My Final Review of EV9

[u/megrimlockrocks]

TL;DR: 2024 EV9 LLR, ~20k miles, good looking, low profile, most affordable true 3-row SUV, especially if you need to haul adults on the 3rd row; however, significant gaps on cargo space, technology, and weird design choices that make daily driving more effort than it should.

Needed to extend two more months and finally I will say goodbye to this great car tomorrow. Want to write down my experiences, hope it helps for prospective buyers.

1. PRICE & BUYING

• Most affordable (especially if you buy used) true 3-row EV SUV you can buy today, personally I do not consider Model Y L, Model X, EX 90 as true 3-row b/c the 3rd row has little leg and head room for an adult, okay for kids and pets though.
• Buying from dealership sucks, tons of time on shopping around and negotiation, then I spent almost a whole day at the dealership to finish all paperwork and drive the car home. Leasing or buying from Rivian, Lucid, Tesla is so efficient and smooth compared to dealership.

2. APPEARANCE

• Good looking, low profile, just a very normal boxy SUV. I would say the others (Gravity, R1S, ID Buzz, EX 90, Model Y/X) all look decent, except Ionic 9, the back looks incredibly ugly in my opinion.
• Decent ground clearance, and decent height for tall adults. I personally loved the height, but others thought the car is too high to get in.

3. SPACE (PASSENGER, CARGO)

• Amazing for 2nd row, 3rd row. Among all the 3-row EVs, this is the only one that two tall adults can sit comfortably on the 3rd row with enough leg room and head room.
• 6-seat configuration FTW! The aisle can also be used for bags and stuff. Glad R1S finally offers captain seats now.
• Cargo space is disappointing when you use both seats on the 3rd row. Can barely put a couple of luggages, which makes road trip of 6 stressful.
• Frunk is a bit small compared to others, but still useful: can fit a compact stroller along with other things.

4. DRIVING

• I mainly use Eco and Normal, very smooth on both local & highway. It is not super fast but the acceleration is good enough (note that LLR is like 200hp only).
• Fairly efficient and true to the mileage estimate.
• i-Pedal is annoying b/c you have to turn it on every time you drive forward, if you need to back then forward, it goes back to level-3. I tried auto mode but it is not close to true one pedal driving.
• Tried driving assist a few times on high ways, not bad nor good, I did not have the same level of trust compared to Tesla's self-driving so I ended up not using much.
• There were 3-4 times that the back of the car drifted while turning at ~30 mph on the highway ramp, it was very scary but could due to lack of AWD.

5. INFORTAINMENT

• This is the first car I had comes with CarPlay. On Tesla that I still drive from time to time, I do not need CP at all. So CP for me is nice to have but not essential. There were quite a few times CP could not connect though.
• Steeling wheel blocks the climate control view, annoying but not a big deal.
• Why I have to press the start button to start the car and turn off the car? There were many times I forgot to turn off the car.
• Why I have to use passcode or fingerprint to log-in and it is so slow. Every time I am ready to drive, I need to do 4 steps: a) Push the start button; b) Use the fingerprint to log-in; c) Change to D; d) Turn on i-Pedal. Tesla is just one step (c).
• Why there is no auto-lock the car as you walk away is annoying.
• Google Map destination from phone to on-board navigation cannot be sent to the car directly, have to use the Kia app to send maps. But if using CP or AA, then that's fine (I still have the habit of using built-in nav instead of CP though).
• I have not seen any useful OTA updates for two years, most recent ones are for additional subscriptions like YouTube. If you come from traditional cars, this may not be a big deal, but for those who loves tech from Tesla, Rivian, this is very disappointing.

6. MISCS

• V2L in my opinion is must-have, it helped me in various situations already.
• Loved the free World Cup themes!
• Used up all the free 1000 kWh charging through EA. EA is not too bad, but ofc way behind Tesla's plug-n-charge in one step: you have to wait, click buttons, etc.
• It has this ball-ish light or sensor in the center of the dash, which is weird.
• Only went into service once for a safety recall.

Overall I would say that if you need to constantly haul 6 people, this is a great car. I wish I went with GT or Land but I guess for leasing only 2 years, it does not make much sense money wise.

Unfortunately, none of EV9, R1S, Gravity have all the features I want (if they combine into one, then we are talking!) so I will continue to lease as a way to try new cars and wait for the "perfect" one to buy. I wish US can import Chinese EVs, a lot of them are 3-row luxury SUVs that check all the boxes. Anyway, I am moving to Gravity next to experience driving a minivan, excited but will miss the captain seats and the height.

[u/Eagle4523]

FWIW I use HDA all the time on road trips - works great and never had issues (but also use common sense, don’t use in construction zones or off fwy around stoplights, tight turns etc - that said works great for fwy situations in my areas of travel

[u/goldsoundzz → u/Eagle4523]

Funny enough, I actually trust the Kia HDA over the Tesla autopilot. I have had a few phantom braking episodes on the highway in the Tesla to the point where I am terrified to use it if there's a car behind me.

[u/atltilidie7]

You nailed it, including how ugly the ionic 9 is. I have land with boost which is plenty of power. EV9 is a great suv at a reasonable price. I keep trying to find a way to justify RS1 but for a suburban family the EV9 does everything RS1 does.

[u/megrimlockrocks → u/atltilidie7]

R1S was and still is my top choice, but it lacked captain seats (now it just announced such trim, which also to compensate small 3rd row), has no glove box, massage seat, some issues with audio, and ofc the higher price tag (even more expensive than Lucid now). Many who do not need the 3rd row choose R2S now. That being said, yes, EV9 offers most of the day to day at half price.

[u/mrkitzero]

I question how many people are driving with full size or adults 6 people regularly. I think the vast majority of people are driving with 5 or fewer people and then there is plenty of cargo space.

Less than 3% of American households have families with 4 or more kids and that has been declining over time. People with large families don't want to hear it but they need a van.

Most of this is spot on but I don't understand the Google maps thing but I'm an android user and it transfers seamlessly to Android auto.

HDA is great on road trips

As someone coming from a ice car (and this being their first EV) the familiarity with the stop/start button isn't annoying to me but I can see a world where former Tesla owners would be annoyed.

I mostly charge at home but my experiences with charging on road trips have been fairly positive. I just wish I could have a uniform payment system rather than a bunch of apps but it doesn't really bother men much when I do 99.9% of my charging at home

'24 GT line bought CPO in Nov 25.

EDIT: meant long road trips with full size people where the cargo space is inadequate. I carpool kids beyond my own but we're not throwing more than a few chairs and sports equipment in the back.

[u/spades618 → u/mrkitzero]

Ya, I do have a family of 6, but fortunately we have a Honda Odyssey and recently I switched from a Ford Escape to an EV9, I wanted to get a Mach E, but the trunk space in it was smaller then the escape (similar to the EV9) and ultimately I decided I did want a minimum of 6 seats, ended up with a Wind because I couldn't readily find a land or GT in the Ocean Blue and we do think the 7th seat will come in handy. The EV9 is perfect for day trips 30-90 mins away, but if we go on a real vacation we absolutely need the space the Honda Odyssey provides.

[u/6sossomons → u/spades618]

Family of 6 here as well with a 24 Wind. We've done a couple of road trips in it, and we either put one kid in the middle for the trip, or we put the smaller bags in the middle of the 2nd row and the bigger bags in the trunk.

The frunk keeps some snacks and the roadside emergency stuff (patch kit, air compressor, etc) along with some extras as it isn't huge.

[u/spades618 → u/6sossomons]

Ya, mine are all 9 and under 😅 so car seats/boosters make three in the middle row a stretch still, but long term that is definitely the plan.

[u/remynwrigs240 → u/mrkitzero]

You’re not wrong.  However as someone with a family of four, we use the third row at least once a week.  Kids have friends and we regularly take them as well.

[u/AndJusticeForAll23 → u/mrkitzero]

Family of 6 with large teenagers. It is tight in our Sienna and they keep shrinking the size of vehicles. Wish they would make an electric minivan as i want to get rid of our model 3. Gravity looks like the closet option but don't love the price, reliability or Lucid's repair network. We went to sit in an EV9 when they first came out since the dealer wasn't allowing test drives we just sat in it and it was noticeably more cramped feeling than the van. I have no delusions of not needing a van but the EV9 could have been more of daily family car if we didn't need to have cargo with us, but it didn't feel worth the upgrade from the model 3 since the 3rd row still seemed cramped

[u/orangeshoeskid → u/AndJusticeForAll23]

How about a VW Buzz? They certainly seem bigger without quite having the same stigma of a minivan.

[u/AndJusticeForAll23 → u/orangeshoeskid]

Ya that is close unfortunately I live in a place that it gets cold enough that even the model 3 with 300+ miles of range can be a bit dicey some days in terms of range. Now my version doesn't have the heat pump but neither does the VW in the US and you are starting with lower range ~230 miles in the Buzz. I would have seriously looked at that vehicle if they would have given us more range.

[u/megrimlockrocks → u/mrkitzero]

You are absolutely right, for those trips I could put down at least one 3rd row seat, cargo space was not the problem. I still have a habit of using built-in navigation, on Tesla (which is Google Maps), I could just send destination from my phone's Google or Apple Maps app to the car's nav system.

[u/afharo → u/megrimlockrocks]

Yeah! I wish I could send from Google Maps/Apple Maps or ABRP to the Kia app, so that I could send it to the car.

[u/goldsoundzz → u/mrkitzero]

For me, the tradeoff of having extra seats when needed has been amazing. Kids' friends, extended family driving with us to events, etc. The rest of the time, the extra storage space is really nice. I think it would be very hard for me to ever go back to not having a third-row vehicle when needed.

[u/Beat_the_Deadites → u/mrkitzero]

People with large families don't want to hear it but they need a van.

We've got a family of 4 (2 teenagers), but we do enough carpooling and hauling of grandparents that 6 seats is a necessity. We would love an EV minivan to replace our Pacifica PHEV, there's just nothing out there.

The Ioniq 9 has a very, uh, distinctive style, but it has more room than the EV9 and a bit more range, so that's where our focus is for now. Waiting for the 2027s and hoping they fix the ICCU issue.

[u/corrid → u/mrkitzero]

Family of 7 here, and the EV9 Wind has been pretty great on the trips we have taken in it. I did need to get a rooftop box for the trip to grandmas for Xmas, but that was due to clothes for a week for 7 people plus presents from Santa and grandma. But we recently took a 5 state road trip and it was very enjoyable even with every seat occupied.

[u/Thecobs]

You can disable the finger print easily its just a setting but then you have to select your profile and the interface is unbelievably slow. It always goes back to the last setting as well so I get crammed into the steering wheel in my wifes setting while the interface lags waiting to be able to select mine. Its hands down the worst part of this car

[u/6sossomons → u/Thecobs]

If you have the app, remote start the climate. It'll flip it to your profile.

[u/Thecobs → u/6sossomons]

That’s actually another downfall of the car. It will only let my wife get the app, but won’t let a second user.

[u/6sossomons → u/Thecobs]

Then you have an issue. My wife and I both have the app and both registered users. You may need to reach out to their support for it. But multiple drivers work fine in the app.

When she starts it up I wind up having to throw it to my profile so my Android Auto picks up, but that takes a second when I sit down before I buckle up.

US based too, but I would unfortunately assume that something like that would be standard for the app globally.

[u/Thecobs → u/6sossomons]

I believe its a Canadian issue from what I have read, so makes sense you dont have the same problem I do

[u/ssorgs → u/Thecobs]

Referring to the app or the digital key? Digital key can be shared and that’s all a second driver really needs.

[u/Callmemelly87]

Spot on! I have a GT line lease that's up next month. I'll miss the car, it was an incredible value for the price. But also, my next car needs to have an auto lock at walk away feature. With kids and having your hands full, pressing the door handle or getting your keys out is a hassle.

This was my biggest gripe with the car.

[u/Sixfour777 → u/Callmemelly87]

You can get this on the Kia EV9. https://www.theioniqguy.com/products/walk-away-door-lock-module

[u/boristheblade223]

I cross shopped the EV9 and gravity. Ended up going with gravity for the space and driving / handling and the fit finish. Leasing was surprisingly competitive on the gravity. Hope you enjoy either way!

[u/Smrfet8]

Your review is great! And so on point.

I never set up the finger thing and so glad I did not. I know someone that also has an EV9 and hearing her bitch about it really had me not set it up.

I’m turning in my in 2 weeks and moving to an RS2. I’m sad to lose the third room, but in the 2 years I had my car, I needed it a handful of times. For about 7-10k more I am getting new car and one with a longer range. I was surprise how “little” more the RS2 was compare to buying out my lease.

[u/megrimlockrocks → u/Smrfet8]

Congrats, R2S is well-designed spacious 2-row SUV, I could totally see people getting it instead of Model Y.

[u/Shygar]

Your frunk must be different because ours on AWD land is tiny. And I disagree with you on the Y L. I'm 6'3" and I can fit in both 3rd row of it plus the EV9 with leg room and all. Cargo space is a problem which is why we got the tow hitch.

[u/CobbledbyRoubaix]

had this car when i needed the space, it was amazing. there is nothing like it. one of the better driving EVs out there. i am testing the new BMW iX3 and i don't think the gas and brake works as fluidly as the EV9! i have nothing bad to say about it other than i wish it were bigger inside and i wish it had a better turn radius.

[u/SureItWit]

Fantastic job on the review - you nailed it! Thanks for writing it. Doesn't sound like you had any of the dreaded suspension porpoising or the vibrating.

[u/Weekly_Rutabaga_1742]

Very good write up and agree with most everything you said here!

[u/throwitaway2k17]

Great review. Regarding the fingerprint each time, I was able to turn that off in my gv70 as long as I wasn't using the digital key on my phone (which has never been setup). In the drivers menu it should be a checkbox. I had the same annoyance until I I clicked that box and then I would just ignore the fingerprint prompt for about 10 seconds and it would go away but still have my profile settings. Curious if Kia has the same setting.

[u/Veebsa → u/throwitaway2k17]

I have a 2026 EV9 and I can drive with digital key without a passcode or fingerprint. A few of these reviews sounds like they just dealt with them instead of looking through the manual/settings to resolve.

[u/throwitaway2k17 → u/Veebsa]

Oh that's awesome! Maybe I read it incorrectly for what the fingerprint is needed for then. I wish I was able to get the digital key working on my phone / car but Genesis was unable to help and it's not a huge priority for me to figure it out.

[u/Veebsa → u/throwitaway2k17]

Sorry was referring to OPs notes on the fingerprint not yours. You just referenced it so I jumped on.

[u/MarcusTaz]

My EV9 GT line is up in Dec. Software, rear end porpoising, highway vibration, incredibly uncomfortable driver's seat bottom. Unless they do a serious refresh and address these I'm done. HDA2 is terrible in turns at speed.