First impressions can be spectacularly wrong
The Kia EV4 Earth Long Range arrived with a problem. Before I’d driven a single kilometre, before I’d explored a menu, before I’d even adjusted the driver’s seat, I couldn’t stop looking at the styling and wondering what had happened in the design studio.
The EV4 has the awkwardness of a teenager who hasn’t quite grown into their limbs. Some panels are sharp and futuristic, others seem oddly conservative. Character lines begin with confidence and then appear to lose interest halfway along the body. From certain angles it resembles an EV6 that has spent a few months in a square box.
Yet the longer I lived with it, the less I cared.
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That’s because the EV4 commits a motoring crime that should be encouraged more often: it prioritises the experience of driving the thing over creating social media content in a dealership car park.
After a week of commuting, highway touring, and a run through the Royal National Park to Scarborough, the EV4 emerged as one of the most comfortable and capable electric cars Kia has produced. The irony is that its greatest strengths are almost completely hidden beneath a body that struggles to generate much excitement.
Above: Kia EV4 Earth ev Review Great Range, Superb Ride, But What Happened To The Styling?
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ABOVE: 2026 Kia EV4 Earth Long Range
The cabin is where Kia got serious
If the exterior leaves you scratching your head, the interior quickly restores confidence.
The EV4’s cabin feels fresh, spacious, and thoughtfully designed. Kia’s latest curvy-wurvy display is one of the better executions of modern digital dashboards, managing to feel high-tech without descending into the touchscreen madness that has infected much of the industry like a cancer.
The Earth sits in a sensible sweet spot. But, and there is always a but, buyers miss out on the head-up display, seat ventilation, and a few tasty premium extras found in the GT-Line. Despite those omissions, the specification still feels generous. Heated seats, power adjustment, and quality materials create an environment that feels considerably more expensive than the price tag suggests. But remember, the competition is stiff, and buyers will be doing a lot of shopping around.
What impressed me most was the sense of space even without the glass roof. The cabin feels lighter and airier than an EV6, partly because the dashboard design is cleaner and partly because visibility is excellent. Rear seat accommodation is capacious enough for adults, while the flat floor and wide cabin make it easy to carry three passengers when necessary.
Kia has also fixed one of the EV6’s most annoying features by separating climate controls from the media controls. It sounds trivial, but being able to adjust the temperature without accidentally changing radio stations is a practical improvement owners appreciate every time they turn the key, so to speak.
Not everything is perfect. The steering wheel still lacks a little reach adjustment for we taller drivers, and the absence of a head-up display is noticeable once you’ve become accustomed to having speed and navigation directions projected onto the glass right in front of your face.
The ride quality is exceptional
The biggest surprise came once the road opened up.
Australian suspension tuning expert Graham Gambold has once again demonstrated why local chassis development is the magic wand. Plenty of manufacturers arrive with global suspension settings and simply hope for the best. Kia continues investing in Graham’s magic fingers.
The EV4 rides beautifully.
Sydney’s roads are goat tracks with potholes like coal mines. Expansion joints, potholes, patchwork repairs, and coarse-chip surfaces expose foibles fast, yet the EV4 absorbs most imperfections with elegant composure. It settles quickly after larger bumps, remains quiet-ish over rough surfaces, and never develops the nervous fidgeting that affects many electric vehicles riding on large wheels.
The drive south through the Royal National Park (aka The Nasho) highlighted just how well judged the tuning is. The EV4 isn’t a sports sedan and never pretends to be one, but it floats elegantly along winding roads while maintaining impressive comfort. The steering has a natural weight and accuracy that encourages confidence without feeling artificially heavy, while the chassis remains composed enough to make spirited driving enjoyable when the juices flow appropriately.
What impressed me most was how relaxed the car feels over long distances. After several hours in the saddle, fatigue simply wasn’t a thing. That quality is difficult to quantify on a specification sheet, yet it remains one of the most valuable characteristics any touring car want.
Range is a genuine highlight
Electric vehicles continue to live and die by one statistic: range. Most range figures are created by holding fingers in the breeze.
The EV4 Earth Long Range and its 81.4kWh battery claim up to 612km of WLTP driving range. Real-world conditions will obviously vary, but we proved the boasting was justified.
Unlike some electric cars that demand constant battery babying, the EV4’s destination quickly fades into the background. Journeys become about arriving like the Queen of Sheba rather than feeling like you’ve been dragged through a hedge backwards.
For many Australians considering the switch to electric motoring, range anxiety remains the final hurdle. The EV4 does an excellent job of easing that concern. Whether commuting, touring, or tackling a longer regional drive, there is enough capacity to make the experience feel like a walk in the park (ing lot).
That may sound like being damned with faint praise, but normality is exactly what many buyers expect
It could use more power and faster charging
While the range figures impress, the performance figures create indignation.
The Earth Long Range produces 150kW and 283Nm, enough for the 100km/h canter in 7.8 seconds. Those numbers aren’t disappointing, but bigger is better.
At around $60,000 before on-road costs, the EV4 competes against increasingly capable rivals. Buyers comparing specifications will quickly notice that vehicles such as the Tesla Model 3 Long Range and BYD Seal offer considerably stronger performance for similar money.
The EV4 never feels sluggish as such, but it is definitely leisurely. Around town it responds with off-the-line oomph and overtaking requires little planning, thanks to the inherent advantages of electric torque delivery. However, there is a difference between being adequately quick and feeling brilliantly brisk, and the Kia sits firmly in the former category.
Charging performance is a similar story. The maximum DC charging rate of 128kW-135kw is perfectly usable, but it no longer competitive. Given the asking price and Kia’s big EV ambitions, a faster charging capability would have been expected.
Neither issue is a deal breaker, but both feel like missed opportunities in what is otherwise a thoughtfully engineered car.
Highway Driving Assist still needs Assistance.
Kia’s Highway Driving Assist 2 system introduces automatic lane changing, a feature that feels utterly miraculous the first few times it works.
Activate the system, indicate towards the desired lane, and the car performs the manoeuvre on your behalf. It checks surrounding traffic, confirms the path is clear, and executes the lane change smoothly enough to feel almost human.
Most of the time.
The challenge came during our drive towards the Royal National Park, where the system appeared uncertain about whether the Princess Highway qualified as a highway. Some sections activated the feature exactly as expected, while others refused to cooperate despite appearing almost identical.
When active, the system generally performed well. However, the occasional uncertainty undermined confidence and left me wondering whether the car was following a set of rules known only to itself. Sometimes it would cancel for no good reason or cut it way too close for my liking.
Lane centring could also be more precise. The EV4 occasionally drifts within its lane more than the best systems currently available, although it never behaved in a way that felt alarming.
Technology remains Kia’s weakest area
Kia’s naughty CCNC infotainment platform continues to improve, but the little minx can lull you into a sense of security only to poke you in the eye..
Wireless Apple CarPlay experienced spotty connection during the test period, with unexpected dropouts occurring often enough to be a pain in the proverbial. The system generally recovered, but only after a reboot of the system. It served as another reminder that modern vehicles increasingly resemble smartphones with wheels.
Fortunately, the interface itself remains straightforward and attractive. Menus are logically arranged, screen responsiveness is good, and most functions are easy to access without burying drivers beneath unnecessary complexity. We love the hold for mute function on the steering wheel.
Even so, the occasional glitches prevent the technology experience from matching the excellence found elsewhere in the vehicle.
The Verdict
The Kia EV4 Earth Long Range presents an unusual dilemma.
On paper, there are faster electric cars. There are electric cars that charge more quickly. There are certainly electric cars that attract more admiring glances on the drive at the Hyatt.
Yet after spending a decent time at the tiller, none of those observations feels especially important.
What Kia has created is an reasonably comfortable, refined, and practical long-distance electric tourer. The suspension tuning is superb, the cabin is thoughtfully designed, and the range performance removes much of the anxiety still sitting under those grey clouds. More power would be welcome, faster charging is a must, and the styling remains an acquired taste, but those shortcomings fade surprisingly quickly once the kilometres begin accumulating.
The EV4 may not be the car that sets your heart aflutter. It is, however, the car that quietly wins you over from behind the wheel. In many ways, that’s the more impressive achievement. When asked if I’d buy one, the answer is no, but this is not a car aimed at me. The question is, is it aimed at you. Are the looks so polarising that it is enough to tip punters into a Model 3 instead? Would you buy a Model 3, or and EV4?
More Kia Stories
- Kia EV4 Earth LR FWD First Drive Review
- Kia EV4 612km Range And 49k Entry Price Battles Tesla and BYD
- 2026 Kia EV6 GT Revisited
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Alan Zurvas is the founder and editor of Gay Car Boys, Australia's leading LGBTQI+ automotive publication. Before launching GCB in 2008, Alan's automotive writing was published in SameSame.com.au and the Star Observer. With over 16 years of hands-on car reviewing experience, Alan brings an honest, irreverent voice to every review — championing value and innovation over brand loyalty.
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