The steering feel is reasonable, and you don’t feel the weight of the car until you really push into corners. At which point, fair enough – it weighs 2.6 tonnes after all.

The brakes are responsive and don’t feel like a traditional EV pedal, plus you can genuinely have fun driving this spiritedly on back roads. Whilst a big car, it doesn’t feel huge inside and it fits down normal roads with ease.

Really, this drives like a car 1/2 the size; massively impressive.

So, is it the king?

Of large EV family cars? Yes, without a doubt. Up against models like the Tesla Model X, the EV9 is a breath of fresh air. However, for those with smaller families, whilst amazing, it’s total overkill. You don’t need the space, and looking at something like the EV3 you could be better suited.

But, for a bigger family who do longer road trips, need interior space galore and don’t mind having a bigger vehicle – this ticks every single box. An outright winner. A king of kings. The ultimate large family EV.