The most technologically advanced, most stylish, most refined and sportiest small car that Kia has ever produced – the all-new third-generation Picanto – goes on sale in the UK priced from £9,450.
At launch there are nine versions on offer, based on two engines, two transmissions and five trim lines – badged ‘1’, ‘2’, ‘3’, ‘GT-Line’ and ‘GT-Line S’. ‘GT-Line’ and ‘GT-Line S’ bring an unprecedented level of sportiness to the Picanto range, with bespoke exterior and interior styling and exclusive trim features. Later this year the most powerful engine ever offered in a Picanto – a 99bhp 1.0-litre T-GDi turbocharged unit – will become available.
The third-generation Picanto will be available only as a five-door car, since three-door models account for only 10 per cent of sales in the city-car sector – a share which is diminishing.
In this corner of the market, size matters. Customer research shows that city-car buyers do not want big cars, so the all-new Picanto occupies exactly the same amount of road space as the previous model, with an overall length of 3,595mm and a width of 1,595mm. However, those figures do not reveal the ingenuity that has gone into the new car’s packaging to improve passenger and luggage space.
Advanced connectivity and driver assistance features are now available to keep occupants fully in touch with the outside world while minimising the risk of accidents, the car is based on an all-new platform featuring twice as much high-strength steel as the previous Picanto for strength and safety.
Extensively modified versions of the 1.0-litre and 1.25-litre normally aspirated petrol engines from the previous Picanto reduce fuel consumption and emissions. The all-new Picanto is capable of up to 64.2mpg, with CO2 as low as 101g/km.
