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There’s an important American custom in hitting the street to search out one thing, a way of scale, the odor of previous pine forests, or perhaps only a new technique to check the boundaries of no matter machine now calls your storage dwelling.
For one Reddit consumer, that ceremony of passage took form in a 1,600-mile loop by Sequoia and Yosemite Nationwide Parks behind the wheel of a freshly bought 2025 Kia EV6 Wind RWD. The automotive was new, the panorama historical. It was an ideal pairing, till trendy visibility met a really previous boulder.
“Our first EV (of any variety) – a 2025 EV6 Wind RWD. I hadn’t deliberate to purchase till later within the yr, however when the mannequin I wished confirmed up at my most well-liked seller, uncertainty about tariffs and tax credit satisfied me to commerce in our Sorento hybrid just a few months early.
That meant taking our deliberate 1600-mile week-long street journey to see Sequoia and Yosemite Nationwide Parks as first-time EV homeowners.
Total, I could not be happier with how the EV6 carried out. It wolfed up the miles on lengthy freeway stretches, dealt with the twisty mountain street by Kings Canyon like a a lot smaller/lighter automotive, and HDA2 was a blessing when crawling by a two-hour accident delay on I-5.
The dangerous got here on the best way again from Yosemite once I doubted the route steerage and determined to drag off right into a small parking space to examine the map. The motive force’s aspect A-pillar hid a big boulder marking the nook of the doorway, and I drove proper up onto it with the entrance left nook of the automotive. Low-speed affect, however that was sufficient to crush that a part of the fascia and the condenser and coolant traces behind it.
The automotive was drivable after, however rapidly misplaced all of the coolant. We pressed on for a few miles in a determined quest for cell service earlier than the 98°F temps triggered a drop into “turtle mode”. Diminished energy wasn’t sufficient to even climb the grades, however we had managed to achieve weak cell protection.
Pulled off, contacted roadside help, and so they dispatched a flatbed. Fortunately, the A/C nonetheless labored, so we have been comfy on the two-hour look forward to rescue. Completed the final two days of the journey in a a lot much less nice Mazda 3 rental, however completed nonetheless!
We will likely be with out the automotive for just a few weeks whereas the harm is repaired. Hopefully I can handle the withdrawal signs 🙂”
The second the story hit Reddit’s r/KiaEV6 neighborhood, fellow homeowners rallied behind the publish. One commenter summed it up with comedic brevity: “TL;DR ‘Obtained in an accident.’”
One other added the essential qualifier: “…Of no fault of the automotive’s.” And so they’re proper. This wasn’t a failure of electrification or drivetrain expertise.
It was the type of freak accident that might occur in a Buick Electra or a BMW M3, although it’s value noting that at present’s bloated A-pillars can cover a tree trunk with terrifying ease.
2025 Kia EV6: Vary, Cost Time, and Trim Ranges
- The 2025 EV6 provides as much as 319 miles of EPA-estimated vary on the Lengthy-Vary RWD mannequin, with the usual battery RWD variant rated at 270 miles
- Because of its 800 V electrical structure, the EV6 can recharge from 10 % to 80 % in simply 20 minutes on appropriate DC fast-chargers
- Kia’s North American Charging Normal (NACS) port grants EV6 homeowners entry to over 18,000 Tesla Superchargers nationwide (40,000+ DC quick chargers whole through adapter)
- Obtainable trims embrace Mild, Mild Lengthy Vary, Wind, GT-Line, and the high-performance GT, every providing totally different AWD/RWD configurations, battery packs, and energy outputs
As Redditor FeetOfAChicken wryly famous,
“Once I’m turning, it’s like I’m dancing within the entrance seat, having to maneuver my head to verify I’m not about to show right into a pedestrian.”
And that was echoed throughout the thread. Within the relentless march towards five-star crash rankings, the A-pillar has swollen into an architectural hazard, usually turning a look right into a neck exercise.
One consumer put it plainly:
“A pillar as of late is a lot extra harmful than pop-up headlights have been.”
Nonetheless, the EV6 acquitted itself admirably in practically each measurable manner. It tackled tight mountain passes with the nimbleness of one thing half its dimension. 
It soaked up lengthy freeway stints with composure and confidence.
Is Kia’s HDA2 Helpful?
In response to the unique poster, Kia’s HDA2 (Freeway Driving Help) was invaluable in visitors, easing the grind of a two-hour jam on I-5.
First-time EV homeowners, first main street journey, no vary nervousness, no charger horror tales. As one other commenter identified, the charging panorama has come a great distance:
“We simply did the same street journey… the complete journey was really easy to cost, such a change from the same journey two years in the past.”
2025 Kia EV6 Dimensions
- Entrance legroom: 42.4 inches, offering beneficiant house for the motive force and passenger to stretch out
- Rear legroom: 39.0 inches, comfortably accommodating grownup passengers within the again
- Shoulder room: 57.8 inches up entrance and 55.6 inches within the rear, making certain ample lateral consolation
- Cargo capability: 28 cu ft behind the rear seats, increasing to 54 cu ft with the 60/40 break up seats folded flat
There’s one thing quietly poetic concerning the story’s ending. The rescue got here, the A/C stored blowing, and the remainder of the journey, albeit in a rental Mazda 3, nonetheless occurred.
No household meltdown. No Reddit rant towards EVs or trendy tech. Only one driver, just a few scars on the bumper, and a tone of reluctant separation. “Hopefully I can handle the withdrawal,” they wrote. You don’t say that a couple of automotive except it mattered.
And that’s the place the EV6 surprises you. It’s not loud. It’s not attempting to promote nostalgia or brute drive. It’s one thing subtler: a real-deal grand tourer in crossover kind.
A automotive that quietly and confidently earns its stripes throughout 1,600 miles, and makes you miss it when it’s gone. That, greater than something, is the mark of an important street journey automotive.
Picture Sources: Kia Media Middle
Noah Washington is an automotive journalist based mostly in Atlanta, Georgia. He enjoys protecting the most recent information within the automotive business and conducting evaluations on the most recent vehicles. He has been within the automotive business since 15 years previous and has been featured in distinguished automotive information websites. You may attain him on X and LinkedIn for suggestions and to observe his automotive protection.
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