The Pride EV is a collaboration between Kia UK and Electrogenic. It used a 1996 Pride 1.3 LX 5-door from Kia UK’s very own heritage fleet.

It swaps almost all of its original internal combustion components for a fully electric powertrain—with only its original 5-speed manual transmission and drive shafts being retained.

When new in 1996, the original 1.3-liter engine produced 60 horsepower and 118 Nm—very modest numbers. Today, the EV conversion swaps that out for a 107 horsepower (up 77.7 percent) and 235 Nm (up 99.2 percent).

The new motor drives the front wheels via its original five-speed transmission, retained, and re-worked by Electrogenic. This is matched with a new performance-oriented clutch kit, able to accommodate the elevated torque output of the motor. It also has a new drive-by-wire system.

The motor and transmission is powered by twin battery packs, totaling 20-kWh in capacity. The front 10-kWh battery pack is fitted under the hood, with the second 10-kWh pack housed beneath the slightly raised trunk floor.

What was once the fuel filler now houses a Type 2 charging connector, linked to a 3.3-kW on-board charger. The Pride EV can be fully recharged from 1 to 100 percent in around six hours from a conventional plug socket or wall-mounted charger. With three drive modes—Eco, Sport, and Auto—it can travel up to 193 kilometers on a single charge.

While drivers can row gears, in Auto mode enables the Pride EV to behave more like a conventional electric vehicle. It’s activated by pushing in the clutch pedal, shifting the gear into third, and then pushing the drive mode switch to ‘Auto.’ Power and torque are set at 75 percent of the motor’s maximum—80 horsepower and 176 Nm—and top speed is limited slightly.

Surprisingly, the conversion from petrol to electric has also resulted in only a slight gain in weight for the model, with the donor car jumping from 850 to 870 kilograms. In addition, the distribution of the twin battery packs aids weight distribution to improve agility and balance.

The Pride EV retains its original 1980s-derived design (and its original 12-inch steel wheels and wheel covers). However, it adopts certain elements that link it to the modern Kia of 2024. Until only recently, the donor car sported its original ‘Kingfisher Blue’ exterior paint. Now the car has been stripped down and resprayed with a ‘White Pearl’ finish, as featured on the Kia EV3, EV6, EV9, and Niro EV. The front and rear lights have also been upgraded.

The interior of the Pride EV remains trimmed in period-appropriate grey cloth, but now features lime green piping on the seats, and lime green stitching on the floor mats. These playful details are a direct visual link to the same lime green found throughout the interior – and on the brake calipers – of the 577-horsepower Kia EV6 GT.

The Pride EV also retains its original analogue instrument binnacle, with its manual-needle speedometer and tachometer working ‘just like the good old days.’ It also keeps its fuel level dial, adapted instead to show the battery’s current state of charge.