[myronbg]

I own a '16 Volt, which I like BUT I miss/want a CUV & prefer a PHIV [similar, as possible, to the Volt]. Well currently there aren't any especially what I can afford to purchase, although I might do a lease. The Nero appears to meet just about all my wants.
Last week as I needed my 1st Volt service @ 12,000 miles [I average 7,500 per year] and as the Kia dealer is next door it gave me an opportunity to sit in the Nero and look it over in person. As soon as I walked into the lot, no surprise, a sales person was at my side. He pulled out a Touring and I sat in it and we talked about Nero's. As soon as I said I was interested in the PHEV he backed out and got the "Nero specialist". Nice guy. Honest![?]. Bottom line was that he doubt that they would be a dealer for the Plugin, because they don't have a charger, due to the infrastructure cost, potential low sales volume to justify the cost, they wouldn't participate. He offered to introduce me to the service manager as he would know more info regarding both the charging and training of a tech. If I were to buy from a different dealer, & the local dealer wasn't a certified servicer, then I would need to go the dealer that I bought it from.
I had already looked at dealerships within 200 miles from where I live, the California central coast. The nearest dealer is 75 miles away, & they have many Nero's on the lot. Not too bad. But then I wondered if they were able to service the Soul EV or the Optima PHEV which would require both charging station and trained techs. Nope. After searching [how did we by cars [or anything before the internet?] I found 1 dealer on the outskirts of LA, some 250 miles from me. Too far.
So now I'm going to sit and wait for the '18s which I was gonna do anyways, but for different reasons. If no Kia dealer within a reasonable distance [I'll accept <100 miles] is equipped to sell/service the Nero PHEV, then I most likely "just" get the Hybrid. The the decision will be the "17 v '18 differences.

 

[Jay]

Since when does a PHEV "require" a charging station? Most PHEVs that I'm aware of charge just fine from line voltage in a reasonable time. PHEVs don't even need to plug in at all, so I'm not sure what the dealer complaint is. In fact, in CA the economics for PHEV operation just don't work out. It costs more money to plug in than to fuel up so math-doing PHEV owners in that state never plug-in. They operate straight hybrid. Which begs the question, why own a PHEV, pay extra for that expensive battery, and lug it's weight around everywhere you go if it's cheaper to fuel up than plug in?

 

[yticolev]

The dealer complaint is that the manufacturer is requiring the dealer to have a charging station to carry and sell PHEVs and EVs. You cannot demo even a PHEV five times a day without it. There are likely service scenarios that require a charging station as well.

 

[JasonC]

Any plug will work on a PHEV. Any 110 outlet. Obviously a 220 will work faster, but a 18KWH battery will not take very long to charge.

There simply is not much information about the PHEV Niro yet.

Kia

My take is that it is going to operate just like the 2nd gen Volt, not the 1st gen. I never understood why they changed the way the engine operated to the 2nd gen either. To me, the 1st gen power train like the BMW i3 is perfect.

That dealership whining about having a charging station get put in is just that, whining. If you haven't been paying attention about the electric and PHEV. The tipping point has begun.

2030 - India, all electric
2040 - France, petrol and gas not available to buy
2035 - EU, all electric

When will North America make such a bold announcement?

 

[myronbg]

If you live in a rural area, not within 75 miles of a fairly large city, check out to see if they currently sell or have inventory of the Optima PHEV or the Soul EV.

 

[jim wedlake]

How does the IRS tax credit compare to the extra cost of PHEV?

 

[alannyny]

Word on the street is that Niros aren't selling very quickly right now because so many people are on the fence waiting for pricing etc. for the Niro PHEV (I know I am). So my guess is that your local dealer was behaving like ... well, a car dealer. Anything to move the cars they want to, immediately.

A Level 2 charger can be installed at a very minimal cost, and Kia is coming out with all sorts of EVs so they'll have to. Or maybe he meant for public use, which I don't think Kia is doing anyway.

 

[myronbg]

I agree as my local dealer has 13 in stock and "the greater Los Angeles area" has 65. And in between most dealers are sitting on inventory. The '18s will have some changes, maybe include as standard some '17 extras, a couple of new colors. But there will be panic to get rid of '17 inventory.
So when will the PHEV specs & $$ as that might be a significant [for me] decision points. ';m still concerned with the stuttering on the current Nero, and I'm participating on the Optima PHEV forum where, so far, there's no similar issue.

 

[alannyny]

For a quick estimate, Niro PHEV prices are shown on the German Kia website. (I'm not allowed to post links, but go to Kia dot com slash de , then click on Modelle at top navigation and hover over each Niro to see price).

Niro PHEV is 32,350 Euros, which is 29.5% more than the Niro Hybrid at 24,990 Euros. So I don't see why the US PHEV trims wouldn't be the same 29.5% price premium, meaning a starting price of $30K here. Unless maybe the listed German pricing reflects government incentives for EVs (3,000 Euros, I believe)?