News

Kia gets the thumbs up

Wednesday 24th April 2008

The trouble with looking to badges as exemplars of brand equity is that badges stay the same but products change, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse.

Just as Mercedes buyers were not quite getting what they expected, so the casual bargain seeker may well do the same, lucking into something quite beyond the normal if they buy a Kia cee‘d.

Two diesel engines are offered, both based around the same 1.6- litre direct injection commonrail 16v architecture. Choose either the 90bhp version or the more satisfying 115bhp variant. Both are more relaxing to drive than the breathy petrol units.

The steering lacks a little of the polish of some of the very best contenders, although we’re talking about tiny percentage differences. There’s certainly very little in it when it comes to ride quality, the Kia adopting much the same MacPherson strut front suspension and fivelink independent rear setup as the best of its rivals.

The cee‘d corners well with well-suppressed lateral roll and even when provoked, steadfastly refuses to do anything unexpected. The long wheelbase helps ride quality with only lumpy B-roads showing up any flaws in deportment.

Performance is fair, the 90bhp unit getting to 60mph in 13.5 seconds and the 115bhp model 11.2 seconds, the respective top speeds being 106 and 116mph.

The Koreans are pulling no punches and that much is evident the very first time you clap eyes on a cee‘d. With it, Kia has aimed for a more mature design. Not mature as in the demographic of the target market. Rather the design output of a company that doesn’t need to fall back on gimmickry and ostentation to get noticed.

Sit inside the cee‘d and you’ll wonder whether they might be on the way to achieving it.

Quality fabrics, doors that ‘thunk’ shut and thoughtful approach to design make the cee‘d a landmark Korean car. There are still some improvements that need to be made. The plastics quality is still a little hit and miss and the orange dash lighting isn’t overly easy on the eye but let’s not be patronising and proclaim the car as ‘a lot of metal for your money’ or any other such bunk. This Kia is a good car, full stop.

Up against the likes of the Ford Focus and the Vauxhall Astra, the cee‘d needs to be extravagantly talented to even have a sniff of getting near Kia’s modest target of two per cent of total segment sales which, in real terms, equates to about 10,000 cars per year.

Three-door and estate models will help those figures but it’s still a stretching aspiration.

Pricing that starts at £12,395 for the 90bhp CRDi S is obviously going to help, and the GS model only weighs in at £13,045. The 115bhp LS is pitched at £14,395, these prices tending to be around £1,000 less per model than something like a Focus. The SW estate bodystyle commands a £700 premium model for model.

Equipment levels are noteworthy, the entry-level car getting air-conditioning, an MP3- compatible CD stereo, front seats with height and lumbar adjustment to complement a rake and reach adjustable steering column, electric front windows and six airbags.

Highlights of the GS model include 16-inch alloys, heated and electrically-adjustable door mirrors, remote central locking and a stereo with USB and auxiliary inputs.

Finally, the LS gets half-leather trim, climate control, electric rear windows and front fog lights amongst its list of toys.

There are no problems when it comes to fuel economy with either of the CRDi diesel engines, the 90bhp model returning an average figure of 60.1mpg and the 115bhp version matching that figure to the tenth. Emissions are also quoted as the same for each powerplant, the stated figure being 125g/km. The only blot on the copybook in this regard is the lack of a diesel particulate filter.

Used values will doubtless be propped up quite nicely by Kia’s excellent warranty arrangement. Buyers get full cover for seven-years or 100,000 miles. It’s about as good as the industry can offer and puts mainstream rivals like Ford and Vauxhall in the shade. This promise of trouble free motoring will be enough to tip the balance for many potential customers. Insurance ratings also look very reasonable, predicated upon a low cost of repair, a generally mature buyer profile and excellent safety provision.

Choosing a Kia cee‘d CRDi diesel is a bold decision. There will be those who choose rationally, noting that the pence per mile figures, the warranty details and the interior dimensions all mark the cee‘d down as one of the best cars in its class. Then there will be a rarer breed of customer, those who chance upon the car and like it because of the more intangible criteria.

Of the two cars offered, the 115bhp version is more fun to drive, but Kia has made this model available only in LS trim.

If they could offer a lower spec version with the higher power engine it would get a five-star rating but as it stands, four represents a big thumbs up.

Published Friday 11th April 2008, Leicester Mercury.