2023 Kia Niro Hands-On Preview: 5 Ways Kia Made It Bigger, More Stylish, and Kept the Best Parts

Kia’s original Niro small crossover was notable for one reason: You could get a hybrid, a plug-in hybrid, or a full EV.

Aside from that clever trick (the only crossover shape to do it), there wasn’t much to take note of. It wasn’t an exciting vehicle, and better PHEV and EV models quickly arrived on the market to dull the shine even more.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

That slash running up the Niro’s D-Pillar is more than just a cool styling feature. Yes, it makes the Niro look a bit like an Audi R8 coupe, but this is a part that’s functional as well as cosmetic.

The Aero Blade, as Kia has named it, has an opening on its leading edge. Where the blade would meet the rear of the door. Look at the blade from the back and you can see there is an opening there, too. It’s meant to channel air through the Aero Blade, directed by those small strakes on the door moulding.

Kia says that routing air through the blade improves the Niro’s aerodynamics, changing how the air flows around the rear of the vehicle. It also improves stability, Kia told us, making Niro less susceptible to gusting winds on the highway. Lastly, Kia says it helps make the cabin quieter. Wind noise is a big deal on EVs, so anything to cut that is a big plus.

As far as cosmetics, you can get it in a contrasting colour or have the blade painted body colour. Technically, you could even remove it and replace it with one in a different hue, though that is a bit of a task.

Sustainability is the word in the auto industry these days, and that means some very innovative new textiles. The Niro EV is made with “animal-free textiles” which is code for no leather, but a base-model Rio is also animal-free. What’s neat are the seats, which use bio-polyurethane and Tencel made from eucalyptus.

Bio-polyurethane is basically plastics that use plant-based oils instead of petroleum and can be used for surfaces as well as foam. Eucalyptus Tencel turns eucalyptus trees (claimed to be more eco-friendly than cotton or bamboo) into fabric. We won’t get into the process, but it’s an interesting one and the only solvent used is 99 percent recovered and recycled, another plus.

Since we were on a show stand, we couldn’t test this feature out, but we love the idea. Called Green Zone Drive Mode (this is actually the second generation), it turns off the gas motor (of the hybrid and PHEV) in particularly sensitive areas. Using navigation data and your driving history, it knows where school zones are, hospitals, residential areas, even your home and office. So when you drive through one of those areas, the car will swap to electric power automatically, if possible.

Nobody wants to make more noise and pollution around schools and hospitals, but short of avoiding those areas, there hasn’t been a way to make that happen before. This is a feature we’d love to see spread. The natural progression is a system that knows you’re headed downtown and maintains enough charge to use when you’re in those areas that are best for electric propulsion and worst for vehicle pollution.

Kia made the Niro larger for 2023. 2.6-inches (65 mm) more overall length and 0.8-inches longer between the wheel wells don’t sound like a lot, but it makes a difference. The Niro is slightly taller and slightly wider, too, and it makes the model much more accomodating.

The back seat has plenty of room for two very large adults. Why does that matter? Because despite the growth spurt, all versions of the Niro are more efficient than they were before. The extra size makes this viable alternative for more buyers and more families, but it doesn’t suffer from the efficiency drop you’d get from moving up a size class.

Cargo space grows to 22.8 cubic feet (646 L) behind the seats, from 19.4 cubic feet before (or 18.5 with the EV). Kia has made tweaks like moving the hybrid car’s battery from the trunk area to under the rear seat, helping to maximize the amount of luggage, gear, and other bulky items you can haul.

We can’t forget the baby frunk. Kia’s EVs so far haven’t made space under the hood for a larger Tesla-like front trunk, but they don’t completely waste the space either. Pop the hood and it looks like you’re seeing an engine cover.

But there’s no engine, you say. Right. This cover opens to give you a watertight cargo space. There’s enough room for a briefcase or a laptop bag, or a large purse if it’s not too thick, but not much more.

What would we use it for? How about filling it with snacks for when you’re charging? Plug in the front-mount outlet and grab some munchies. It only takes 45 minutes to charge from 10-80 percent now, thanks to 85 kW L3 charging. Maybe an emergency kit for the winter with gloves, blankets and the like? Or a mysterious briefcase that glows when you open it? Yeah, that’s the right choice!

The bigger, better-looking, and more efficient 2023 Kia Niro is set to show up at Kia stores in all 50 states this fall (the previous-gen EV was sold only in a few states before 2022). We think the larger size, longer (253-mile for EV and 33-mile for PHEV) range and funkier styling will make this one a better seller than the model it replaces. At least until more of Kia’s dedicated EV architectures arrive on the market.

Become an AutoGuide insider. Get the latest from the automotive world first by subscribing to our newsletter here.