2026 Kia EV9

A family hauler does not have to be forgettable. This blue 2026 Kia EV9 was picked up the same day we finished its Icon Rocklear install, our permanent paint protection coating, and the studio set shows why owners do this while the car is still brand new. The metallic blue reads deeper than it did on the lot, with crisp hex reflections running across the flat body panels EVs are known for.

The EV9 is an unusually honest test of a finish. Kia styled it with almost no curve: upright sides, a nearly vertical tail, squared arches, and long door skins with a single crease. There is nothing for a mediocre coat to hide behind, and any waviness in the surface would show as a wobble in the reflection right down the side of the car. The low angle rocker and door frames in this set are shot for exactly that, and the reflection holds straight through them.

Doing it new is the cheapest version of this job. Icon Rocklear bonds into the factory clear coat rather than sitting on it as a layer that wears off, so the finish it locks in is the finish the car has on day one, before a first summer of UV or a winter of grime has had a chance to dull it. It resists that fading and keeps dirt and grime from getting embedded into the paint, it does not yellow, and it needs no waxing and no annual inspection.

Twenty photos taken at our Milpitas shop: front three quarters from wide establishing frames down to close crops, straight on front and rear, the EV9 badge on the rear quarter, plus headlight, grille, wheel, mirror, rocker and door panel details. More on our Icon Rocklear page.