Kia EV4 vs Suzuki e VITARA

The Kia EV4 costs £8,496 more than the Suzuki e VITARA. For that premium it adds 57 miles more WLTP range, 125 litres more boot space and 44 kW more power. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the Kia EV4 comes out ahead overall.

The Suzuki e VITARA is £8,496 cheaper to buy. Running costs are almost identical - about £144 a year either way, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the Suzuki e VITARA comes out roughly £8,416 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 226 miles for the Kia EV4 and 162 miles for the Suzuki e VITARA - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The Kia EV4 goes roughly 64 miles further between charging stops. A rapid charge to 80% takes around 31 minutes in the Kia EV4 and 45 in the Suzuki e VITARA, so the Kia EV4 loses less time at each stop. That makes the Kia EV4 the stronger long-distance car.

The Suzuki e VITARA is the easier car for tight UK car parks: it is 60 mm narrower than the Kia EV4. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 600 mm of total clearance for the Suzuki e VITARA and about 540 mm of total clearance for the Kia EV4. The Suzuki e VITARA also turns in a 0.5 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 89% battery health for the Kia EV4 and 90% for the Suzuki e VITARA. That is close enough that capacity loss should not decide between them. The Suzuki e VITARA's LFP-type pack tolerates daily 100% charging, while the Kia EV4's NMC-type pack lasts longest kept to about 80% for everyday use. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.