Kia plans to have 14 electric vehicles in its lineup as soon as 2027, and some of these will be purpose-built vehicles designed to meet a customer’s specific needs, such as delivery vans or shuttles.
Kia previewed some of its upcoming purpose-built vehicles with concepts during 2024 CES, albeit without any powertrain details.
Now a camouflaged prototype for a production model has been spotted, testing alongside the Volkswagen ID.Buzz and the Citroën E-Berlingo electric vans in the latest shots. Like those rivals, the Kia is midsize van, and it will carry the PV5 name into production. The name was attached to the concept that served as a preview of the van at CES.
The concept measured close to 183 inches long and had a wheelbase of almost 118 inches, and the production model looks to be about that size. A larger van measuring more than 207 inches long, dubbed the PV7, was also shown.
Depending on how it’s configured, the PV5 could serve as a delivery van, a passenger van, a camper van, or a taxi. Kia has also shown an off-road version and a version that could be used as a robotaxi. Kia has indicated that it may eventually use the PV5 in its own robotaxi service.
Kia also plans to offer the PV5 as a chassis cab, which will enable owners to build the vehicle to fully suit their needs, a practice known as upfitting.
Kia PBV Concepts
The PV5 is expected to debut in 2025 as the first of Kia’s new purpose-built vehicles.
Kia will also launch a purpose-built vehicle designed for taxi services using its Niro compact crossover as the basis, the company has confirmed.
