Kia has announced pricing details for the updates version of its electric van, the PV5 Cargo. 

It comes hot on the heels of the seven-seater MPV version of the car opening for orders and shows just how flexible the undercarriage of the PV5 is, there are all sorts of versions of it planned. 

We’ll get into sizes and batteries and prices in a bit, because it gets complicated, but the headline news is that Kia has added a new shorter entry model to the range that starts from £27,355 plus VAT. 

We should add at this point that Kia doesn't have any pics of the new van yet, so imagine this one a smidge shorter.

The new van is known as the PV5 Cargo L1/H1, which in van parlance means it’s the shortest in the range in height and length. It’s 20mm shorter than the L2/H1 PV5 Cargo but still offers four cubic metres of space inside.

Strangely, payload has actually increased over the longer version of the van – because it uses the same powertrain combinations but has less bodywork to cart around the L1/H1 can fit in 800kg of stuff, which is a whopping 10kg increase over the L2/H1. 

The new van comes in the same Essential and Plus trims, which are then offered in Short Range and Long Range configurations. The SR comes with a 51.5kWh battery for 177 miles of range and the LR comes with a 71.2kWh battery for 243 miles. These numbers are seven and 15 miles shorter than the longer van, incidentally. No idea why – aerodynamics?

Initially the L1/H1 will come in a two-seater configuration only, but Kia says that a no cost three-seat option will offered at some point in early 2027. The three-seat front bench is available straight away on the longer van though, just saying. 

Other changes you’ll notice across the range are a redesigned radio antenna that lowers the PV5 Cargo’s height to just under 1.9 metres for seamless car park access, driver’s seat lumbar support and a new composite bulkhead between the cabin and cargo space. It’s almost too much excitement, Kia stop. 

We’ve already established that the L1/H1 range starts at £27,355 + VAT for the Essential SR. The Plus SR adds £1,000, the Essential LR is another £1,500 which means it’s £29,855 + VAT and the Plus LR adds another £1,000 to top out the L1/H1 range at £30,855 + VAT.

If you’re wanting to compare prices with the longer L2/H1 van, that 20mm of extra length adds £1k to the price across the board. 

You can add fancy paint for £625, an extra sliding door for £325 and a heat pump on the Plus LR model for £650, all of those plus VAT.

The PV5 Cargo is eligible for the government’s plug-in van grant, which means £5,000 off the on-the-road price, which includes things like registration, first year of VED and delivery costs. 

The new version of the PV5 Cargo is available to order from Kia already, with deliveries expected in October. Read our review of the PV5 Cargo here. 

Nicola liked the PV5 Cargo so much when she went to drive it that she gave it a solid 9/10 (+ VAT)