I Test Drove a Kia EV9 Without Ever Being on a Road

Inside a non-descript historic brick building in Seongsu-dong, Seoul, Kia EV Unplugged Ground welcomes EV9 curious buyers to a new type of showroom that combines cutting edge technology with the traditions of the car buying experience.

There's no glistening facades, waving blowups or neon here. Aside from the EV9 parked out front and the understated natural material sign that announces its presence in the district, Unplugged Ground is an easy fit into its surrounds.

Stepping inside is another story.

Walking into the modern building beside the brick one, I was greeted by a worker as a traditional customer would and he offered to give my friend and I a tour of the vehicle.

Right off the bat, I could tell that this was not going to be a typical tour; no one stepped out from the desk to give me a hard sell on the EV9. Instead, he told me that the tour would start at a door in the back of the room at a predetermined time.

Until then, I was welcome to play around with the racing simulators that had been modified for Kia vehicles or visit the on-site café.

The simulators were fun, of course, but they were far from an authentic driving experience. Think older versions of Mario Kart, but harder and with far less natural responsiveness. There were also static versions of the EV9 to explore on our own.

When it was time for the tour, my friend and I stepped into a hallway that had digitized displays on either side. The animations changed as the tour guide read from a script, in Korean. After a few minutes, when he was done, the doors to a larger, dark area opened and the real show began.

Ahead of us sat an EV9 with animations washing over it. Faux fog and the EV9's own exterior illumination put on a show with dramatic effect. It was easy to get a sense of EV9 talking points from the animations as the tour guide continued to read from the script. For example, as he spoke about seating, the seating configurations were shown on illuminated panels above the model, in line with where the seats are in the car.

After a few minutes there, we were ushered to a wall that allowed us to use the shifter dial from a Kia model to select the features we wanted to learn about.

Then, it was time to hop behind the wheel of an EV9. Instead of a shell or a model version of the three-row SUV, Kia has installed a full EV9 in its showroom, surrounded by simulator technology that would allow for the real fun to begin.

I was up first. Having already driven the SUV across Korea earlier this year, I was familiar with the various controls I'd be utilizing as I "drove".

I expected the screens to move and perhaps the undercarriage would jostle like what I've experienced in too many automaker safety and driver-assistance technology simulators to mention. It did not, it went far further.

The simulation takes place in an extended reality-based space that mixes augmented reality and virtual reality to immerse users.

As the car "rolled" down the "road" the connected experience between the driver, car and simulator screen was elegantly natural. Steering, signaling, accelerating and braking were the same in the virtual world as they were in the real world.

The SUV showed off its abilities with Highway Driving Assistant 2 and Remote Smart Parking Assistant driver-assistance technologies as well.

With all views from the driver's seat occupied by enormous screens, it was easy to get lost in the simulated environment Kia created. Hills, highways, stop lights and passing all felt very similar to how they would in real life, without the obvious sight and sound distractions that a full-on test drive would allow.

The car moved from side to side, turning around corners and exiting the "highway" in a fashion that did not allow the actual vehicle I was in to sit still. It reacted much like model on the road would, giving a very near real life behind-the-wheel experience.

My expectations were low, and they should not have been. Not only does this customer-side simulator blow other similar technologies out of the water, it makes clear what the true ride and ownership experience of the EV9 would be like.

It serves as a suitable alternative to a traditional test drive and it can be argued that the simulator is nearly just as good.

After the journey was over, we let EV9 behind and were welcomed into a serene space to touch and see the sustainable materials that Kia has installed in the EV9. This environment is as much about education as it is as picking the perfect blend of aesthetics for creating the package your perfectly equipped EV9.

At the end of the experience, there was no heavy sales pitch, no pressure to "get into a Kia today".

Is this the future of test drives? A neat gimmick? Perhaps the answer is "yes" to both. As automobile sales turn into an increasingly digital process, the traditional dealership model is due for a revitalization like the simulator can provide.

Kia is bringing a version of the simulator to the U.S. for CES in January. With artificial intelligence and virtual reality experiences on the tip of attendees' tongues, the simulator should be on the list of must-do exhibits for attendees.