SUV Review: 2023 Kia Niro PHEV

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The best indication of a superior PHEV is when you can’t tell what mode it’s in, so seamless is the combination of battery, electric motor and gasoline engine. Oh, I know there’s not a one of them that can fool you when your foot is to the floor and the ECU is asking for every single last foot-pound fuelled by both electron or fossil fuel. Then, the gas engine makes a racket and you’re a long way from the eerie silence that a full plug-in offers.

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But at low speeds, a good one will disguise the origins of those torques almost completely. The all-new plug-in version of the 2023 Kia Niro certainly does. In electric mode, of course, there’s no a peep to be heard from the engine compartment, electric motors the Silent Bob of the motoring world.

But even when operating in Hybrid mode, the all-new Niro isn’t much for chirping or roaring. The gas engine, at least at low speeds, is barely audible and half the time — OK, I exaggerate a little — the darn thing is shut off when coasting or heading downhill. Driven moderately, the little Niro is a paragon of sophisticated synchronicity.

That’s at least in part the result of…

The electric motor is the dominant partner in this duo

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The new Niro, like Niros past, is powered in part by a 1.6-litre gas engine. But if specs be believed, it offers up but a paltry 104 horsepower and 106.3 pound-feet of torque. The electric motor, by comparison, boasts a relatively stout — for a PHEV — 83 ponies and 149.7 lb-ft. In other words, at all but the highest revs — when the two combine for 180 hp — the silent electric motor is the dominant partner in this relationship.

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That allows the gas engine to shut off sooner and more often — in Hybrid mode — and also lets the six-speed transmission run in a higher gear keeping the ICE at lower revs. Hence, the civility I mentioned earlier. If you honk on it, the combination will get a little coarse. But driven like a suburbanite, the Niro is plenty smooth. It is also…

Impressive efficiency

Off the battery, I saw fuel consumption as low as 4.5 L/100 km in mixed driving. That is better than the 4.8 L/100 km it’s rated for by NRCan. Indeed, it was pretty hard to push the little Kia much past the 6.0 L/100 km mark. Even cruising Ontario’s 401 at a buck-twenty, the little PHEV averaged a meagre 5.4 L/100 km when the battery was done. The gas engine may not be powerful but it is parsimonious.

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Compare specs of the 2023 Kia Niro Hybrid, PHEV & EV versions

When the weather is good, the Niro’s battery is good for a little over 45 klicks on pure electricity. Considering that its battery is smallish — 11.1 kilowatt-hours — that renders an energy efficiency of about 24 kWh/100 km, a fairly frugal figure in its own right. In fact, according to NRCan, the Niro PHEV should cost you $795 dollars to keep fueled throughout a year, just $237 — less than 20 bucks a month — than the all-electric Niro EV. PHEVs are coming into their own.

In colder weather, especially if you’re hoofing it, the most I could get was 37 kilometres before the ECU instructed the ICE to fire up. That’s about 30 kWh/100 km, not nearly as efficient. If you’re daily commute is short, there’s no worry. If you’re expecting a full-blown EV, you’ll be disappointed.

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Pretty good looking, too

Style is such a personal decision that I seldom comment on a particular car’s looks. But the Niro seems so universally beloved I thought I should make mention of it. At least my neighbours loved it. In a nutshell, it looks a little like Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 but with better proportions. The front grille looks aggressive without being overwrought — I’m looking at you Lexus — the rear is the height of modernity and it’s all wrapped up in a cute little hatchback shell.

That same stylistic competence continues inside. Despite being built to a price — its $37,995 MSRP is no so bad for a PHEV — even the base Niro feels luxurious inside. Two 10.3-inch screens — one gauge set, the other infotainment — dominate the otherwise minimalist dashboard, there are plenty of cubby holes to store stuff and, like the best of cars these days, the Niro offers both USB-A and USB-C charging ports. It’s also roomy inside and even boasts 550 L (19.4 cubic feet) of cargo space, not bad for a non-SUV that stretches just 4,420 millimetres from bumper to bumper.

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And the all-important infotainment interface is quite well laid out, save for one quirk I am sure Kia thought time saving. Both the audio system and the air conditioning system are controlled by dual function button; touch one ‘master’ and a row of electronic switches alternates between temperature and audio control. It’s not as convenient as it sounds, the system eventually defaulting back to HVAC control. I constantly found myself turning the AC to full cool when what I wanted was Eighties on 8. Some things are not worth simplifying I guess. Otherwise, it continues the excellent work in this arena that the Kia/Hyundai duo are putting together these days.

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Much improved but still in the Prius’ shadow

If all that seems glowing, it is… in isolation. The new Niro PHEV’s biggest problem is that Toyota has moved the goalposts quite dramatically with its likewise recently-released Prius Prime. Equally frugal on the gas, it manages close to 70 kilometres on a battery charge — for an efficiency of 19.4 kWh per 100 km from its 13.6 kWh battery — and is a whole bunch more powerful to boot. The Prius has even managed to shed its dweeb-on-campus pocket-protector styling. It even costs almost exactly the same as the Niro.

The Niro does feel a little more hedonistic inside and the infotainment system is brighter and more cheerful. Push comes to shove, I also suspect it might use a pinch less gas when off battery. But, as they say in boxing, if you’re going to take the champ’s title away, you need a decisive beat-down. As it is, the 2023 Niro PHEV is a serious step forward for Kia’s plug-in hybrid. I’m not sure it’s going to wrest the crown from the king of the division, however.

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Should you get the Regular hybrid or PHEV?

Kia renders the new Niro in three electrified guises: regular hybrid, thus plug-in version and an all-battery electric variant. Since you’re already here reading about the plug-in version’s little gas engine, I’ll assume you’re more likely to cross-shop the lower-priced Niro Hybrid than the top-of-the-line Niro EV.

That said, despite the copious price difference — the standard hybrid is some $8,000 less than the plug-in version — I’d suggest sticking with the PHEV. With the same gasoline motor, but much smaller electric motors, the regular hybrid puts out just 139 horsepower. And, though it weighs a little over 100 kilograms less — the result of the PHEV’s bigger battery — it’s a tad more lethargic. More lethargic than the regular Prius Hybrid as well, which costs less to boot. Another indication? In the battle between regular and PHEV Priuses, it is now the plug-in that captures three-quarters of new customers and the Prius is more competition to the Prime than the regular Niro Hybrid is to its plug-in sibling. Nonetheless, it does cost $8,000 less and is powered by the same gas engine so that might be some small solace.