From Kia Stinger to EV6: Why 2022 is a pivotal year for Kia's future in Australia as it continues to pivot towards hybrid and electric cars

It’s crunch time for Kia. 2022 will determine if all of the work the South Korean brand has done in the past few years has paid off.

Nothing sums it up better than its transition of ‘hero’ models this year - the Stinger will make way for the EV6.

The Stinger represents Kia’s past, an attempt to take on the established market leaders with the type of car that people used to find appealing, like the Holden Commodore and Ford Falcon.

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The EV6, meanwhile, is the future and a fresh take on the electric crossovers that buyers are currently flocking to.

The EV6 is a physical manifestation of Kia’s recently discovered confidence to mark itself out not as a ‘challenger brand’, but as a genuine mainstream carmaker that can stand wheel-to-wheel with anything Toyota, Mazda or Hyundai can do.

Kia has spent the better part of the last decade trying to shift its image from a ‘cheap and cheerful’ brand to one seen on the same level as the best-selling Toyota, Mazda, Hyundai and Ford.

As we’ve written in the past, Kia has made steady progress up the sales charts, ending 2021 in fifth place behind those previously mentioned brands. The introduction of more EVs and hybrids - which will almost certainly carry a price premium over their petrol-powered equivalents - will push Kia further up market and put further pressure on its attempts to change its image in Australia.

Kia enjoyed a strong bounce back in 2021, recording a 21.2 per cent sales increase over 2020, but more importantly laid down what should be the foundations for its next decade of growth. It launched a new-look logo to go along with introducing its first electric vehicle - the Niro EV small SUV.

But 2022 will see this evolution towards electrification accelerate, with the arrival of the all-new EV6, new generation Niro as well as the Sorento Hybrid. This is why this year will be so crucial for the brand.

The arrival of these new electrified models represents the future of the brand. Whether Australians embrace the models will have a big impact on how the next few years play out for the carmaker.

If the EV6, Niro EV and Sorento Hybrids go well, then it will greatly strengthen Kia Australia’s case with its global headquarters to be prioritised for other electrified models, such as the Sportage Hybrid, which would give the local operation a rival to the popular Toyota RAV4 Hybrid.

Kia Australia was forced to wait for the previous Niro EV until the final years of its lifecycle, primarily because demand in other international markets pushed Australia down the priority order.

If the brand wants to maintain its hard-earned position in the market as one of the new top-sellers, it will need to transition into an electric future in 2022.

At the same time, Kia must continue to build on its previous strong performers, particularly its SUV range which will have been largely overhauled by the end of the year. In the wake of the new Sportage hitting showrooms in the second half of 2021, Kia will introduce both the new Niro and facelifted Seltos as well as adding the hybrid Sorento before 2022 is done.

This means a more cohesive range, with the slightly larger Sportage allowing the Seltos to fit more neatly between it and the more compact Stonic and Niro models.

The other major test that 2022 will put Kia through is the acceptance of the new Sportage, with its larger size and bolder design.

Like all carmakers, Kia was impacted by the global supply chain crisis, which combined with the swap from outgoing to incoming models, saw the Sportage sales drop by 17 per cent in ‘21. 

A full year on sale will be the indicator of where the new Sportage sits in the pecking order of mid-size SUVs, and a strong year would have a major impact on Kia’s overall sales hopes.

While the Cerato small car continues to be its unsung hero, comfortably being its best-seller, the combined growth of Sportage, Seltos and Stonic, as well as the potential the new Niro offers, could propel Kia another rung up the sales ladder by the end of 2022.