Electrification made emotional: Kia expands its electric GT story

With the EV3 GT, EV4 GT and EV5 GT, Kia is taking its performance badge beyond halo cars and into a broader family of electric models built around response, design, technology and everyday usability.

Kia’s GT badge has long stood for a more emotional side of the brand. Now, with the arrival of the EV3 GT, EV4 GT and EV5 GT in Europe, that idea is moving deeper into Kia’s electric range. These three new models bring GT character to a compact SUV, a hatchback and fastback pairing, and a larger C-SUV, expanding the performance-focused family already led by the EV6 GT and EV9 GT.

For the three newcomers, the focus is not simply on acceleration. Kia wants its electric GT models to feel more responsive, more connected and more distinctive than the standard versions, while retaining the comfort, refinement and practicality expected from everyday EVs. Dual-motor all-wheel drive, GT Mode, Virtual Gear Shift, Active Sound Design, dedicated interfaces and GT-specific design details all play a role in shaping that experience.

“With EV3 GT, EV4 GT and EV5 GT, we are bringing the Kia GT experience to new segments and making electric performance accessible to a broader range of customers,” said Pablo Martinez Masip, Vice President Product, Marketing & Customer Experience at Kia Europe. “Each model has its own character, but they share the same ambition. The GT models make electric driving feel more responsive, more connected and more emotionally engaging, while retaining the everyday usability our customers expect.”

From halo cars to a wider GT family

The GT name has appeared on cars such as the Ceed GT, ProCeed GT and Stinger GT, before taking on a new electric form in the EV6 GT and EV9 GT. Across those models, the theme has stayed consistent: sharper response, confident control and a stronger connection between driver and car.

The EV3 GT, EV4 GT and EV5 GT take that philosophy into more mainstream parts of the electric line-up. Instead of positioning GT as something reserved for a single flagship, Kia is using it as a broader identity that can be adapted to different body styles, customer needs and driving situations.

Performance is about feel, not just figures

The new GT models are designed to make electric driving feel more involving. GT Mode adjusts key vehicle settings, while Launch Control supports stronger acceleration from a standstill. Electric Dynamic Torque Vectoring Control helps improve cornering stability, and electronically controlled suspension works with revised steering settings to give each model a more assured character on the road.

Kia has also focused on the sensory side of performance. Virtual Gear Shift simulates the feeling of gear changes, while Active Sound Design adds dynamic sound feedback linked to speed, acceleration and torque. Both are intended to make electric performance feel more expressive and easier to read through the driver’s hands, ears and right foot.

Design helps complete the picture. GT-exclusive emblems, neon-green accents, sport seats, dedicated steering wheels, model-specific digital displays and 20-inch GT alloy wheels give the models a shared identity, while still allowing each car to keep its own personality.

EV3 GT: compact energy

The Kia EV3 GT brings the GT idea to the compact SUV segment. Its dual-motor all-wheel-drive system delivers 215kW (292PS) and 468Nm of torque, enabling 0-to-100km/h acceleration in 5.7 seconds.

Its role in the line-up is to combine everyday compact-SUV usability with a more alert and energetic driving character. Kia positions it as an electric all-rounder with sharper responses, confident handling and a more distinctive cabin, helped by GT-specific sport seats, Performance Timer, Launch Control, Virtual Gear Shift and Active Sound Design.

EV4 GT: the driver-focused option

The EV4 GT brings the same 215kW (292PS) and 468Nm output to two road-focused body styles: a hatchback and a fastback. It reaches 100km/h in 5.6 seconds, with a WLTP range of up to 537km for the fastback and up to 505km for the hatchback.

With a lower stance and more flowing proportions, the EV4 GT is presented as the driver-focused member of the new trio. Its chassis tuning, steering response and throttle calibration are designed to make performance feel precise without sacrificing long-distance comfort or daily usability.

EV5 GT: space, comfort and control

The EV5 GT extends the GT line into the C-SUV segment. Its dual-motor all-wheel-drive system produces 225kW (306PS) and 480Nm of torque, with 0-to-100km/h acceleration in 6.2 seconds. An 81.4kWh battery delivers a WLTP range of up to 476km.

As the most versatile of the new GT models, the EV5 GT is designed around composure, traction and refinement. It adds a more spacious, family-oriented form to the GT family while still offering the performance and control expected from the badge. It also features Kia Pet Mode, which helps keep the cabin at a safe temperature when a pet is briefly left inside.

Technology with a purpose

Underneath the design and performance figures, Kia has given the GT models a more focused set-up. The suspension has been tested on roads across Europe, including in the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain and Sweden, and tuned for a firmer but controlled ride. Preview Electronic Controlled Suspension uses a camera to read the road ahead and adjust damping within milliseconds, supporting comfort and stability.

The three drive modes give the cars noticeably different characters. Normal prioritises comfort, Sport adds firmer responses, and GT Mode brings the sharpest setting for more immediate cornering and acceleration. Electronic Stability Control settings and torque vectoring help shape the way each model feels on winding roads while keeping safety systems active.

A broader electric performance story

What brings the EV3 GT, EV4 GT and EV5 GT together is the idea that electric performance should be usable as well as exciting. Acceleration matters, but Kia is also using software, sound, steering, suspension, cabin design and digital interfaces to make the cars feel more characterful in everyday driving.

That approach also gives the GT badge greater flexibility. In the EV3 GT, it becomes compact and energetic. In the EV4 GT, it becomes lower, sharper and more driver-focused. In the EV5 GT, it becomes more spacious, composed and family-friendly. Together with the EV6 GT and EV9 GT, the new models create a five-car GT line-up with a shared spirit but different strengths.

For Kia, that may be the most important part of the strategy. The GT badge is no longer just about a single performance flagship. It is becoming a recognisable thread running through the brand’s electric range, designed to make electric motoring feel more responsive, more distinctive and more emotionally engaging.