Kia has well and truly made a name for themselves; a name that stands for quality, style, and lots of great tech.  And their cars come at a relatively affordable price, often similar to equivalent vehicles from Toyota and Honda.  The 2024/2025 Kia Niro SUV is now available with hybrid models to take Kia’s special brand of quality, refinement, and space out to the buyers that are looking for something unique.  There aren’t that many hybrid SUVs on the market yet, so be in quick and enjoy the status that will go along with it. 

What you get in a new Kia Niro Hybrid is an SUV that can help keep your fuel consumption bill low.  I think that hybrids are the sensible way forward at the moment, and they offer excellent low emission and low fuel consumption transport, especially for busy, congested city environments.  In much the same way as Toyota’s Corolla Cross or CH-R, which are also hybrids, the name of the Niro game is to get about town using as much as the battery side of the hybrid equation as possible.  Obviously, as speeds or demands increase, there will be a growing dependency on the ULP ICE for power, particularly once the speeds get up and over 70 km/h most of the time.  The engine will also kick in on steep inclines or under heavy loads. 

Even out on the motorway, the Kia Niro feels at home, not really feeling stressed about its task of providing its occupants with confident, safe, spacious transport.  The 2024 Kia Niro hybrid SUV uses a 1.6-litre petrol engine that is combined with an electric motor.  This self-charging battery combination puts out 102 kW.  Ride comfort is excellent for everyday driving, but if your driving requires white-knuckle cornering speeds, then the Niro won’t be for you.

Around town, the Niro Hybrid is an easy, small SUV to drive, with the higher driving position and lots of glass making it great for seeing what’s outside and around the vehicle.  On higher-end models, the camera technology certainly helps the driver when it comes to parking, and front and rear parking sensors also make life easy at the parking lot. 

Depending on your travel habits and driving demands, the new Niro Hybrid is a small SUV that can return remarkably low fuel consumption; expect an average fuel consumption to be between 4.0–5.0 litres/100 km.  Potentially, if all the stars align, you could get as much as 60 kilometres of pure battery power alone, making this a great city commuter.  I know many of the buyers of the new Niro have been attracted to the EV versions, but it’s the Hybrid version that is better rounded and better suited for multipurpose transport, particularly with current charging station infrastructure.  As far as performance goes, the Niro Hybrid is no sports car, but it will get you up to speed quickly, with a 0–100 km/h sprint time of around 10 seconds. 

Safety is always important out on the road, so it is comforting to know that the Niro scores well in crash tests.  Forward collision assist comes as standard, which can detect cyclists, pedestrians, and other cars, braking accordingly.  A clever cruise control system can bring the car to a complete standstill whenever the traffic ahead grinds to a standstill.  Lane-keeping assistance as well as blind spot collision avoidance systems are present on all but the base models. 

To look at, there is much to like about the Niro’s sharp styling, particularly as it all comes to fruition at the front-end.  Here, its striking design features lots of slender lines and curvy panelling.  At the back, you are treated with a snazzy lighting display in the shape of arrow-type rear LEDs.

Matching the Niro’s modern exterior design with equally fashionable interior design is something that Kia has done well.  The new Niro’s cabin quality is very good, and it echoes the same signature design you’ll find in the sporty EV6 and larger Sportage SUV. There’s plenty of lovely soft-touch material and, depending on which model specs you choose, you’ll enjoy a couple of big screens for the dashboard and quality infotainment functionality.  

The climate and audio controls are kept separate from the touchscreen system, which makes life easier and eliminates faffing around the various mode functions that are present to get to what you want/need that you can encounter with many other touchscreen units.  This set-up is also easier to operate when you’re driving.  Entry models (Hybrid S) get an 8.0-inch screen, while higher trims boast the bigger 10.25-inch one.  The touchscreens sit themselves on the same slim panel positioned alongside a 10.25-inch digital driver’s display.  All new Kia Niros are fitted with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay functionality, so having all your favourite music and other bits is a pretty seamless affair, as smartphone connectivity is also standard.  Other cool features include the excellent adaptive cruise control system, and those snazzy 17-inch alloy wheels.

You’ll find that things like heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, privacy glass, a wireless smartphone charger, and even electric folding door mirrors and automatic wipers come as standard features on the premium GT-Line models.  The top of the range models also boast a head-up display, heated rear seats, ventilated powered front seats, a powered tailgate, and even an electric sunroof.

It might be considered a small SUV, but the 2024 Kia Niro is big on interior storage.  Seating space is great for this class of car – and that’s for both front and rear seat occupants.  Behind the rear seats, the Kia Niro Hybrid SUV offers 451 litres of space in the boot, perfect for swallowing all the groceries.  The ability to split-fold the rear seats is a standard feature too, so you can carry plenty of luggage as the need calls. 

This is a pleasant small SUV that ticks all the right boxes for being a practical, sensible Hybrid SUV.  Kias generally perform very well in reliability forums, so the new Kia Niro Hybrid SUV might just be what you’re looking for.

The current 2024 Kia Niro Hybrid models include the:

• Kia Niro Hybrid S SUV
• Kia Niro Hybrid GT-Line SUV

For any more information on the new Kia Niro Hybrid or, for that matter, any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181.  If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of Kia dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours.  Private Fleet – car buying made easy!