Kia engineers were seen testing a prototype of what will likely be an EV9 GT.
GT is the name Kia uses for the high-performance versions of its electric vehicles, the first and only example of which is the current EV6 GT.
O EV9 GT has been confirmed last year by Kia CEO Ho-Sung Song, who said the vehicle would launch in early 2025. The timing suggests we’ll see the EV9 GT arrive as a 2026 model in the U.S.
The prototype in our spy photos looks like like a regular EV9 in the GT-Line version, a version that has exclusive front and rear panels, as well as 21-inch wheels, among other updates. However, closer inspection reveals larger brake rotors as well as lime green paint on the rear brake calipers. The same lime green color is used as an accent on the EV6 GT, including on the brake calipers.
2023Kia EV6GT
The EV9 went on sale late last year as a 2024 model, and the top performance option currently available for the three-row midsize is a 380-hp dual-motor powertrain. Kia says this can accelerate the EV9 to 60 mph from rest in less than six seconds as standard and just five seconds with an available Boost function that Kia sells separately through its new Kia Connect Store app store.
The EV9 GT will likely offer considerably more performance. As a hint of what’s possible, the EV6 GT comes with a dual-motor setup rated at 576 hp and performance that includes a 0-60 mph time of 3.4 seconds.
The EV6 GT also benefits from chassis upgrades that include a sport suspension with adjustable shock absorbers, an electronic limited-slip differential, upgraded brakes with monobloc calipers, performance tires and unique drive modes. Similar updates should come to the eventual EV9 GT model.
Before the arrival of the EV9 GT, Kia will introduce an updated EV6, and updates for that model will also appear in the EV6 GT.