PV5 electric van sales are so hot, Kia is ramping up production plans

The new PV5 is Kia’s first entry into the commercial vehicle space, and the company had ambitious plans to sell some 4,000 of the boxy EVs to UK fleets in 2026. Well, it’s April – and it looks like Kia is going to have to build a lot more than that if it’s going to meet demand.

The Kia PV5 electric van has been on sale in the UK for less than four full months, and they’ve already received orders for almost the entire planned 2026 production run of ~4,000 units by nearly 50%. The South Korean brand is responding to the market’s anticipated appetite for the new van by announcing plans to deliver ~6,500 units.

“We fundamentally believe in the automotive future being electric,” explains Kia UK President and CEO Paul Philpott. “What’s got to change is that van drivers, van purchasers have got to have the confidence that going electric will meet their business needs … (that) means providing fast charging, suitable charging infrastructure and affordable vehicles. We can do part of that, but it also needs investment in continued infrastructure improvements and consistent communication messages from the Government.”

The vast majority of PV5 sales have been for commercial and cargo versions of the van, which account for 77% of total sales, with the passenger versions (obviously) making up the remaining 23% of sales.