This file photo provided by Hyundai Motor Group shows the Kia EV9 SUV.
SEOUL, Sept. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean carmaker Kia Corp. said Sunday its all-electric EV9 SUV has been named the winner in the Luxury category of the German Car of the Year 2024 (GCOTY) Awards.
Its bigger affiliate Hyundai Motor Co.’s pure electric Ioniq 6 sedan won the top spot in the New Energy category in the GCOTY awards, Hyundai Motor Group said in a statement.
Kia’s EV9 beat eight other contenders, such as BMW’s high-performance XM SUV and Lexus’ RZ SUV, in the Luxury category, while the Hyundai Ioniq 6 surpassed two bigger rivals’ electric models — Mercedes-Benz’s EQE SUV and Rolls-Royce’s Spectre — it said.
The EV9 and Ioniq 6 can travel more than 500 kilometers and up to 524 kilometers, respectively, on a single charge.
Kia, the maker of K5 sedans and Sorento SUVs, plans to launch the flagship EV9 in the European market later this year.
“The EV9′s achievement in the German car awards ahead of its launch in Europe shows its good product quality and helps the company (Kia) lead the European EV market,” the statement said.
With the category awards, the EV9 and the Ioniq 6 have become potential candidates for the 2024 German Car of the Year set to be released in early October.
The GCOTY Awards are an annual event where 38 auto journalists evaluate 48 new models across five different categories: Compact, Premium, Luxury, New Energy, and Performance.
Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 and Kia’s EV6 were selected the winners of the premium category at the GCOTY 2022 awards and the Genesis GV60 SUV won the premium category at the GCOTY 2023 awards.
All the awarded Hyundai and Kia models are built on Hyundai Motor Group’s dedicated EV platform named E-GMP.
(Yonhap)
