Kia UK and EV conversion specialists Electrogenic unveiled their joint creation, the Kia Pride EV restomod, at the recent Bicester Heritage ‘Scramble’. The Pride EV represents the third one-off car Kia has created in recent years after the Stinger ‘GT420’ in 2019 and Soul EV beach buggy.

Originality with a sprinkling of modernity

For this restomod, a 1996 Pride 1.3 LX five-door donor car was taken from Kia UK’s heritage fleet and given a fully electric powertrain. Now boasting more power, more instant torque and no emissions, the car has been completely transformed and is fully road legal. Electrogenic has, however, kept back its original five-speed manual transmission and drive shafts for a more authentic early hot hatch driving experience.

Other features, like its original 12-inch steel wheels and wheel covers, have been retained too. However, one noticeable change is its exterior colour, with Kia switching from the donor’s original ‘Kingfisher Blue’ to a modern ‘White Pearl’ finish seen on the Kia EV3, EV6, EV9 and Niro EV. Also given a switch to a modern equivalent are the front and rear tail lights, which provide better visibility in all conditions.

Inside, the grey cloth interior remains, given a pop of lime green (seen on the EV6 GT interior) in the form of piping on the seats and stitching on the floor mats.

Out with the old, in with the new

First taken out was the original 1,324cc engine, 37-litre petrol tank, fuel lines and filler neck, swiftly replaced with an electric motor, twin 10kWh battery packs, and a charging socket beneath the filler flap. This results in an increase of 47bhp (now 107bhp), 2,500rpm (now 8,000rpm) and a peak of 234Nm of torque. Despite EVs being notoriously heavy, the overall weight of the vehicle has only increased from 850kg to 870kg.

The location which housed the fuel filler cap now has a Type 2 charging connector, enabling a full charge in around six hours from a conventional plug socket or wall charger. Sensible driving in ‘Eco’ mode should get you around 120 miles on a single charge, although this will decrease when put into ‘Sport’, which can do 0-62mph in an estimated 8 seconds. The third driving mode, ‘Auto’, enables the Pride EV to drive more like a conventional EV, staying in third gear.

While the donor car was produced almost 30 years ago in Gwangmyeong, South Korea, the Pride EV conversion took place at Electrogenic’s facility in Kidlington in Oxfordshire.

80 years of Kia and future plans

The company began life 80 years ago as a bicycle components manufacturer called Kyungsung Precision Industry. It later changed its name to Kia Industries in 1952 and began to produce pedal bicycles, before producing its first motorised vehicle, the K-360 three-wheeled light truck, 10 years later.

In 1974, Kia produced its first passenger car called the Brisa. Following strong sales across Asia, Kia ventured into the UK in 1991, starting with the Pride before more followed, including the Sportage. The company has continued to grow, and nowadays, Kia sells around three million vehicles a year. As part of its ‘Plan S’ strategy, Kia will offer 15 different EV models by 2027, although the Pride EV restomod won’t be one of them.

words: Mike Booth
pictures: Kia