Featured 2018 Kia Niro Plug-in Hybrid revealed, boasts 26 miles of electric range

I hope we see more plug-in SUV's and trucks soon. Those are fairly impressive stats for an SUV. And if the range isn't enough, people who buy or lease these can demand the company create one with more range for their next gen offering.

I just hope Kia doesn't charge a huge premium for this. People will just see a higher sticker price, and immediately conclude a cheaper car will work just fine for them. While it might be true for many, others could save more in the long run, but most people are terrible long term planners.

And with the plug-in tax credit still being threatened to be killed off, that higher sticker price will make it harder to justify buying for some.

 

I think Hyundai already has a 200+ mile SUV BEV in the works. The Niro's weak point is the lack of AWD. The hybrid might be getting it, but it's too early to know for the PHEV.

If the cheaper car they go with is something like the Niro hybrid, it is still an improvement.

The battery pack is only 8.9kWh, and the credit amount is likely more per kWh than the production costs, so the companies should be able to cut the price if the credit goes away.