SEOUL, October 29 (AJP) - South Korean automaker Kia said on Wednesday that its PV5 Cargo electric van has set a Guinness World Record for the longest distance traveled by a light commercial electric vehicle on a single charge, covering 693.38 kilometers, or about 431 miles, while carrying a full load.
“The Guinness World Record achieved by the PV5 Cargo demonstrates Kia’s vision to provide new mobility solutions beyond transportation,” said Song Ho-sung, the company’s president. “It proves the vehicle’s efficiency and practicality in real-world conditions.”
The test, conducted on Sept. 30 on public roads north of Frankfurt, Germany, used a four-door PV5 Cargo equipped with a 71.2-kilowatt-hour battery and loaded to its maximum capacity of 665 kilograms, or about 1,465 pounds.
The route, a 58.2-kilometer circuit of urban and suburban roads with repeated elevation changes, was designed to replicate the stop-and-go conditions of delivery operations.
The drive was led by George Barrow, a commercial vehicle journalist, and Christopher Niggemeyer, a senior engineer at Hyundai-Kia’s European Technical Center. The two completed the course under GPS monitoring and with onboard cameras recording the trip.
“It’s impressive that the PV5 Cargo can travel over 693 kilometers on a single charge with a full load,” Barrow said. “This record will be hard to beat.”
Niggemeyer added that a deep understanding of the van’s powertrain system helped optimize energy efficiency and highlight “its remarkable driving capabilities.”
The PV5 is Kia’s first purpose-built electric vehicle, developed on the company’s E-GMP.S platform — a next-generation architecture designed for modular, electrified commercial and passenger vehicles. The model features a low loading height, flexible cargo configuration, and software integration intended to suit a range of business applications.
* This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP.
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