Taking on the Mille Miglia in a Kia EV6 GT

The Mille Miglia was, and remains, one of the most famous road races in the world. In its original form, it took place 24 times between 1927 and 1957, and represented an immense challenge for drivers as they took on the (roughly) 1,000-mile course. The first race was won by Ferndinando Minoia and Giuseppe Morandi, who crossed the finish line after 21 hours and five minutes in their OM 665 S, and over the next three decades the likes of Tazio Nuvolari, Achille Varzi, Aberto Ascari and Stirling Moss added their names to an exclusive roll of honour.

Questions over safety meant the Mille Miglia was brought to an end in 1957, but such was the adoration for the event it was revived in 1977 as the ‘Mille Miglia Storica’. Each year hundreds of drivers, in cars true to the original era, cross the start line to follow a route very similar to that of the inaugural race in 1927.

The historic race’s next chapter was set in motion in 2019 when organisers put together the very first Mille Miglia Green. What began as an experimental 250km course over three days transformed in five years to become a fully parallel competition run alongside the full 2,000km Mille Miglia. Jade Paveley was granted entry behind the wheel of a Kia EV6 GT, the first Korean car to take part in the event and we caught up with her at the Goodwood Festival of Speed to hear all about the experience.

“It was absolutely amazing,” she told us. “Like, when do you ever get to do the Mille Miglia?” She, together with her husband and fellow rally driver Ross Leach, embarked on a gruelling four-day tour of Central Italy as one of 12 electric cars racing to complete the course that was split into several timed stages.

But while the EVs would be carrying out their own programme, completing stages in the mornings before stopping to charge and rejoining later on, they were very much in the mix the rest of the field. In a car that stood out rather alarmingly among the sea of classic Alfa Romeos, Mercedes 300 SLs, Lancia Aurelias and so on. If ever an EV6 looked out of place, it was here.

“We did get that kind of sideways glance. You could see they were thinking like, ‘is this actually going to be any good?’ You have to earn your respect in those kinds of environments and I think it really did make its mark.”

The metaphor here is obvious. The world is changing, ever so gradually, but while we enjoy remembering the past, there’s no shame in being a little bit excited for what comes next. It’s even more fun when the two converge on each other, and we get an interesting new perspective on life.

“We were driving through these beautiful roads in Italy and it was very rewarding actually with the EV6 GT because I've never experienced in a petrol or a diesel car where you actually got the fuel gauge to go back up again.

“When we were driving through the test sections, I would use it in the full Eco mode, I had the regenerative braking on full.

“And when we were going back down the hills it would put recharge back into the battery and I could just basically flick between the different settings and make that work for the roads that we were driving on.

“Obviously there's the competition element, but learning how to get the best out of the car was brilliant. You have that with any other car really, you want to get the best out of it, but I was just very aware and enjoying the different settings that you could use.”

Over five days they covered 220km, 260km, 290km, 230km and 160km in between organised charging intervals, which is somewhat more manageable than the original races that saw competitors cover the 1,000-mile distance in one day, but even the challenge remains a unique one.

“It's not for the faint hearted. And I really appreciate the old guys and girls in the classic cars. Really out in the elements all day, throughout so many hours of driving.

“There's nothing quite like the Mille Miglia. When you get there, I think you suddenly realise that people have done it so many times before us and we were complete newbies. We had to learn a lot very quickly.

“I think we managed it quite well. There were definitely some times where we had to just take a breather and just realise that, yes it's a competition, but we've got to do well and still make sure we're still talking at the end of it.”

“We hadn't actually been married very long, but I'm pleased to say that we’re still married, still going strong. We just kind of took it as it came. But it was between four and six hours sleep a night. Up in the morning, back in the car, and you had to be on it. Thank God for espressos”

So what does the future hold for race like the Mille Miglia? With the Goodwood Revival announcing it will race exclusively on sustainable fuels from 2024, there’s no doubt the time for change has arrived, and even something so beloved as this must surely come under some scrutiny. Does the inclusion of electric cars offer hope for a prolonged future? Paveley certainly believes the enjoyment of driving in events like this is far from diminished in an EV.

“It was very fitting in today's age because you can see where we've come from. You look at the old cars and you can really appreciate them, but of course we've got to keep moving forward and I think the thing that a lot of people say about electric cars is they don't look fun, but you cannot say that after driving an EV6 GT.

“It's 577 horsepower, you can't not love that. When you put your foot down it goes. You can see the older cars, you've got to drop it down a gear, you’ve got to rev it up. Imagine if you're on carbs, you really have to get it going. Even in my rally car, you have to wind up the turbo.

“But with this car you put your foot on the throttle and it just launches. It's just so rewarding. I felt proud to be in it.”

If not as a direct replacement of the current Mille Miglia Storica, there is certainly scope to continue growing this all-electric version of the historic race. Plans are in motion to continue building the Mille Miglia Green, and we’re glad, because history is as much about enjoying the past as it is learning lessons for the future.