New Kia Picanto will debut at Geneva

Korean carmaker Kia has updated its Picanto for 2017. It’s a hatchback sold in Europe, that’s slightly more premium than the Hyundai Grand i10 available in India.

With the update, the Picanto will only be available in the four-door body-style; the older car was available in both two-door and four-door avatars. It claims to pack more interior space, and at 255 litres, its boot is bigger than the older car.  Plus, the rear seats also split-fold to free up as much as 1,010 litres of luggage space.

The Picanto continues with the 67hp, 1.0-litre and 84hp, 1.2-litre petrol engines, but new to the car is a 100hp turbocharged 1.0-litre petrol. With this engine, the hatchback can hit 0-100kph in 10.1sec. Peppier engine aside, the hatchback also sports a revised suspension and steering system, which according to the carmaker, has improved the car’s handling. A five-speed manual gearbox is standard on all engines, but the 1.2-litre petrol can also be had with a four-speed automatic.

New features on board the Picanto include a 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system, which will be offered across the entire variant range. The unit comes loaded with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and also acts as the display for the reversing camera. A wireless smartphone charger and USB port are also part of the car’s equipment list.

With the new car, Kia will also offer personalisation options, which will allow buyers to choose colours for the seats, stitching as well as interior door panels. On top of this, the hatchback will also be available in GT-line and S variants, which come with sporty bodykits, and unique paint schemes.

Safety is another highlight of the Picanto. Its structure uses advanced high-strength steel, which not only makes the car stronger than its predecessor, but also lighter by 23kg. Further, six airbags are a standard fit on all variants, while a knee airbag and automatic emergency braking (AEB). Are optional extras. Thanks to the AEB, the Picanto could even achieve a five-star rating on Euro NCAP crash tests.

Kia plans on making its foray into India, and upon Kia’s arrival, expect the Picanto to be part of its line-up for India.