Compare the2025 Volvo EX40VS 2025 Kia Niro EV

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Volvo EX40 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 EX40’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 EX40 and Niro EV have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The EX40 Ultra 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 EX40 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Niro EV doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The EX40 has standard Post-impact braking, 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.

The EX40 offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Niro EV doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The EX40 Plus/Ultra has a standard 360-Degree Surround View Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Niro EV only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the EX40 and the Niro EV have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, 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 EX40 weighs 732 to 958 pounds more than the Kia Niro EV. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The EX40’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 EX40 for 4 years and 40,000 miles. Volvo will pay for cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Niro EV.

The EX40 Single Motor’s standard electric motor produces 47 more horsepower (248 vs. 201) and 122 lbs.-ft. more torque (310 vs. 188) than the Niro EV’s electric motor. The EX40 Twin Motor’s optional electric motors produces 201 more horsepower (402 vs. 201) and 306 lbs.-ft. more torque (494 vs. 188) than the Niro EV’s electric motor. The EX40 Twin Motor Performance’s standard electric motors produces 235 more horsepower (436 vs. 201) and 306 lbs.-ft. more torque (494 vs. 188) than the Niro EV’s electric motor.

As tested in Car and Driver the EX40 Twin Motor electric motors is faster than the Kia Niro EV:

The EX40 can travel longer on a full charge than the Niro EV on a full charge:

For better stopping power the EX40’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Niro EV:

The EX40 stops much shorter than the Niro EV:

For better traction, the EX40 has larger tires than the Niro EV (F:235/50R19 & R:255/45R19 vs. 215/55R17).

The EX40’s standard 235/50R19 front and 255/45R19 rear tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series front and 45 series rear profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Niro EV’s standard 55 series tires. The EX40 Ultra’s 235/45R20 front and 255/40R20 rear tires have a lower 45 series front and 40 series rear profile than the Niro EV’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the EX40 has standard 19-inch wheels. Only 17-inch wheels are available on the Niro EV. The EX40 Ultra has standard 20-inch wheels.

The EX40 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 better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the EX40 is 1.1 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than on the Niro EV.

The EX40 AWD handles at .84 G’s, while the Niro EV Wave pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The EX40 AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1 seconds quicker than the Niro EV Wave (26.3 seconds @ .7 average G’s vs. 27.3 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the EX40 has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Niro EV (6.9 vs. 5.9 inches), allowing the EX40 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The EX40 has 1.4 inches more front hip room, .4 inches more front shoulder room, .2 inches more rear headroom, 1.9 inches more rear hip room and .9 inches more rear shoulder room than the Niro EV.

A control in the cargo area automatically lowers the EX40’s optional rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Niro EV doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the EX40. The Niro EV doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The EX40 has a 2000 lbs. towing capacity. The Niro EV has no towing capacity.

Optional Trailer Stability Assist (TSA) on the EX40 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.

The EX40’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 standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. With the Niro EV Wave’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

If the windows are left open on the EX40 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 also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Niro EV can only close the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The EX40’s standard Keyless Entry & Drive allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the vehicle, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Smart Key standard on the Niro EV doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are optional on the EX40 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.

The EX40’s LED headlights produce a whiter, brighter light (up to 3x) using five times less power than the Niro EV’s standard projector halogen headlights and light instantly. LED lights also last over twenty times longer than halogen.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The EX40 offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Niro EV doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the EX40 Ultra has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Niro EV doesn’t offer cornering lights. The EX40 Ultra also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

The EX40’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.

To keep a safe, consistent following distance, the EX40 Ultra has a standard Adaptive Cruise Control, which alters the speed of the vehicle without driver intervention. This allows the driver to use cruise control more safely without constantly having to disengage it when approaching slower traffic. The Niro EV doesn’t offer an adaptive cruise control.