Damien Meredith, Kia Australia’s recently appointed CEO and industry executive has really lifted the profile and market share of the Korean brand over the last 10 years. Not backward in expressing his views he recently suggested that plug-in hybrids or PHEVs don’t seem to be stacking up in the eyes of Aussie consumers whereas full electric vehicles or regular hybrids HEV’s seem to offer a better fit.

Plug-in hybrids typically have a petrol engine and a small battery pack allowing urban driving of around 50 to 80 kilometres for the daily commute. Asked if he saw PHEVs at a dead-end Meredith was straight to the point – Last month there were 791 PHEVs sold, full electric 8124 which he suggests probably paints a picture.

Interestingly, Kia’s sole PHEV, the Sorrento GT-Line is currently unavailable due to a lengthy order bank.

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