1997 Kia Sportage Ex Sport Utility 4-door 2.0l 4x4 on 2040-cars

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2019 Kia Niro EV starts at $1,500 more than Hyundai Kona Electric

Pricing for the 2019 Kia Niro EV has been revealed, and it has the highest starting price of any Hyundai or Kia electric car that we know the price of right now – assuming the Soul EV won't be pricier. The base price for the Niro EV EX is $39,495 before the federal tax credit. With the credit, the price falls to $31,995. The top trim Niro EV EX Premium jumps up to $44,995 before the credit, and $37,495 after it. For the extra $5,500, the Niro EV EX Premium adds a sunroof, real leather trim, heated and ventilated front seats, eight-inch touchscreen, navigation and wireless phone charging. The standard Niro EV is still well-equipped with standard adaptive cruise control, seven-inch touchscreen, lane centering, automatic emergency braking and blind-spot warning. Each also comes with standard DC fast charging capability. In comparison, the 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric starts at $37,995 ($30,495 with tax credit), which is $1,500 less than the Niro. The Kona is a bit smaller than the Niro, though it also offers more range than the Niro with 258 miles versus 239. The Chevy Bolt EV's base price is the cheapest at $37,495, but the tax credit has been reduced for the Chevy to $3,750 – and Chevy isn't dropping the price any to compensate. That means with the credit, the Bolt EV ends up the most expensive of these three at $33,745. The Bolt EV doesn't include DC fast charging as standard, either, and its EPA-rated range is a mile shy of the Niro's.

2014 Kia Soul SUV Styling Pack adds some aggression

Last month, Kia released a few photos of the European-market 2014 Soul ahead of its Frankfurt Motor Show reveal, and we happened to notice that the hamster box looked a bit different - a bit tougher. That's because Kia is adding an SUV Styling Pack to the car's options list, which includes the blacked-out lower fascias, wheel arches, side skirts and painted roof seen here.
At the time, we polled Autoblog readers if they thought bringing the optional visuals to SUV-happy North America was a good idea, and the voting split 70.3 percent in favor, 21.4 percent against, and 8.3 percent undecided.
At the present time, Kia representatives tell us that it has no plans to offer the SUV Styling Pack in our market, so you'll have to take a better look at it with our new gallery to decide whether its absence from North American order sheets is a tragedy or not.

WTF China? Why copy the Kia Picanto for anything?

While we certainly don't condone it, we at least get why Chinese companies copy the work of global automakers. It's all about the prestige in the China, and when versions of expensive imports can be had from a cheaper, domestically built automaker, it's clear where the money will go. But of all the prestigious, luxurious, handsome, high-performance vehicles for a Chinese automaker to rip off, why in the name of Chairman Mao did they choose a Kia Picanto? For those not in the know, the Picanto is a tiny city car that'd slot in below the Rio, were it sold in the US market. It's a fine car for what it is, but hardly one that is so packed full of innovative, handsome styling that makes sense to copycat, even if it isn't actually sold in the People's Republic. But that's just what Yogomo has done, with the new 330 electric car. While the real McCoy is a proper car, complete with a range of gas engines, the electric 330 is what's known in China as a low-speed electric vehicle – despite its size, according to Car News China, it can't be used on highways and is not eligible for the PRC's green subsidies. While most copycat designs are pretty flagrant, they're easily discernible from the cars on which they're based. That's not the case with the Yogomo 330, though. The mirrors are different, sure, and the grille, while roughly the same shape, isn't as exact the trademark Kia grille. But beyond that, the design is virtually identical, and that's sure to ruffle the feathers of copyright lawyers in South Korea. Head over to CNC for a look at the Yogomo's copycatting efforts. Featured Gallery Yogomo 330 EV Related Gallery 2015 Kia Picanto News Source: Car News ChinaImage Credit: Kia Government/Legal Green Kia