Before heading to customers, the new Kia EV9 electric car undergoes final testing. Inside, the brand boasted an advanced heating, ventilation and air conditioning system with new functionality.
Although Kia has gradually revealed the appearance of its new EV9 electric car and, accordingly, information about its technology, the SUV is not yet ready to go to customers. The South Korean automaker is still completing testing of the car and its subsystems, which is also taking place in Europe. This also applies to the HVAC system, which will bring many novelties to the production car.
To quickly recap: The Kia EV9 is a large electric SUV with up to seven seats that promises a range of over 541 kilometers on a single charge. The model should arrive in the Czech Republic in the second half of this year, and in due course, a more powerful version of the EV9 GT is also expected, which will likely borrow technology from its younger sibling, the EV6 GT.
In the latest EV9 press release, Kia boasts of the new features the HVAC system will offer. The SUV will use a heat pump instead of electric heating, and waste heat from electric motors and other electric motor components will also be used for interior heating.
According to the automaker, this solution should help extend the range on a single charge, since not so much energy will be used for heating (or air conditioning) in the interior. “Our goal is to tune the air conditioning system to deliver the optimal compromise between cabin comfort and energy consumption. We are confident that we will be able to provide EV9 users with a comfortable interior environment and a satisfactory range,says Richard Beller, HVAC & PT Refrigeration Project Group Manager at Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) Technical Center.
Two independent air conditioning systems will be installed in the vehicle, one serving the driver and passenger and the other for the rear passenger. The EV9 can then save energy by turning off the air conditioning for unoccupied seats. Kia also boasts that it has prepared a new control panel for the air conditioner that relies on physical buttons rather than touch surfaces. (Thank you!)
A separate panel for controlling the climate control at the rear of the vehicle is located in the ceiling above the second row of seats. There are also new louvres in the roof to improve airflow. It is said to be designed in such a way as to reduce resistance and improve the angle of air dispersion in the second and third row seats.
Another improvement is the new After-Blow system, whose name is translated from the brand’s Czech representative as “after-blow.” Its purpose is to prevent condensation from accumulating on the evaporator, thus suppressing the multiplication of bacteria and the formation of odors. Depending on how long the air conditioner has been in use while driving, the system uses a fan to dry out any water that may build up in the system. Inflation only happens above a certain temperature (Kia didn’t mention this) so that there’s no unnecessary discharge of the battery in winter.
The Kia EV9, which seats six or seven depending on design, will additionally provide heating and ventilation for not only the front seats, but also the seats in the second row, which are said to be standard. The resistance winding of the seat heating system has also been optimized in terms of electrical energy consumption.
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