The term restomod is often synonymous with exotic cars that have been modernized at great expense, with names like Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, or even Honda coming to mind—but Kia?
Turns out the Korean carmaker has just given itself a rather cute birthday present to celebrate the company’s 80th anniversary. What you are looking at is a 1996 Kia Pride that has been given a professional once-over, and is now a thoroughly modern EV.
Kia was founded on June 9, 1944, and the UK arm of the brand teamed up with British EV conversion specialist Electrogenic to unveil this unique automotive creation.
The project is a one-of-a-kind electric reimagining of the classic Kia Pride, and made its public debut at the Bicester Heritage “Scramble” event in early October.
Based on a 1.3 LX five-door donor car from Kia UK’s heritage fleet, its original petrol engine (which produced around 60hp) has been replaced by a fully electric motor capable of generating up to 105hp (80kW) and 235Nm of torque.
That’s not exactly supercar-level performance, but considering that the Pride EV only weighs 870kg (which is 20kg more than the petrol version did), it should be enough for some decent fun behind the wheel.
Electrogenic is known for its high-quality EV conversions, and the firm will happily turn your Porsche, Jaguar or Land Rover from dinosaur juice to electricity.
In the case of the Kia, the team did it by replacing the petrol engine and the fuel tank with a compact electric motor, twin 10kWh battery packs, and a charging socket concealed behind the car’s original fuel filler flap.
One of the most intriguing features of the Pride EV is that it retains its original five-speed manual transmission, offering the driver a level of engagement that is still rare in modern EVs.
This manual setup, combined with the added torque of the electric motor and a reworked clutch, should bring back some proper ’90s old-school hot hatch feelings.
When driven sensibly in Eco mode, this electrified Pride can travel around 190km on a single charge. Put your foot down in Sport mode and that number will be a lot lower.
Recharging is done via a Type 2 charging connector, linked to a 3.3kW onboard charger. This retro EV can be fully recharged from zero to 100% in around six hours from a conventional plug socket or a wall-mounted charger.
The car’s design has been carefully updated to reflect Kia’s current EV lineup. The Pride EV is painted in a White Pearl finish, a color shared by Kia’s current electric models such as the EV6 and the EV9. Other modern touches include upgraded front and rear lights for better visibility.
Inside, the Pride EV retains its period-correct gray cloth interior, but with lime-green accents that are a nod to the color accents found on the firm’s EV6 GT. It’s not quite as quick, though, making the sprint from zero to 100km/h in around eight seconds.
The Pride EV is Kia UK’s third one-off creation, following the Stinger GT420 track car and an upcycled Soul EV beach buggy.
It’s good to see a company take this more playful approach to restomods, and Kia has certainly come a long way since its founding as Kyungsung Precision Industry in 1944, a company that originally produced bicycle components.
In the 80 years since, Kia has evolved into a global automotive leader, with a strong focus on electric vehicles. The Pride EV restomod serves as an adorable little bridge between Kia’s past and future, and we can’t wait to see what the firm will do once it turns 100.
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