Kia, so far a me-too player in the EV market, is looking to step up its game from Well, we had to make one to Tesla challenger via one truly remarkable sports crossover.

The first thing to note is its Model X-like range of 500 kilometres. Then theres the Porsche Taycan-like 800-volt charging system, which allows a complete recharge in just 20 minutes.

And to top it all off, theres the rumour it will rocket to 100 kilometres an hour from rest in a very Ferrari-like 3.0 seconds.

Those are heady hood ornaments for decidedly working-class Kia to be competing with. Thats especially true since its current fully electric products the Soul and Niro have not exactly set the world on fire here in North America (though, to be fair, in Europe, where EVs are even more necessary to meet CO2 regulations, the electrified Biro and Soul represent six per cent of the companys sales so far in 2020).

This new crossover looks to be far more successful. For one thing, if it is based on the Imagine concept car unveiled at the 2019 Geneva auto show, then it will be sexy as all get-out. For another, the powertrain has been developed in conjunction with Rimac, they of the stupefyingly quick Concept One supercar.

Like Ford whose partnership with Rivian is supposed to bring an electrified F-150 to market faster it seems Kia is looking to the Croatian company to speed up its transition to battery power. Though you may not have heard of Rimac, they bring some serious bona fides to the electric supercar segment, building the electrification portion of the Aston Martin Valkyrie; and batteries for Koenigsegg.

Again, those are heady names to be associating with Kia. Is the world ready for a super crossover from the Korean automaker? It looks like well find out in less than 18 months.

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Kia to take on Tesla, Porsche and everybody with a sports crossover EV: report - Driving