[psyflyjohn]

I was watching a video on the new Kia Niro Ev, and was shocked at what I consider a serious design flaw. About 1/2 way through, the author was showing a side profile of the car, and hanging down about 2 inches below the chassis was - the battery! Couldn't believe they did this. My thinking is that they had to adopt the ICE chassis to the EV battery, and just left it hanging - the lowest part of the car, exposed to a variety of road hazards. That's going to produce a great fireworks display for some lucky owner.

Goes to show you the desperate measures some manufacturers go to so they can be in the EV game.

 

[bro1999]

Hmmm

 

[TimBolt]

How is this any different than any other EV, they all have the battery located along the bottom of the car.

Maybe some side skirts would have made the profile more attractive, but I don’t see where it’s any more likely to have an issue than any other EV battery.

 

[NewsCoulomb]

How is this any different than any other EV, they all have the battery located along the bottom of the car.

Maybe some side skirts would have made the profile more attractive, but I don’t see where it’s any more likely to have an issue than any other EV battery.

I believe the configuration of the Kona Electric and Niro EV cost nearly an inch of ground clearance, so that's the issue.

 

[BoltAction]

I was watching a video on the new Kia Niro Ev, and was shocked at what I consider a serious design flaw. About 1/2 way through, the author was showing a side profile of the car, and hanging down about 2 inches below the chassis was - the battery! Couldn't believe they did this. My thinking is that they had to adopt the ICE chassis to the EV battery, and just left it hanging - the lowest part of the car, exposed to a variety of road hazards. That's going to produce a great fireworks display for some lucky owner.

Goes to show you the desperate measures some manufacturers go to so they can be in the EV game.

If the Niro is similar to the Kona underneath, here's a video from Edmunds on the bottom view of the Kona vs. the Bolt.

https://youtu.be/2lsVDdgLXho?t=127

The battery shield on the Kona looks either a little thin or like it doesn't have one at all. Seems a little dangerous to me. They really should have a Tesla-style underbody shield for safety.

https://www.tesla.com/blog/tesla-ad...-shield-and-aluminum-deflector-plates-model-s

 

[Dimitrij]

Looks like Kia knows darn well the battery shouldn't be just bolted to the underbody like this, because in the commercial picture they politely tucked it away:

https://www.driven.co.nz/media/99995599/kia_pressrelease_2018_press-highres_niroev-11.jpg?width=820

Not on the real car, though:

http://s3.caradvice.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Kia-Niro-EV-4.jpg

 

[NewsCoulomb]

Looks like Kia knows darn well the battery shouldn't be just bolted to the underbody like this, because in the commercial picture they politely tucked it away:

https://www.driven.co.nz/media/99995599/kia_pressrelease_2018_press-highres_niroev-11.jpg?width=820

Not on the real car, though:

http://s3.caradvice.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Kia-Niro-EV-4.jpg

It's possible that the 39 kWh version has a battery that doesn't protrude.

 

[Raymondjram]

Does the Niro battery use prismatic flat (pouch) cells between cooling plates, as the Chevy Bolt does? Then if that bottom is perforated due to a foreign object or a collision, there will not be a big fire risk as in the Tesla Models that use cylindrical cells with just the base casing between them. But all BEVs must have strong floor bottoms to protect the battery anyway. The Volt has its battery tucked under the center hump and rear seat so it is very safe. The Ford Hybrids and Energis have their batteries above the floor in the trunk.

So this space saving design can be catastrophic if the Kia Niro or any floor placed battery has insufficient protection. Tesla added a titanium cover to its Model S battery.

 

[NewsCoulomb]

Does the Niro battery use prismatic flat (pouch) cells between cooling plates, as the Chevy Bolt does? Then if that bottom is perforated due to a foreign object or a collision, there will not be a big fire risk as in the Tesla Models that use cylindrical cells with just the base casing between them. But all BEVs must have strong floor bottoms to protect the battery anyway. The Volt has its battery tucked under the center hump and rear seat so it is very safe. The Ford Hybrids and Energis have their batteries above the floor in the trunk.

So this space saving design can be catastrophic if the Kia Niro or any floor placed battery has insufficient protection. Tesla added a titanium cover to its Model S battery.

Yes, the Niro EV uses nearly identical cells to the Bolt EV. To me, the issue isn't a catastrophic fire as much as it is disabling the vehicle and paying for an expensive battery replacement.

 

[p7wang]

With the Bolt on recall, it seems a 3 year lease on a Kia Niro EV (total pmt $11K) would be a cheap way to wait 3 more years for the perfect EV. So did Kia fix the battery fire issue with the newer models or are they still clueless?

 

[AZBILL]

With the Bolt on recall, it seems a 3 year lease on a Kia Niro EV (total pmt $11K) would be a cheap way to wait 3 more years for the perfect EV. So did Kia fix the battery fire issue with the newer models or are they still clueless?

The Kia did not have the issue, SK batteries. Only the Kona had LG batteries.

 

[p7wang]

Oh, Kia Niro EV has Highway Drive Assist, seems to work fine.

US: Kia Introduces 2022 Niro EV, Raises Price

Kia America announced today the 2022 model year Kia Niro EV, which was slightly refreshed and better equipped as standard.

insideevs.com

 

[atc98092]

Yes, the Niro EV uses nearly identical cells to the Bolt EV.

No, it doesn't. Kia doesn't use LG batteries at all. They come from SK.

 

[MichBolt]

No, it doesn't. Kia doesn't use LG batteries at all. They come from SK.

It's debatable. SK stole IP and hired people away from LG, and settled the lawsuit for a few billion. It's unclear whether a copy of LG is better / safer than LG.