2022 Kia EV6 GT Debuts With 576 Horsepower, Impressive Acceleration

The Kia EV6 GT made its debut in the United States at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering, during Monterey Car Week. The company released some new pictures of the performance-tuned EV, and they're in the gallery below.

The US-spec model reaches 60 mph in 3.4 seconds and a top speed of 161 mph. It'll go on sale in Q4 2022. Pricing details will come later.

Kia unveiled the EV6 a couple of weeks ago but without releasing any technical specifications. Thankfully, we now have all the juicy numbers along with additional imagery depicting the GT-Line and the range-topping GT. The company's first dedicated electric vehicle might be a crossover, but it has levels of power and performance typically associated with sports cars.

The EV6 GT makes use of dual electric motors with a combined output of 576 horsepower (430 kilowatts) and a massive instant torque of 546 pound-feet (740 Newton-meters). The all-wheel-drive electric crossover sprints to 62 mph (100 km/h) in only three and a half seconds and tops out at 162 mph (260 km/h). Mind you, Kia says these are "preliminary development targets," but we have confidence in the South Korean brand the EV6 will achieve these numbers in the production model.

Only the range topper comes equipped with an electronic limited-slip differential for better handling on all road surfaces. While Kia also offers a smaller 58-kWh battery, the AWD-only GT is available exclusively with the largest of the bunch, a 77.4-kWh pack.

If you prefer efficiency over performance, the bigger battery can be had with the single-motor, rear-wheel-drive variant configuration, in which case the EV6 can travel for more than 316 miles (510 kilometers) on a single charge per WLTP.

Kia will give buyers the freedom to choose between rear- and all-wheel drive as well as from the smaller or larger battery on all models but the flagship GT. The sporty-looking GT-Line is also available in different configurations, thus widening the electric crossover's potential customer base.

When it comes to charging, it only takes 18 minutes to go from 10 to 80 percent, with 62 miles (100 kilometers) of range achieved in just four and a half minutes provided it's the RWD model with the bigger battery. Much like its sister model, the Hyundai Ioniq 5, the new Kia EV6 can feed its battery juice to external devices, with Kia saying it can power a 55-inch TV and an AC at the same time for more than 24 hours. Alternatively, the EV6 can charge the battery of another electric vehicle.

If you're wondering about its size, Kia's bespoke electric car riding on the E-GMP platform has the following dimensions: 4,680 millimeters (184.2 inches) long, 1,880 mm (74 in) wide, and 1,550 mm (61 in) tall, with a wheelbase measuring 2,900 mm (114.1 in). The GT Line and GT are actually a tad longer and wider, with the spicy GT also sitting slightly lower to the ground. The EV6 has roughly the same footprint as the Ioniq 5, though its wheelbase is shorter by 100 mm (3.9 in) and the ride height is a smidge lower.

As for practicality, the trunk can swallow 520 liters (18.3 cubic feet) or 1,300 liters (45.9 cu ft) once you fold down the rear seats. Being an electric car, it also has a front trunk, or as the cool kids say, a frunk. In the two-wheel-drive model, it offers a 52-liter volume, which drops to 20 liters (0.7 cu ft) if you order the car with AWD. As already seen in the US-spec Ioniq 5, there's bad news if you're buying the North American version because both 2WD and AWD models have the smaller 20-liter frunk.

Kia will manufacture the EV6 at home in South Korea and will launch the electric crossover in the latter half of the year. In some markets, online reservations are starting today.