Rommel Ramos, Aftersales Director of Kia Philippines said that EV6 owners can expect 77 percent lower preventive maintenance service (PMS) costs over a 5-year period compared to a similarly-sized diesel-powered crossover or SUV. The out-of-pocket expense for EV6 owners has been calculated at just P 25,000. Moreover, the PMS interval is pegged at just once a year or every 20,000 kilometers, whichever comes first.

This P 25,000 figure is even lower compared to other markets which currently have the EV6. For example, in the United States, a 5-year ownership of the EV6 sets owners back there roughly USD 1,120 or P 63,476.

With no internal combustion engine to speak of, the EV6 would mostly require suspension and chassis-based maintenance including tire rotation, air filter and brake pad replacement, and brake fluid change. All other fluids—such as the high-voltage battery system’s cooling system and reduction gear fluid (the transmission fluid) are merely inspected up to the 100,000-kilometer mark.

On the subject of the high-voltage battery which is single-handedly the most expensive part on the EV6, Ramos says that the entire battery pack will cost about P 2.688 million to replace.

Don’t be too focused on that number though. Because the EV6 is designed from the ground-up as an EV, Kia dealers are able to replace defective battery cells individually. Each cell costs a more reasonable P 7,000. Moreover, the Philippine market EV6 will also carry a 7-year warranty for the high-voltage battery on top of the standard 5-year bumper-to-bumper warranty.

For those who’re good at their mental math, the price of the battery pack divided by the price each cell should give you a strong hint as to the spec that Kia Philippines will bring in.

With 384 cells, this equates to the long-range version of the EV6. Manny Aligada, President of Kia Philippines has also confirmed that they’ be offering only the rear-wheel drive version to reduce the range anxiety. With up to 528 kilometers of range (based on the WLTP standard), the EV6 Long Range has one of the longest range in currently available EVs.

Though the unit displayed at the Philippine International Motor Show isn’t the final market spec, Kia Philippines product planners and technicians have moved ahead to drive the EV6 through local road conditions. Aside from driving it through the confines of Metro Manila traffic, the team also did some long-distance tests bringing it up to Baguio and back clocking in 506 kilometers with charge to spare. And because Ayala Land has recently opened up a network of EV chargers reaching as far north as Baguio and as far south as Nuvali, EV6 owners can top up using the 22-kilowatt AC chargers for free.

Given Ayala Land’s plan to roll out more public EV chargers, Kia Philippines has also taken the bold direction not to limit the availability of the EV6 to just one location or to one dealer group. Aligada has confirmed that it will be available nationwide and will be serviceable at any of Kia’s authorized dealer network. The target is to have each dealer equipped with the proper tools and trained (at least one EV master technician per dealer) before the market launch of the EV6 in the first quarter of 2023. Aligada says the pricing of the Kia EV6 will be below P 4-million.