Renault 5 vs Kia EV2: same 317 km, a different car

Kia and Renault land on an identical number here: 317 km for the Renault and 317 km for the Kia, both WLTP and both rated by the maker. The batteries are close too, 40 kWh against 42.2 kWh. After that they part ways.

Energy won't settle it. The Renault uses 14.4 kWh/100 km and the Kia 15.1 kWh/100 km. Add the calculator's 25% and that's 0.875 kWh apart per 100 km. At its blended €0.32/kWh (€0.28 at home, €0.55 public, 15% public), the gap is €0.28 per 100 km, or about €32 a year at 11,400 km. Forget it. Your own tariff won't change the answer.

The list prices, German and before any grant, are €26,290 for the Renault Evolution and €26,600 for the Kia Light, checked 2 November 2026. Other countries differ. These are base trims, and base trims are where the differences get sharp.

I haven't driven either. Measured figures below belong to the outlets named.

What you give up on the Kia Light

Kia's price list makes this plain. Light has four seats and no tow rating. A heat pump isn't available, and neither is the battery preheater, which starts on Air.

The Renault Evolution has five seats, tows 500 kg and shows a heat pump as standard on Renault's equipment list. If you drive in real winters, that matters more than €32.

Kia's answer is the Air trim at €28,990, on the same price list. Five seats, 750 kg of towing, the preheater, and a heat pump for €1,340 in options. That's the EV2 I'd actually price up.

What you give up on the Renault

Warranty, mostly. ADAC's sheet, for the Techno trim, shows 2 years on the Renault's car side and 8 years or 160,000 km on the battery. Renault's German warranty page gives no length, so confirm it. Kia's list says 7 years on the car and 8 on the battery. If that gap holds and you keep cars a long time, I'd weigh it above everything else here.

Then crash stars. Auto Express reports five from Euro NCAP for the EV2, tested in 2026. ADAC's sheet has the Renault on 4 of 5, December 2024.

And space. Kia lists a 362 l boot against 326 l for the Renault. Auto Express calls the Kia's boot shallow, with a high lip. ADAC says anyone over 1.80 m struggles in the back of the Renault, and that test was on the 52 kWh car with the same body. CAR magazine found the Kia's rear legroom only just fine for a tall adult in the five-seat layout, which Light doesn't have.

On the road, as others report it

Nobody I could read has measured the 40 kWh Renault, or a Kia in Light trim. Auto Express saw 4.3 miles per kWh in the UK-spec First Edition with the 42.2 kWh pack: about 14.4 kWh/100 km. CAR got 4.14 miles per kWh around Lisbon in a car with the same pack, about 15.0. Neither says how it was recorded. EV Database estimates 270 km for the Renault and 255 km for the Kia, and those are estimates.

Charging comes out close, though the windows differ. Kia says 29 min for 10-80%, and Renault says 30 minutes for 15-80%, although their peaks are 115 kW and 80 kW. Kia's list gives LFP cells for this battery, and ADAC gives the Renault's as NMC.

Top Gear calls the Kia's ride nicely squidgy and its handling boring. CAR calls the ride remarkably pliant. For a car this size, I'd take comfort.

So which one

Pick the Renault if there are four or five of you for short trips, you tow a small trailer, or winter is serious where you live. It's also my pick if you'd only ever buy the cheapest trim.

Pick the Kia if you plan to keep it past the Renault's short warranty, want the extra stars, or can stretch to Air. At that price it stops being the same contest. I'd skip Light unless you never carry a fifth person, never tow, and never see frost. And measure your space: 3,922 mm against 4,060 mm.

There's more on the first car in my Renault 5 review. If neither fits, my list of small electric cars under €30,000 has the ID. Polo, with a 441 l boot at €24,995.