Used 2020 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid Consumer Reviews
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We have a limited number of reviews for the 2020 Niro Plug-In Hybrid, so we've included reviews for other years of the Niro Plug-In Hybrid since its last redesign.
In love
Erin T, 09/13/2019
2019 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid EX Premium 4dr SUV (1.6L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid 6AM)
9 of 9 people found this review helpful
I love this car so much. I am not an impulse buyer; I started researching cars last summer, got serious in the wall, and starting doing occasional test drives in the winter. My old car is a 3-row SUV with great cargo space, roomy seats, and wretched gas mileage. I really wanted a car of the same size--we haul a lot of bulky stuff for my kids' activities. But I'm also a parent with 2 kids with deep concerns about how we as a society are destroying the planet and harming our kids' futures. What I found out in my winter and spring car shipping is that the state of large hybrid vehicles is PATHETIC. Large EVs are insanely expensive, smaller EVs have shitty ranges, and regular hybrids with more cargo space that a Prius are largely imaginary. (Note the hybrid Toyota RAV4 & Hybrid Hylander, which are charging you $10k more for MPGs that are barely better than their gas-guzzling equivalents. The hybrid Hylander practically rivals my 11-year-old gas vehcile for crappy MPGs.) By May I'd narrowed my choices down to a larger, more expensive plug-in with mediocre quality scores from trusted sources and problematic test drives; and the Kia Niro PHEV, which is somewhat smaller than the car I'm replacing--but still larger than most other hybrid vehicles. I went with the Kira Niro PHEV. My old vehicle had 140k miles on it, so I also purchased the extended warranty (10 years/150k miles) and crossbars for the roof. I wanted to get a rubber mat for the cargo space, but was told I can't, because the batteries vent back there. I have not yet bought a level 2 charger, but expect to spend a few hundred dollars on one pretty soon (I have only a carport at home, so will need to get an outdoor-rated one wired in). Friends, I LOVE this car. Yes, the cargo space could be bigger. But it's not bad. For everyday use, it's just fine. I have the Premium model because it has the most safety features, and I have two tweens who'll be learning to drive pretty soon. Features like adaptive cruise control, the backup camera, and lane monitoring work well. The screen is large and easier to use than many other systems. The seats are comfortable, and the backseat is decently roomy for a car of this size (better than most of the hybrids and small SUVs we looked at). Yes, it could have more power; when I stomp on the gas to merge on the highway, it doesn't has the kick of my old 6-cylinder SUV. But it moves smoothly between EV and hybrid/gas mode, and turns on the engine to give me more power when I need it. I LOVE driving it in EV mode. It's smooth and quiet and it drives well. It slips into gas mode without drama when I'm out of EV charge or need more power. The gas engine is, admittedly, kinda wussy sounding. But I don't have to hear it much. Charging it daily, I went 1200 miles on the first tank of gas with regular about-town driving plus longer forays once or twice a week. I've now gone 5000 miles, and generally get MPGe above 120. About about 2 months, we went on a weekend road trip during which I had no access to charging and got about 60 MPGe over ~700 miles. Aside from that trip, I've only had to visit the gas station 3 times in almost 4 months. My only actual complaint about the car is that while it's really great at estimating its electric range, the hybrid/gas range estimate is somewhat unreliable. When driving in hybrid mode, it uses gas faster than it predicts it will, so when it tells me it has a 200-mile gas range, it doesn't seem to actually go nearly that far. Maybe the actual range is 130-150. Its ability to predict gas driving range would probably be better if I did more city driving, where it can recharge its batteries when I stop, but my hybrid driving is almost entirely highway driving. I'm still giving this car 5 stars because I use EV mode most so often, the gas-only range isn't very important most of the time.
Plugged In To Avoid Gas Stations
John, 08/19/2018
2018 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid EX 4dr SUV (1.6L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid 6AM)
14 of 15 people found this review helpful
The 2018 Kia Niro Plug In is a great car. Ever since the Niro Hybrid arrived in 2017 I waited patiently for the 2018 Niro Plug In to arrive at local dealerships. The Niro Plug In is a perfect match for us. We live in a small rural city so the 26 mile electric range enables us to ride gas free locally 100 percent of the time. But when we take a longer drive like we did recently, we have the peace of mind knowing the Niro Plug In will switch to the gas engine and still get close to 50 mpg. Plugging in the car is really simple using a normal electric outlet in our garage most times taking on average between 6 to 7 hours which I do overnight. The Niro looks sharp like most SUVs these days and comes with all the comfort, safety and tech features that car owners expect with their new car purchase. The Niro PHEV also comes with Kia's industry leading 10 year/100,000 mile warranty including the plug in battery. The 2018 Niro Plug In is not as abundantly available as the Niro Hybrid on dealer lots so don't expect the discounts to be as deep, but many Plug In buyers like myself will benefit from the $4,543 tax credit when filing our federal income taxes for 2018. We have only driven a little more than 300 miles but so far the Niro has been flawless. We took it to Costco recently and filled three coolers and still had plenty of room for other purchases with the rear seats folded down. I'm really enjoying this new car and it's especially satisfying these days driving past the gas station in town.
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2020 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid for sale near you
3 of 12 listings
- LXS 4dr SUVMSRP: $17,500135 mi away
- LXS 4dr SUVMSRP: $19,998132 mi away
- EX 4dr SUVMSRP: $18,99571 mi away
See all 12 listings
Kia Niro Plug-in Gas/Electric Hybrid
Dan McGill, 02/11/2019
2018 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid EX 4dr SUV (1.6L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid 6AM)
16 of 18 people found this review helpful
I love that most of my driving is now powered by solar energy that I buy from PG&E, that the vehicle is a lot of fun to drive, it has great cargo space compared to Volt, Clarity, and Prius Prime (it's main competitors), and it lets me rest easier knowing I did something about global climate change (which is very real in the area I live). This car replaced a 2005 Toyota RAV4 which was averaging around 22 mpg as opposed to between 53 mpg and 92 mpg so far. The performance is similar, except the safety features are much better on the Niro and I now only go to the gas station to fill a smaller tank once a month.
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1500 miles on the first tank
MW, 05/25/2021
2020 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid LXS 4dr SUV (1.6L 4cyl gas/electric plug-in hybrid 6AM)
7 of 7 people found this review helpful
We enjoy all aspects of this car so far. Fun to drive. Regenerative braking is a marvelous feature that should be present in every car. Spent more time in line for gas for the first fill up than in messing with the electric plug for a couple months. Leaving house with full battery every morning is liberating.
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Loved this car until electrical water pump broke
M, 06/13/2019
updated 07/14/2021
2019 Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid EX 4dr SUV (1.6L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid 6AM)
31 of 37 people found this review helpful
Bought this car 3 months ago. We have just under 2000 miles on it. Until a few days ago, I would tell anyone and everyone to buy this car. Not anymore. First the good: The gas mileage is great and the plug-in hybrid was a great choice for us. The interior is well-designed and looks great. Lots of room in the back seats with a very comfortable high ceiling for tall people. Looks cute from the outside. Nice extras like automatic folding mirrors and keyless everything. Steering wheel controls are intuitive and useful. Touch screen is useful and easy to use. Temperature controls are great. Put it into Sport Mode when you want performance. The bad: The Electric Water Pump failed (after exactly 3 months) and needs to be replaced. It's covered under warranty and the local dealer service department has been great but the part is on back order and they have no idea when it will be available. I called KIA's nationwide customer service and they have no idea when it will be in stock again. They said it could be 3 days to 6 months. WOW. The local dealer did give us a loaner (that smells of stale cigarette smoke) but this is not acceptable. We have never bought a Kia before and we will never buy another one again. I've never experienced this kind of situation where they don't know when a critical part (on a car that's still in production) will be available. We have never experienced anything like this with our previous/other cars (Toyota, Nissan, Audi, Mazda and Fiat). The rest of the negatives on the car: tiny trunk area (the back seats can be turned down for more room if needed). In short: If you don't need a dependable car, this car is great. If you need something reliable, look elsewhere. Update: after the electric water pump was replaced, all 4 spark plugs were replaced. This was all before the car hit 5000 miles. I would only recommend this car to those who do not need a reliable vehicle. Belated update: Kia bought back the car at the end of the first year. I assume it's because they wanted to be able to resell it before it officially became a lemon. We bought a Toyota Prius Prime instead and am very happy to have a reliable car again!
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