• Well-shaped 475-litre boot
• Loads of space inside
• Plenty of storage bins

How much space is there?

There’s a lot of room in the front of the Kia Niro EV. There’s ample headroom and the seats are accommodating with plenty of adjustment. You can also drop the driver’s seat down to the floor, which means even the loftiest pilot can sit behind the wheel without craning to see under the roof.

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Because it’s an electric car, there’s a surprising amount of space in the rear, too. The floor is completely flat because there’s no need to carve a tunnel into the body for an exhaust system – and that means there’s lots of legroom. Even a passenger on the middle of the bench has enough space to stretch out, which is more than can be said for petrol-powered rivals like the Toyota Yaris Cross. We reckon it’s also a far better choice for families than style-led offerings such as the Fiat 600e and Jeep Avenger.

Boot space and storage

The Kia Niro EV has a 475-litre boot, which is a whopping 120 litre more than you get in the Jeep Avenger and 115 litres more than a Fiat 600e. This is because it straddles the segments, sitting somewhere between a family hatchback and a family SUV. Fold the rear seats flat and the amount of available space increases to 1,392 litres.

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Kia has done a good job with the Niro EV’s cabin design, too. There are lots of handy storage bins, including a massive smartphone charging pad in the dashboard, deep door bins and a well-sized cubby in the armrest. However, we think the drinks holders in the door cards and the centre console are too small. Our testers couldn’t find anywhere to convenient for a litre-sized water bottle.

Is it easy to park?

It’s no more difficult than a family hatchback. Opt for the mid-range model and you’ll get a rear-view camera and parking sensors to help guide you into spaces – but they’re not necessary. Visibility out of the rear window is good and the mirrors are large, which makes the Niro EV easy to manoeuvre.

Spend big on the flagship ‘4’ model and you’ll get Kia’s Remote Smart Parking Assist, which allows the car to park itself while you stand outside of the car. If we’re honest, it feels like a bit of a gimmick because we haven’t yet driven the Niro into a situation where we feel compelled to use it, despite Kia’s persistence on how useful it is in tight car parks.

Safety

• Four-star safety rating from Euro NCAP
• Rises to five stars with optional safety pack
• Lots of standard safety equipment

Euro NCAP, the vehicle safety experts, crash tested the Niro EV in 2022 and it achieved a four-star rating. The testers were pleased with the way the car protected both its adult and child occupants from impacts, but they found its standard safety equipment to be lacking.

Standard safety equipment includes cruise control, lane-keeping assist, a tyre-pressure monitoring system and forward collision avoidance assist with car, pedestrian and cyclist recognition. There’s also intelligent speed limit assist, which automatically changes the maximum speed of the car’s cruise control system according to the prevailing speed limits.

Kia offers an extended safety pack for the Niro EV, too. It’s fitted to the range-topping 4 model and, with the technology equipped, its Euro NCAP safety score rises to five stars. Upgrades include a parking collision avoidance system, rear cross traffic alert and blind-spot collision avoidance which will actively steer the car out of the path of vehicles in its blind spots.

Watch the Kia Niro’s Euro NCAP crash test video