What can the infotainment of the Kia EV 6 do, and how good is it? Like its combustion engine siblings, the electric vehicle also comes with a lavishly wide display consisting of two connected screens. Both have a diagonal of 12.3 inches and characterize the entire cockpit landscape. The one on the left in front of the steering wheel shows the speed, the range and the charge level of the battery as well as other details. After activating the indicator, the image from the cameras in the exterior mirrors is also played back. They point slightly downwards, so that you can not only maneuver better in narrow driveways, but also see what is in the blind spot at traffic lights.
The right display is touch-sensitive and is responsible for operating the infotainment. Here the use of the finger is required. Starting from the main menu, there are twelve submenus, which are visualized with purple symbols. Below the monitor, Kia has placed a sensor bar with two rotary controls. Their functionality can be switched. It is either responsible for the air conditioning settings, or it serves as an additional control element for the infotainment. We didn’t see a plus in that. The system also needs agonizingly long seconds after the start of the electric motor until it is finally ready for user input.
The head-up display should be improved
The infotainment including navigation, real-time traffic data, Bluetooth hands-free system and music system is part of the standard equipment. The head-up display alone is subject to a surcharge, it costs around 1700 euros in a package with all-round view cameras and other assistants. The virtual representation above the bonnet is large, colorful and precise. The well-established, moving arrows before a turn are a nuisance because they don’t come exactly. The light blue triangles are waving in one direction far too early, the display with augmented reality urgently needs to be improved here.
The navigation system works precisely and quickly, but the announcements are sometimes too frequent, and above all often as a turning command, where you only have to follow the road. Traffic jam information can be displayed on the road map. There is also an online connection to search for parking spaces and control vehicle functions via the Kia smartphone app.
A comprehensive route planning is missing
What is missing is clever route guidance with load planning on longer routes. The co-pilot notes that the destination in Munich cannot be reached with the current battery level. But confirming the button that appears only causes charging stations to be displayed in the immediate vicinity. At this point, it would be helpful to have route planning with priority access to quick-charging stations, including pre-conditioning of the battery, and a display of whether the charging station is available or occupied. In other electric vehicles, the navigation system even shows the calculated residual capacity with which you arrive at which station and how long it takes to charge there in order to keep the journey time as short as possible. Unfortunately, all this is missing in the car of the year.
The Kia’s voice control can also recognize complicated queries via an Internet connection and implement them accordingly. This ensures, for example, that you not only use fixed formulations, but can also talk to the virtual lady in everyday language. It also answers more general questions, such as the weather in a particular city.
It is fascinating how unerringly the place and street are taken over as a navigation system destination. Where other systems display a list of questions, the assistant in the Kia was usually right straight away. Unfortunately, the electronic helper was often unusable for other requests. We were probably out and about in a dead spot, so there was probably no help from the cloud. All in all, you get high-quality infotainment from the factory in the Kia EV 6. An intelligent charging plan for longer distances should be delivered soon.
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