Test drove an EV6 GT

[voxel]

I’ve been saying this all along. I don’t understand the excitement for the EV6 GT.

The M3P seems to offer the same type of car, better performance, a lower price and it’s been readily available for years now.

Out of the box (or off the lot), the EV6 GT won't melt the brakes or overheat the battery like the Model 3 or BMW i4 M50. It finished a few laps at Nuremberg whereas the others struggled to complete more than one lap. I think the Taycan was able to finish more than one lap also.

Now I'm sure there are aftermarket parts to help with the brakes overheating. Don't think anybody can improve battery cooling though.

The Model 3 Performance was $62K with no tax credit last summer (2022). With all the price cuts, it almost makes no sense to buy a EV6 GT today unless you hate Elon. I just can't justify buying the current M3P without USS though. It becomes a weekend only car that I would not take into urban areas.

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[Mach1E]

Out of the box (or off the lot), the EV6 GT won't melt the brakes or overheat the battery like the Model 3 or BMW i4 M50. It finished a few laps at Nuremberg whereas the others struggled to complete more than one lap. I think the Taycan was able to finish more than one lap also.

Now I'm sure there are aftermarket parts to help with the brakes overheating. Don't think anybody can improve battery cooling though.

The Model 3 Performance was $62K with no tax credit last summer (2022). With all the price cuts, it almost makes no sense to buy a EV6 GT today unless you hate Elon. I just can't justify buying the current M3P without USS though. It becomes a weekend only car that I would not take into urban areas.

Good that at least one EV can make it around Nuremberg Ring.

But that’s probably not a use case for 99% of EV buyers.

I just want 15 seconds of full power, I don’t need to go full bore for an 8 minute track lap, let alone multiple.

Those things (like top speed) are mostly about bragging rights.

I’ve driven cars fast (and at the drag strip too), but never come close to needing to race laps or hit top speed.

 

[Logal727]

The heads up display is sick, the steering is responsive, it feels lighter than my GTPE, the ride is decent. It doesn’t feel much quicker than the GTPE down low, but up at higher speeds, it’s clear that it has more power. But it doesn’t feel as planted at higher speeds. The seats are a little more bolstered and smaller, felt tighter in there, not uncomfortable, but I prefer the GTPE. Maybe it’s just me, but I couldn’t help but keep thinking “yeah, it’s a Kia” in there. I prefer the GTPE interior. The turn signal turning on the side cameras are cool though. I can see the allure, but to me, I’m good with what I have, despite the 5 second power limitation.

If the MME GTPE’s character is vaguely American muscle car, the EV6 GT reminds me of a EV version of a souped up Supra or Civic.

I've been thinking about looking at one, but it's still missing some features that I like on the MME. Mainly the infotainment setup and OTA updates. Also no tax credit, which I could use this year.

 

[BigMach-E]

The EV6 GT is a really good, quick, sporty EV. If I was buying/leasing right now, with the options available, if would look good to me. The MME GTPE just feels more solid, and likely less efficient. I had my very first ride in a Tesla M3 a few days ago, I don’t think it’s for me.

 

[Logal727]

makes no sense to buy a EV6 GT today unless you hate Elon

There's other reasons, I dislike Elon, but I would consider a Tesla if they change the style of the cars, because I think they are pretty good cars with excellent tech, they just need to get him off the board. It also still looks like a Tesla, the M3 design seems pretty outdated.

 

[BigMach-E]

I've been thinking about looking at one, but it's still missing some features that I like on the MME. Mainly the infotainment setup and OTA updates. Also no tax credit, which I could use this year.

I do think you should test drive one, it’s a fun car.

 

[Logal727]

I do think you should test drive one, it’s a fun car.

I think finding one might be difficult, but I'll look around!

 

[kindofblue]

I do think you should test drive one, it’s a fun car.

Until you encounter phantom breaking at 70mph.

 

[BigMach-E]

Until you encounter phantom breaking at 70mph.

I didn’t know the EV6 GT is known for that?

 

[npgeorgeuw]

I did too, tough one to have that short of range but a very quick EV

Range right now in my EV6 Gt, about 260 miles as of this morning. My MME GT PE, about 252 miles and similar mix of commutes. EV6 GT got higher efficiency “shoes” and I’m seeing routine round trip efficiency of 3-4 miles per kWh on 40+ mile days ending on a 700ft ascent through our subdivision. Even with the bigger battery the range difference is minimal if you ditch the crap stock tires. In fairness I don’t have these Hankook ion Evos on the GTPE yet…

Bottom line, even with stock tires most owners are seeing 230+ range now and I’ve yet to see her GTPE do better than EPA ratings regardless of the tires I put on it (stock or CC2s so far). For reference, in the 50s on stock tires I was seeing ~220 range in the EV6 GT.

 

[BigMach-E]

Range right now in my EV6 Gt, about 260 miles as of this morning. My MME GT PE, about 252 miles and similar mix of commutes. EV6 GT got higher efficiency “shoes” and I’m seeing routine round trip efficiency of 3-4 miles per kWh on 40+ mile days ending on a 700ft ascent through our subdivision. Even with the bigger battery the range difference is minimal if you ditch the crap stock tires. In fairness I don’t have these Hankook ion Evos on the GTPE yet…

Bottom line, even with stock tires most owners are seeing 230+ range now and I’ve yet to see her GTPE do better than EPA ratings regardless of the tires I put on it (stock or CC2s so far). For reference, in the 50s on stock tires I was seeing ~220 range in the EV6 GT.

It’s an interesting data point, for certain, however, I fail to see how a vehicle with a 20 kWh smaller battery that’s less than 500 lbs lighter could get the same/better range. Is the drag coefficient that much better?

 

[tuminatr]

Range right now in my EV6 Gt, about 260 miles as of this morning. My MME GT PE, about 252 miles and similar mix of commutes. EV6 GT got higher efficiency “shoes” and I’m seeing routine round trip efficiency of 3-4 miles per kWh on 40+ mile days ending on a 700ft ascent through our subdivision. Even with the bigger battery the range difference is minimal if you ditch the crap stock tires. In fairness I don’t have these Hankook ion Evos on the GTPE yet…

Bottom line, even with stock tires most owners are seeing 230+ range now and I’ve yet to see her GTPE do better than EPA ratings regardless of the tires I put on it (stock or CC2s so far). For reference, in the 50s on stock tires I was seeing ~220 range in the EV6 GT.

I was thinking my next would be the EV6 GT. Good to hear the range is very conservative. I was planning on a set a 255/50/19 and stock 19" Kia EV6 / Hyundai ioniq 5. Should add some range too

What you claiming for range is that mostly city? Because I have seen three different 70mph range tests where is much closer to the EPA claimed range. Just curious there are times I see better than claimed range on my premium too

 

[npgeorgeuw]

It’s an interesting data point, for certain, however, I fail to see how a vehicle with a 20 kWh smaller battery that’s less than 500 lbs lighter could get the same/better range. Is the drag coefficient that much better?

Probably not but it’s got drive modes and other efficient perks the MME doesn’t and I have been really able to push the two trims of the EV6 I’ve owned much further than our GTPE. My GT line (sans all the Gt upgrades) also outdid the GTPE on every drive we paralleled with the two and overall all through last year so it’s not just season dependent. In this particular case most of us are finding it’s really the choice of tires that crippled their EPA range the most for the EV6 Gt.—As I said prior, this is probably not fair as our GTPE has performance ASs on right now, but even comparing with stock tires on both my Gt line did much better and the ev6 Gt would be about 20-30 worse with stock tires.

if I could explain the numbers I would but I haven’t been able to. Our Mach E has always just had crappy numbers probably somewhat to do with our terrain. With the same tires I think the GTPE would beat it but nowhere near by the 50-75 miles the EPA ratings would suggest.

I was thinking my next would be the EV6 GT. Good to hear the range is very conservative. I was planning on a set a 255/50/19 and stock 19" Kia EV6 / Hyundai ioniq 5. Should add some range too

What you claiming for range is that mostly city? Because I have seen three different 70mph range tests where is much closer to the EPA claimed range. Just curious there are times I see better than claimed range on my premium too

Right now my most recent road tests were mixed between 45-50 with stop and go for 15 miles and also about 130-140 miles of 65-75mph depending on terrain (mountains) and traffic all round trip. I pulled in with 3.3 miles per kWh overall efficiency up and down a mountain pass. I did a fair amount of zero regen coasting down grades. Kept speed with traffic and at or above speed limits if possible.

I’d say the epa range is spot on for the 40s-50s deg F, if you drive it normally with stock tires but those tires are downright dangerous on wet or cold weather. If you upgrade the tires and really are careful you can push that range a lot higher. Obviously HVAC is a wild card but that seems to have a lot higher penalty in our GTPE but I haven’t tested things in detail yet.

Sadly the 19s from lower trims hit the outside face of the calipers so you’ll have to find a 20 inch or larger rim with deep enough spokes or a high enough offset. The height of the calipers vertically isn’t the issue so much as how far they stick out from the hub.

Overall I like both cars. After some mods I like my EV6 GT better but the stock aesthetics of the GTPE are better for the most part in my opinion. I agree that the low end pickup is better with the GTPE but anything at speed is far better in the EV6 Gt. It just doesn’t crap out. Road manners I like the handling of my GT better at high speed but it’s very mode dependent. I feel little to no difference in dampening between the GTPE drive modes but it’s a big difference in the EV6 Gt depending on drive mode. The Gt also has custom modes with dampening behavior and e-diff tweaking. Before the sway bar mod, carving with the GTPE always felt rolly and I was never a fan. It always felt heavy and drifty especially at high speeds (90-100). I don’t feel the EV6 Gt feels its weight and I sure wouldn’t call it worse than the MME in high speed handling.

If I had to own one, I’d be hard pressed but probably would own the GTPE. It gets the quality factor but I also paid a LOT more for my GTPE even after tax credit and it wasn’t just because of ADM.

 

[BigMach-E]

Probably not but it’s got drive modes and other efficient perks the MME doesn’t and I have been really able to push the two trims of the EV6 I’ve owned much further than our GTPE. My GT line (sans all the Gt upgrades) also outdid the GTPE on every drive we paralleled with the two and overall all through last year so it’s not just season dependent. In this particular case most of us are finding it’s really the choice of tires that crippled their EPA range the most for the EV6 Gt.—As I said prior, this is probably not fair as our GTPE has performance ASs on right now, but even comparing with stock tires on both my Gt line did much better and the ev6 Gt would be about 20-30 worse with stock tires.

if I could explain the numbers I would but I haven’t been able to. Our Mach E has always just had crappy numbers probably somewhat to do with our terrain. With the same tires I think the GTPE would beat it but nowhere near by the 50-75 miles the EPA ratings would suggest.


Right now my most recent road tests were mixed between 45-50 with stop and go for 15 miles and also about 130-140 miles of 65-75mph depending on terrain (mountains) and traffic all round trip. I pulled in with 3.3 miles per kWh overall efficiency up and down a mountain pass. I did a fair amount of zero regen coasting down grades. Kept speed with traffic and at or above speed limits if possible.

I’d say the epa range is spot on for the 40s-50s deg F, if you drive it normally with stock tires but those tires are downright dangerous on wet or cold weather. If you upgrade the tires and really are careful you can push that range a lot higher. Obviously HVAC is a wild card but that seems to have a lot higher penalty in our GTPE but I haven’t tested things in detail yet.

Sadly the 19s from lower trims hit the outside face of the calipers so you’ll have to find a 20 inch or larger rim with deep enough spokes or a high enough offset. The height of the calipers vertically isn’t the issue so much as how far they stick out from the hub.

Overall I like both cars. After some mods I like my EV6 GT better but the stock aesthetics of the GTPE are better for the most part in my opinion. I agree that the low end pickup is better with the GTPE but anything at speed is far better in the EV6 Gt. It just doesn’t crap out. Road manners I like the handling of my GT better at high speed but it’s very mode dependent. I feel little to no difference in dampening between the GTPE drive modes but it’s a big difference in the EV6 Gt depending on drive mode. The Gt also has custom modes with dampening behavior and e-diff tweaking. Before the sway bar mod, carving with the GTPE always felt rolly and I was never a fan. It always felt heavy and drifty especially at high speeds (90-100). I don’t feel the EV6 Gt feels its weight and I sure wouldn’t call it worse than the MME in high speed handling.

If I had to own one, I’d be hard pressed but probably would own the GTPE. It gets the quality factor but I also paid a LOT more for my GTPE even after tax credit and it wasn’t just because of ADM.

Thank you so much for the detailed breakdown. I agree that the EV6 GT is really cool. If the GTPE didn’t exist, I’d be all about it.

I am interested, you have non-stocks on your MME GT, Primacy A/S, right? What was your range hit?
Also, and maybe I’m totally uneducated about how to feel damping, but I’ve found the handling, smoothness and feeling weight of the car between The three modes in the MME GTPE to be far different, Whisper is close to floaty, Unbridled is super heavy in all aspects. In my MME Sel AWD, the only real difference was the brake feel. You said that in your MME GTPE, the damping felt the same in all modes, do you mean how it feels when absorbing surface irregularities or for cornering?

 

[npgeorgeuw]

Thank you so much for the detailed breakdown. I agree that the EV6 GT is really cool. If the GTPE didn’t exist, I’d be all about it.

I am interested, you have non-stocks on your MME GT, Primacy A/S, right? What was your range hit?
Also, and maybe I’m totally uneducated about how to feel damping, but I’ve found the handling, smoothness and feeling weight of the car between The three modes in the MME GTPE to be far different, Whisper is close to floaty, Unbridled is super heavy in all aspects. In my MME Sel AWD, the only real difference was the brake feel. You said that in your MME GTPE, the damping felt the same in all modes, do you mean how it feels when absorbing surface irregularities or for cornering?

Surface irregularities mostly. For cornering I always assumed that was mostly steering stiffness or responsiveness that affected things. I’m sure it probably is a big change but neither of us really feel it with her MME. With my Gt both she and I notice big differences but I don’t know if that’s good or bad or if it’s just chance that we feel it more in the EV6 GT.

Currently we have Cross Climate 2s on the MME and either Pilot Sport AS4s or Hankook Ion Evo AS SUVs on the EV6 Gt depending on the season. Admittedly while I like the handling performance of the PSAS4s the noise and low efficiency relegated them to my winter and fall tires. I like the Hankooks enough that I’m getting pair on spare rims for the MME. I just haven’t found a spare rim set that works well with the limited sizes offered with the Ion evos.

I will say that the MME seems way better from a road noise perspective. It’s my one complaint. Even with acoustic ion evos it’s still loud on pitted water eaten pavement. The MME with aggressive CC2s on that same pavement is a whisper.

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