Compare the2023 Volvo C40 RechargeVS 2022 Kia Niro EV

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Volvo C40 Recharge have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Kia Niro EV doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The C40 Recharge’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Niro EV doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the C40 Recharge and Niro EV have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The C40 Recharge has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Niro EV’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The C40 Recharge has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Niro EV doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

The C40 Recharge has standard Automatic Braking After Collision, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Niro EV doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The C40 Recharge has standard CTA Auto Brake that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Niro EV doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The C40 Recharge has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Niro EV doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The C40 Recharge Plus/Ultimate has a standard 360° Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Niro EV only offers a rear monitor and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the front or sides.

The C40 Recharge has standard Volvo On Call, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Niro EV doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the C40 Recharge and the Niro EV have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The Volvo C40 Recharge weighs 916 pounds more than the Kia Niro EV. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the C40 Recharge its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 87 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Niro EV has not been fully tested, yet.

Warranty

The C40 Recharge’s corrosion warranty is 7 years and unlimited miles longer than the Niro EV’s (12/unlimited vs. 5/100,000).

Volvo pays for scheduled maintenance on the C40 Recharge for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Volvo will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Niro EV.

Engine

The C40 Recharge’s electric motors produces 201 more horsepower (402 vs. 201) and 196 lbs.-ft. more torque (487 vs. 291) than the Niro EV’s electric motor.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the C40 Recharge’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Niro EV:

	C40 Recharge	Niro EV
Front Rotors	13.6 inches	12 inches
Rear Rotors	13.4 inches	11.8 inches

The C40 Recharge’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Niro EV are solid, not vented.

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the C40 Recharge has larger tires than the Niro EV (235/45R20 vs. 215/55R17).

The C40 Recharge Core’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Niro EV’s standard 55 series tires. The C40 Recharge’s optional tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Niro EV’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the C40 Recharge Core has standard 19-inch wheels. Only 17-inch wheels are available on the Niro EV. The C40 Recharge offers optional 20-inch wheels.

Suspension and Handling

The C40 Recharge has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Niro EV doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For greater off-road capability the C40 Recharge has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Niro EV (6.7 vs. 6.1 inches), allowing the C40 Recharge to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Passenger Space

The C40 Recharge has 1 inch more front hip room, .7 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear legroom, 6.3 inches more rear hip room and 1.2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Niro EV.

Cargo Capacity

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the C40 Recharge easier. The C40 Recharge’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 24.8 inches, while the Niro EV’s liftover is 29 inches.

The C40 Recharge’s cargo area is larger than the Niro EV’s in every dimension:

	C40 Recharge	Niro EV
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	35.3”/66.3”	31.8”/64”
Min Width	41.7”	41”

Pulling a handle automatically lowers the C40 Recharge’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Niro EV doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the C40 Recharge has a standard power liftgate, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button, or optionally by just kicking your foot under the back bumper, completely leaving your hands free. The Niro EV doesn’t offer a power liftgate.

Towing

The C40 Recharge has a 2000 lbs. towing capacity. The Niro EV has no towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Stability Assist on the C40 Recharge uses the Dynamic Stability and Traction Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Niro EV doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

Servicing Ease

The C40 Recharge uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Niro EV uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

When two different drivers share the C40 Recharge, the memory system makes it convenient for both. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver and front passenger’s seat positions, outside mirror angle, climate settings and radio stations. The Niro EV doesn’t offer a memory system.

The C40 Recharge’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Niro EV’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

If the windows are left open on the C40 Recharge the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Niro EV can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The C40 Recharge’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Niro EV’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the C40 Recharge to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Niro EV doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The C40 Recharge offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Niro EV doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the C40 Recharge offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Niro EV doesn’t offer cornering lights. The C40 Recharge also offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

When the C40 Recharge is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Niro EV’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

The C40 Recharge’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Niro EV offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the C40 Recharge and the Niro EV have standard heated front seats. The C40 Recharge also offers optional heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Niro EV.

The C40 Recharge’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Niro EV doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

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