In this transition era for the automotive industry, barely a week passes without a manufacturer wheeling out a bold new electric machine with a flashy presentation that claims it brings tomorrow's technology to today's roads and will transform the fortunes of the firm that made it.

But those presentations don't normally include extended sections on load-bed access, Euro-pallet capacity and bumper repairability.

Except they do when your transformative vision of future motoring is a van-although that perhaps undersells the significance of the new Kia PV5. The firm labels it a Platform Beyond Vehicle (PBV), and it's the first in a range of highly customisable bespoke electric models intended to disrupt the commercial vehicle market and help continue Kia's remarkable growth.

Think of the impact of the brand's bespoke EV line-up, but for vans. This isn't strictly Kia's first foray into commercial vehicles: the Bongo cab-over pick-up has been sold in Korea and other markets since 1981 and spawned the Pregio van and MPV.

But this is an entirely fresh business model, and one designed for volume: Kia is aiming to reach sales of 250,000 PBVs annually by 2030. "This is the next chapter of the Kia story," says Sangdae Kim, head of the firm's PBV division. "This is how we move forward as a leading EV brand."

Kim – known as SD, which he quips stands for "Smart Device, just like our PBVs" – has been building the new division for around four years. He says Kia identified the commercial vehicle market as one with "room for meaningful innovation" through the development of a line of electric vans, adding: "Our PBVs are designed to adapt to people, not force people to adapt to it."

The electric van market is small but growing fast, particularly because many businesses are being pushed to switch to zero-emission models for their own environmental goals. But most electric vans on the market are either conversions of combustion vans (think the Ford E-Transit or the many Stellantis models), while the Volkswagen ID Buzz uses a lightly modified version of the VW Group's MEB platform.

For its PBVs Kia has developed a specially tailored version of the Hyundai Motor Group's bespoke EV platform, named E-GMP.S (Electric Global Modular Platform for Service), which the firm says gives much more flexibility to create a range of modular and customisable machines. It's a front-driven platform, and the PV5 features a variety of battery sizes - giving a range of up to 258 miles and 4.4 cubic metres of load capacity.

The 4.7-metre-long PV5 is the first of those, with Kim describing it as "our way into the LCV market". It will be followed by the PV7, which will be around 5.2 metres, based on a concept vehicle, and the PV9. Those two will arrive in 2027 and 2029 respectively.

Given how quickly Kia is filling out its EV line-up with a full range of numbered models, you can take a guess at how big the stable could eventually become. A small PV1 Concept has been shown, but smaller vehicles aren't an early priority.

But each of the PBV line-up is far more than just a singular vehicle: the modular design allows for tremendous flexibility. The PV5 will be launched with Cargo and Passenger variants, but the range will eventually allow for seven bodytypes with 16 specifications.

So the Cargo will have three- and four-door versions, a larger-capacity High Roof option and crew and chassis cab variants. The Passenger will gain six- and seven-seat versions - it will be launched as a five-seater - along with a Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle variant.

Kim says Kia conducted extensive research with potential customers in various fields - from delivery firms to ride-hailing services - to help develop the details of the PV5. For example, the bumpers are made in three parts, making it cheaper to replace a section if it is damaged, while the step height of the van has been kept as low as possible for delivery companies.

The dynamics of the PV5 have also been refined for its use scenario. In Cargo form it's direct and easy to handle, with great visibility from the high-up driving position. It's not hugely dynamic, but the car-based roots of the platform can be felt in more refined handling than many vans.

Inside, everything is built for purpose. It's not as nicely appointed as the Passenger version, but the materials are all hard-wearing to cope with extended use and there's loads of practical storage. That focus on usability and practicality is baked into every element.

The PV5 will be manufactured at Kia's Autoland Hwaseong plant, located in the sprawling southern suburbs of Seoul. The 3.2 million-square-metre facility is Kia's largest production site, with around 520,000 vehicles produced there each year, including the Sorento, Niro, EV6 and K8 saloon.

More than £560 million has been invested in constructing a new 100,000-square-metre facility to build the PV5, creating around 1000 jobs so far. When full mass production starts, the plant will have capacity of around 100,000 PV5s per year (along with about 70,000 Tasman pick-ups), with two eight-hour shifts per day producing a vehicle every four minutes or so. A second new production facility is already under construction at Hwaseong to manufacture the PV7 and PV9.

Autocar's visit comes on a holiday at the factory, but the potential is clear as we wander along the vast production line. The process is highly automated, in part because of the need for the heavy flexibility required to produce such a wide range of variants on a single line.

But the unique aspect - and perhaps the real magic-of this plant is located at the end of the production line, where a large number of dedicated bays are waiting to accept newly constructed PV5s for extensive customisation.

This is the key to the business model dreamed up by Kia president Ho Sung Song, and it's vital to the PBV operation by offering greater cost-effectiveness and being less wasteful. "With commercial vehicles, so many of them have a customisation process, which is normally done by outside partners," Song tells Autocar.

Many commercial vehicles go straight from a production line to a third-party firm for conversion to meet the requirements of the company that's buying them. That, says Song, is not good commercially, and it's not good for the environment because people produce a new vehicle only to immediately throw out the production-line interior. It's wasteful.

"By producing as many variants inside the factory as possible we can make that process easier, and we can produce the vehicles to meet the order from the start, with minimal waste," says Song.

That means elements such as refrigerated units, bespoke shelving and storage can be added in the factory at source. Kia will still work with partners where appropriate: for example, it is planning light- and full-camper forms, with conversions done in the factory and through camper specialist Westfalia. Even then, Kia will supply vehicles to third-party firms with only the elements needed, so nothing has to be removed.

The other business aspect of the PBV side is software and fleet management: Kia has developed a bespoke operating system, which enables the cloud-based services and fleet management offerings that commercial vehicle customers require.

Europe, including the UK, and Canada will be key target markets at launch, but these are fully global products. Notably, Kia will sell the PV5 in Japan-the first time it has offered a vehicle in the market.

That's partly for historical reasons you don't see many Japanese cars in Korea, either - but Kim says the firm identified a huge opportunity given the growth potential of the electric LCV market there.

And it's that growth potential that underpins this whole undertaking. "It's going to be very challenging," says Song of the prospect of hitting Kia's ambitious PBV goals. "But we have a strong plan, and this is the right decision."

There are more than 17,000 rapid and ultra-rapid EV chargers in the UK, across more than 6500 locations.

Capable of delivering up to 480kW of power, they're key to the uptake of electric cars, but what are they like to use?

To find out, I visited 10 charging stations, a mix of large 'hubs' near major routes and one or two smaller ones, whose operators tend to favour more local sites. I wanted to know how easy the chargers were to use, how suitable the locations were, how easy they were to find and what state the toilets were in. There were surprises and disappointments…

Instavolt

Test location: Stroud Park, Banbury, Oxfordshire

Charging speed: 160kW

Cost: 87p/kWh 

We like: Easy to find and to use 

We don't like: Missed out on the summer tariff

Instavolt's special summer tariff of 54p/kWh (50p for subscribers) was available at 10 locations but unfortunately not this one.

Still, that felt immaterial when my selected charger wouldn't recognise my credit or debit cards. A fellow user suggested I do a chip and PIN purchase to 'reset' one of them. At the nearby Costa, I bought some water with the credit card and was back in business. My Kia EV9 was at 79% so I just gave it a top-up to 81%, which took five minutes. A 'how to charge' info board made the process pain-free.

The site was well signed from the access road but hard to miss anyway, being essentially a large car park with 32 rapid chargers in bright white. It was EV driver Keith Kelsey's first time there. "I saw the other chap helping you," he said. "We EV drivers stick together at times of crisis. Contactless doesn't always work."

Tesla

Test location: Brookfield Shopping Centre, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire

Charging speed: 250kW 

Cost: 55p/kWh 

We like: Great value, all makes 

We don't like: Not obvious to see, non-EV parkers

Located just off the busy A10 and only a few miles from the M25, this 16-charger station sits within a vast shopping centre complex at the back of a car park. In Tesla terms, it's pretty standard, discreet and no shelter but plenty of room to manoeuvre. It is an all-makes site (not all are), and with one tap of the card, my Kia was drawing around 85kW. There were six cars present when I visited. 

Polat was charging his Kia Niro and told me the site could get busier and not just with people charging their cars. "Because it's a shopping centre, at peak times people just park in the charging bays if the car parks are full," he said. On the upside, he told me that with his £9.99 monthly Tesla subscription, he paid only 39p/kWh. 

Osprey

Test location: Halfway House restaurant, Brentwood, Essex

Charging speed: 150kW

Cost: 82p/kWh

We like: Attractive canopies, easy to use 

We don't like: The signage could be clearer

Just off the busy A127 London-Southend road, this charging station is indicated only by a small sign that is easy to miss. More obvious are the notices warning visitors of a £100 fine if they break the parking rules, which include logging your EV with reception within 15 minutes.

The charging station was spacious and attractive, with sturdy wooden canopies offering users decent shelter. An information board told us how to charge: "Choose charger, tap card, plug in." My EV9 drew power at around 79kW. 

There were six rapid chargers but only two other users, both charging vans. "It's a nice, quiet spot," one said. "I come here a lot and there have only been two occasions when the chargers were down." In the Halfway House itself, the toilets were clean, and a latte was £1 cheaper than in the Double Tree (see Ionity, overleaf).

Shell Recharge

Test location: Southam, Warwickshire 

Charging speed: 150kW Cost 89p/kWh 

We like: Location, facilities 

We don't like: Confusing to use

At this charging station, not far from the M40 and located in the countryside, I was struck by just how right Keith had been at the Instavolt site.

This would have been a lovely place to relax with a meal deal from the forecourt shop, except that two of the eight chargers I tried wouldn't recognise my cards. Was it me? I couldn't work out which buttons to press on the charger and in which order, so I was left wondering if the cards were actually okay. I tried resetting them again but the shop had just gone offline and couldn't do transactions. I settled for a toilet assessment (clean) and a general site survey (smart and tidy).

The next day I tried a different Shell Recharge, at Folly Hill, Farnham, Surrey. It couldn't have gone better. The 180kW charger (there were two) was much easier to use (plug, tap, charge) and had a clear 'Stop' button (not all chargers do). The tariff was 79p/kWh.

Fastned

Test location: Redbridge Park and Ride, Oxford, Oxfordshire

Charging speed: 300kW 

Cost: 74p/kWh 

We like: Powerful, easy-to-use chargers

We don’t like: Parking rules, grubby facilities

As the UK's first park and ride, this place knows how to charge and how to fine. A small sign beside each charger tells users to register their car for a free ticket. What it doesn't say is that you have 10 minutes to do so or face a £100 penalty. Eleven minutes in and I was still queuing at the pay machine...

It took the shine off an otherwise seamless charging experience plug in, choose a connector on the screen, select payment method, tap and wait as your 300kW charger (one of 10) gets to work. Behind us was what looked like the UK's first public lavatory. However, the Fastned site itself was clean and tidy, with users protected by solar canopies. 

The driver of a Volkswagen ID 5 was happy. "I never queue and the chargers are quick," she said. She had just paid £54 for a charge but could have saved 30% by subscribing. "I can't be bothered," she said.

BP Pulse

Test location: NEC Gigahub, Birmingham, West Midlands

Charging speed: 300kW Cost 89p/kWh

We like: Powerful, easy-to-use chargers 

We don't like: Parking rules, grubby facilities

This charging hub is well signed from the M42. That said, on the approach I nearly entered the long-stay car park next door, with its slow chargers.

Once in the hub, notices warning drivers they would be fined for parking on the red routes reminded me that the threat of punishment is never far away.At least the chargers (30kW, 150kW and 7kW) were reasonably easy to use and backed up by instructions: press Start, choose charger and then what? I decided to plug in and then tap. It worked but some chargers require you to tap first and then plug in. 

A fellow user was unfazed. "Chargers can be such a faff," he said, "but with these, the order you have to do things in seems logical." There was good weather protection, although, with it being close to going home time, most of the bays were taken. The nearby Starbucks was doing good business and the toilets were cleanish.

Gridserve

Test location: Electric Forecourt, Braintree, Essex 

Charging speed: 300kW 

Cost: 85p/kWh 

We like: Easy to use, good facilities

We don't like: It would be helpful if the totem pole displayed tariffs

No trouble finding this charging station thanks to a large totem pole on the roadside advertising 10p off a kWh with the Gridserve app.

The forecourt is home to 36 charging bays sheltered by two huge solar canopies and each bay has enough room to park side-on, handy whether your car's charge port is at the back or the front. There are also 12 unsheltered Tesla Superchargers to the side.

Plug and tap and the EV9 was soon drawing 85kW. The refundable pre-authorisation charge was £10 compared with an average of £40. Music was piped around the forecourt and in the main building, with its shops and bookable meeting rooms. "I've been coming here for four years and never had to queue," said one user. The following day, I called into Gridserve's M4 Reading services location. It was harder to find but the chargers (uncovered) dispensed up to 350kW and the EV9 was soon gulping 93kW for the same 85p/kWh. 

Ionity

Test location: Double Tree Hilton, Dartford, Kent 

Charging speed: 400kW 

Cost: 79p/kWh 

We like: Tidy and efficient 

We don't like: Tricky to find, parking notices

There were no signs directing me to this charging station but there were plenty warning me of a £100 fine if I broke the parking rules. Reception assured me the first two parking hours were free and I didn't have to log the EV9's registration.

The charging area was clean and tidy, there was lots of room to manoeuvre my big Kia (there were only two other cars present on the 24-charger site) and the chargers and the contactless payment system worked smoothly. At 19% full, my EV9 was drawing 129kW and still doing so at 73%. 

"The location is very good and it's always very quiet," said one driver. "With a subscription, I pay just 49p/kWh." There was no shelter while I hooked up but, fortunately, the weather was kind. Inside the hotel, the toilets were spotless but, at £4.25, I skipped the latte in the bar.

MFG

Test location: Ilford, Greater London

Charging speed: 150kW 

Cost: 79p/kWh

We like: Unpretentious, good customer service 

We don't like: Not easy to use at first

The dreaded parking notices were present at this station but this time to deter non-EV drivers. 

Unlike the other sites I visited for this survey, it is by no means a major location but it is close to the busy A12 and M11. It is a classic MFG site, with just enough manoeuvring space, good weather protection and a well-stocked forecourt shop. There were four 150kW CCS chargers. However, I had to call MFG to understand how to operate a charger, which wasn't obvious (using buttons, you have to select your connector, tap, then press continue).

Plugged in, my Kia drew power at around 75kWh. Later the same day, I called in at a 300kW MFG station at a Morrisons in Fleet, Hampshire, with more space and where, at 60% full, the EV9 drew an impressive 150kW, still for 79p/kWh. This time I knew which buttons to press.

Applegreen

Test location: Welcome Break, M40, Warwickshire 

Charging speed: 180kW 

Cost: 79p/kWh 

We like: Low refundable pre-authorisation charge, reasonably easy to use 

We don't like: Charging time restriction

The traditional parking notice had a fresh twist here: "£100 fine if not charging in bay for longer than 10 minutes." I hoped the allowance included operating the charger, which was one of 16.

Fortunately, it was a straight plug and tap. Drawing 133kW, the Kia's battery went from 79% to 92% in just nine minutes. But how to stop: tap my card? It wasn't recognised. Customer services said it happened occasionally, so just unplug. The session cost £12 a reasonable sum for 10 minutes' parking, surely? The refundable pre-authorisation charge was only £1.

There were no canopies offering shelter but, as an alternative to waiting in the car, there was a Starbucks. Directions to the site were good off the motorway but soon became confusing. This was first-time EV driver Philip Major's second experience of charging. "Twice now, I've had to second guess which button to press to charge. The machines don't tell you!" he wailed. 

Conclusion

When it works, being able to pay contactlessly has made life easier for those EV drivers who have no allegiance to any of the charging firms and prefer to pay directly for their charge. 

Of course, by not paying via a subscription app, they are missing out on sizeable tariff reductions. Meanwhile, the new generation of rapid and ultra-rapid chargers are so fast that most drivers I saw were happy to wait in their cars rather than in the local cafe killing time with a £4.50 coffee. In any case, almost without exception, the charging stations were pleasant places with clean charging cables.

However, to that old complaint about range anxiety (still an issue in some parts of the country including North Yorkshire, as one Scarborough-based driver told us) must be added charger anxiety.

Often during my two-day survey, I found myself worrying how easy the next charger would be to operate. A control interface common to all chargers would be a huge step forward. And then there are the parking notices.

I appreciate that many sites are on third-party land and non-EV drivers must be deterred from parking in charging bays, but the signs are intimidating and create uncertainty for users simply wishing to charge their cars.