2026 Kia Syros EV Review: Big on Space, Bigger on Range

Kia has been trying to crack the mass-market EV space in India for a while. The EV6 was a niche product. The EV9 was even more so. With the Syros EV, Kia has taken a very different approach - electrify something that already works, price it competitively, and load it with features that make it hard to ignore.

Starting at ₹13.49 lakh for the base HTK trim and going up to ₹19.99 lakh for the top X-Line, the Syros EV takes on the Nexon EV, Windsor EV, Curvv EV, and even some lower variants of the Creta EV. There’s also a Battery as a Service option starting at ₹7.99 lakh with a ₹3.3/km battery usage charge - making it one of the most accessible entry points into an EV at this size.

Design & Exterior Styling

The Syros EV carries over the same bold, vertical design language from the ICE sibling - and it works exactly as divisively here. The Digital Tiger Face up front, Starmap LED tail lamps at the rear, and a tall upright profile with a massive glass house. It’s not conventional, but it earns every centimetre of the space it creates inside.

Specific EV changes are subtle: revised lower bumpers with gloss black skid plates front and rear, LED turn signals in the tail lamps (the ICE gets halogens), a continuous LED HMSL strip inside the boot glass, and the EV charging port integrated cleanly on the front left fender. The Syros EV measures 3,995 mm in length with a 2,550 mm wheelbase - the same dimensions as the ICE car, every mm of which is used well.

Our test car was the top X-Line in Xclusive Matte Graphite - an exclusive shade that suits the Syros’s design better than any of the gloss options.

Interior & Cabin Space

Open the door and the 30-inch Wide Trinity Panoramic Display Panel is what greets you - three screens in one seamless panel: a 12.3-inch navigation cockpit for the driver, a 12.3-inch central infotainment touchscreen, and a 5-inch dedicated climate control touch panel in the middle. It’s a lot of screen, but it’s organised well and rarely feels overwhelming.

The cabin itself is the Syros’s strongest card. The EV platform allows Kia to eliminate the central tunnel hump completely, and the cabin floor is flat - genuinely flat. Ground clearance is actually 7 mm higher on the EV (197 mm vs 190 mm on the ICE), while the cabin roof is 5 mm taller. Rear legroom in a sub-4 metre car is genuinely in a different league here. At 5’7” with the driver’s seat pushed back, there’s enough room in the back to stretch out comfortably. Taller passengers - up to 6 feet - have sufficient headroom.

The rear seats slide and recline - a feature you’d expect in a larger segment - and both front and rear seats are ventilated. Rear seat ventilation is base-only (vs base + back up front), but having it at all in a sub-4 metre EV at this price is exceptional. The rear centre armrest with integrated cupholders, rear AC vents, and a 250V/16A 3-pin V2L plug point under the middle seat round out the rear passenger experience.

Boot space is 390 litres in standard configuration and 465 litres with the rear seats pushed forward. The flat floor means folding the rear seats creates a genuinely usable load area. There’s also a 16-litre frunk under the front bonnet - useful for the charging cable and small items.

Key Features & Technology

The 8-speaker Harman Kardon sound system, dual-pane panoramic sunroof, 64-colour LED ambient lighting, wireless charging with NFC Digital Key functionality (X-Line only), 360-degree camera with smart dual dashcam, one-touch up/down on all four windows, and a 100W USB-C port in the driver console. Physical controls are retained below the infotainment screen for key climate and audio functions - the kind of ergonomic decision most manufacturers have stopped making.

The X-Line also gets Level 2 ADAS with 16 features: forward collision warning and avoidance (for vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians), lane keep and follow assist, Smart Cruise Control with Stop & Go, Blind View Monitor in the driver cluster, and junction turning assist among others.

Powertrain, Performance & Real-World Range

The Extended Range variant uses a 51.4 kWh liquid-cooled battery pack producing 169 BHP and 255 Nm. MIDC-certified range is 526 km - one of the higher figures in this segment. Real-world driving at a mix of city and highway speeds should comfortably yield 380-420 km, which covers the majority of use cases without range anxiety.

Three driving modes - Eco, Normal, and Sport - meaningfully change the character of the car. Eco is ideal for city commuting and extracting maximum range without ever feeling underpowered. Normal covers most situations well. Sport sharpens throttle response noticeably and weights up the steering - genuinely fun on open roads.

Regen braking is adjustable across three levels via the paddle shifters. Holding the left paddle for 3 seconds activates iPEDAL - single-pedal driving that brings the car to a complete stop and holds it on inclines. It works well in congested traffic and becomes second nature quickly. Smart Recuperation mode (activated via the right paddle) uses ADAS data to automatically vary regen levels based on traffic distance, speed, and road gradient - a genuinely useful real-world feature.

0–100 km/h takes 8.1 seconds - quick enough to leave most traffic behind from a standing start, and the instant torque delivery makes every gap in traffic feel larger than it is.

Battery & Charging Speeds

Kia provides an 11 kW AC 3-phase wall charger (recommended for ER variants) that takes the 51.4 kWh battery from 10–100% in 4 hours 50 minutes. A 7.4 kW portable charger is also included for flexibility at home or away. On a 100 kW DC fast charger, 10–80% takes 39 minutes - enough time for a proper break on a long drive.

Ride Quality & Highway Handling

Kia has retuned the suspension specifically for the EV - revised spring and damper setup to account for the heavier battery pack while keeping ride comfort acceptable. At city speeds, the car absorbs smaller road imperfections quietly. Larger potholes and sharp undulations are felt, but not harshly. The 16-inch variants with a taller tyre sidewall will ride slightly more comfortably than the 17-inch ER models - worth factoring in if ride quality is a priority.

Straight-line stability is confident at all legal highway speeds. Cornering brings out some body roll - expected from a tall SUV design - but it’s well-controlled and never unsettling. The steering is light in the city and firms up well in Sport mode.

Safety & Driver Assistance (ADAS)

6 airbags, all-disc brakes, 3-point seatbelts for all passengers, ESP, ABS, EBD, hill hold, and TPMS are standard. The X-Line additionally gets Level 2 ADAS. Kia backs the Syros EV with a 3-year/unlimited km factory warranty, extendable to 5 years. The battery carries a lifetime warranty for the first owner, capping at 8 years/1,60,000 km for subsequent owners.

Kia Syros EV Price List (Ex-Showroom)

The HTX+ ER at ₹18.49 lakh is the sweet spot - extended range battery, ventilated front and rear seats, panoramic sunroof, Harman Kardon audio, and the premium Off-White interior, without paying the X-Line premium. If ADAS and Digital Key are important to you, the X-Line at ₹19.99 lakh is the one.

The Syros EV isn’t perfect - the design will remain polarising, and wind noise is noticeable at highway speeds. But on what matters most - interior space, range, features, and value - it delivers in a way that few sub-4 metre EVs currently do.

Thinking about the Kia Syros EV? Let Creddio do the legwork - we collect competing offers from every authorised Kia dealer in your city and call you back with the best deal. Free for buyers, always.

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