Compare the2025 Kia EV9VS 2025 Toyota Sequoia

Both the EV9 and Sequoia have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The EV9 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 Sequoia’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 EV9 has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Sequoia doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Kia EV9 achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Toyota Sequoia has not been tested.

Full-time four-wheel drive is available on the EV9. Full-time four-wheel drive gives added traction for safety in all conditions, not just off-road, like the only system available on the Sequoia.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the EV9 uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The Sequoia uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the EV9 and the Sequoia have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, 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, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The Kia EV9 has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2025 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The Sequoia has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2025.

The EV9 comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Sequoia’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the EV9 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Sequoia. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Sequoia ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 29 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked 17th.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Kia EV9 is faster than the Toyota Sequoia:

On the EPA test cycle the EV9 gets better mileage than the Sequoia:

The EV9 can travel with zero emissions for 230 to 304 miles (dependent on model). The Sequoia can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Kia EV9 higher (10 out of 10) than the Toyota Sequoia (4). This means the EV9 produces up to 25 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Sequoia every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the EV9’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Sequoia:

The EV9 stops much shorter than the Sequoia:

The EV9’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Sequoia’s standard 70 series tires. The EV9 GT-Line’s tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Sequoia Capstone’s 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the EV9 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Sequoia.

The EV9 has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the EV9 flat and controlled during cornering. The Sequoia’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The EV9’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Sequoia doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

The EV9 GT-Line AWD handles at .87 G’s, while the Sequoia Capstone pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Kia EV9 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 550 pounds less than the Toyota Sequoia.

The EV9 is 10.9 inches shorter than the Sequoia, making the EV9 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Unibody construction lowers the EV9’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The Sequoia doesn’t use unibody construction, but a body-on-frame design.

The EV9 has 2 inches more front headroom, .2 inches more front legroom, 1.4 inches more rear headroom, 3.6 inches more rear legroom and 3.9 inches more third row headroom than the Sequoia.

The EV9’s cargo area provides more volume than the Sequoia.

Pressing a switch automatically lowers or raises the EV9’s optional second and third row seats, to make changing between cargo and passengers easier. The Sequoia doesn’t offer automatic folding second row seats.

The EV9’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Sequoia’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Kia EV9 has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the Sequoia and isn’t available on the Sequoia SR5.

The EV9 (except Light/Wind)’s optional Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Sequoia doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Kia EV9, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Toyota Sequoia isn't recommended.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the EV9 first among upper midsize suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Sequoia isn’t in the top three in its category.

The EV9 was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 2024. The Sequoia has never been chosen by Car and Driver in their “10Best” issue.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the EV9 as the 2024 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Sequoia has never been chosen.