Kia’s Picanto supermini just became a little spicier with a series of new upgrades and safety features that you’d expect to see on much bigger cars.
The South Korean manufacturer said it had made ‘substantial upgrades’ to its smallest and most frugal value-for-money model which comes with a seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty as standard.
This includes new safety and telematics technologies often reserved for larger, more expensive vehicles, making it feel like one of the most grown-up city cars on the market today.
Small car with big ideas: This is the refreshed Kia Picanto – a dinky city car that’s been packed out with technology you’d usually find in much larger models
The Korean carmaker has taken the wraps off its refreshed Picanto range ahead of going on sale in the UK and Europe this Autumn.
To help keep the car rooted to the road on the road, especially when cornering and braking, the updated version is a equipped with a range of electronic stability controls as standard.
The refreshed model also promises lower emissions and better fuel economy from re-engineered engines, as well as design tweaks inside and out – though the changes are evolutionary, not revolutionary, and at a glance you might be hard pushed to see the difference.
Although Kia’s not giving figures yet, expect prices starting from around £10,000 – or tantalisingly just under to keep customers keen – with higher-specced models closer to £13,000, though with flexibility to haggle that down with deals.
It comes as Kia opened all its 197-strong UK dealerships – including showrooms, services centres and MOT centres – from 1 June with social distancing and other safety measures in place as the coronavirus lockdown eases, and announced a range of deals to tempt customers back into them.
A host of safety features in the new Picanto include technology that will: warn of and help avoid forward collisions; detect pedestrian, cyclist and vehicles; warn of cars in the blind spot; keep you in lane; and warn if you are starting to nod off.
Lane following assist uses camera and radar sensors and controls acceleration, braking and steering to maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front, while monitoring road markings to keep the car in the centre of its lane.
The refreshed model promises lower emissions and better fuel economy from re-engineered engines
Infotainment centres around a larger 8-inch floating widescreen audio visual navigation system – an inch larger than previously – and a high-resolution 4.2-inch digital display in the driver’s instrument cluster
It also has a system to alerts the driver and stop the car if it detects another vehicle approaching when reversing out of a parking space.
An emergency stop signal automatically flashes the hazard warning lights to alert the car behind if the driver has to brake suddenly.
Hill-start assist holds the car on the brake to ensure the car moves away smoothly from a hill start.
Improvements to the to Picanto’s petrol engine line-up include an optional new automated manual transmission which Kia bosses say will provide a smoother drive.
It is based around a five-speed manual transmission with clutch and gear shift actuators to automate clutch operation and gear shifts.
Kia said: ‘It is a cost-effective option for customers who favour the convenience and ease-of-use of an automatic transmission, without sacrificing the fuel efficiency of a conventional manual transmission.’
The three engine line-up comprises a 1.0-litre T-GDi (Turbocharged Gasoline Direct injection) engine producing 100PS, or a pair of naturally-aspirated 1.0-litre or 1.2-litre DPI (dual-port injection) engines, producing 67PS and 84PS, respectively.
The ‘face’ of both the ‘GT-Line’ and ‘X-Line’ Picanto models has been revised in a bid to give each car a more ‘purposeful’ and contemporary design’ including redesigned headlights and four-bulb LED daytime running lights, sharper bumpers and bodywork.
Kia said: ‘The changes create a more rugged, robust-looking design for X-Line models and, for GT-Line models, an appearance which visually links the car to higher-performance GT models in Kia’s range.’
Although Kia’s not giving figures yet, expect prices starting from around £10,000 – or tantalisingly just under to keep customers keen – with higher-specced models closer to £13,000, though with flexibility to haggle that down with deals
The Picanto X is the crossover model with a raised ride height. It will sit at the sharp end of the price structure
Infotainment centres around a larger 8-inch floating widescreen audio visual navigation system – an inch larger than previously – and a high-resolution 4.2-inch digital display in the driver’s instrument cluster.
A telematics app gives the cars access to live traffic information, weather forecasts, points of interest, fuel prices, and details of potential on- and off-street parking – including price, location and availability.
For small families with a small car it also has up to seven airbags including a driver’s knee airbag as well as Isofix child-seat tether and anchor points.
Emilio Herrera, chief operating officer for Kia Motors Europe said: ‘The Picanto is one of our best-selling models. The upgrades are designed to keep the Picanto one step ahead of its competitors.’
Owners will be able to download a new telematics app that gives the cars access to live traffic information, weather forecasts, points of interest, fuel prices, and details of potential on- and off-street parking – including price, location and availability
The Korean carmaker has taken the wraps off its refreshed Picanto range ahead of going on sale in the UK and Europe this Autumn
To celebrate the move Kia has also announced a range of special deals for June. This includes a selection of zero per cent APR offers for June across its hybrid range, as well as petrol and diesel variants of Sportage, XCeed, Ceed Sportswagon and Picanto.
Under the zero in on hybrid offer, customers who order cars by 30 June can receive two years zero per cent APR across the entire hybrid range, including the mild hybrid variant of Kia’s Sportage, Niro self-charging hybrid and Niro plug-in Hybrid.
Plug-in hybrid variants of the new Kia XCeed and Ceed Sportswagon are also eligible.
Paul Philpott, president and chief executive at Kia Motors UK said: ‘It has certainly been a challenging few months, but we are delighted to be able to welcome customers back into Kia dealerships.’
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