Review & Photos by Rob McSorley
What is it?
The Picanto is Kia's city car contender that takes on rivals from Volkswagen and Fiat as well as its Hyundai cousin the i10 amongst others. For the first time the Picanto is available as a more slick-looking 3 door.
Here we are testing the City version which is the latest of Kia's 'Originals' collection. It comes with a host of equipment to attract young city-dwellers along with reasonable running costs thanks to a small 1.0-litre petrol engine under the bonnet.
What do you get for your money?
The City is only available as a three door and it really looks the part thanks to small but attractive telephone-dial 14 inch alloy wheels, chrome door handles and more aggressive bumpers than its five door sibling. It has a larger front grill with a red inlay and at the back two tailpipes poke out from below the bumper. The rest of the styling looks fresh and modern avoiding the boxy looks of some rivals and to our eyes is better without the rear doors.
Kia has fitted the City with equipment intended to make city driving easier. As standard you get a cd player with bluetooth connectivity and voice recognition with steering wheel mounted controls, electric windows, automatic headlights, remote central locking, electric mirrors, air conditioning and rear parking sensors.
For a model aimed at younger and potentially less experienced drivers Kia hasn't scrimped on safety kit. The Picanto gets six airbags, stability control, ISOFIX child-seat mounting anchor points, front seat-belt pre-tensioners and hill-start assist. It earned a very decent four star Euro NCAP safety rating although a number of its similarly sized rivals have since scored the full five stars.
At £10,245 the Picanto City is more competitively priced against rivals than previous Kias but the good equipment tally and the brand's seven-year warranty really sweeten the deal.
Is there much room inside?
Surprisingly for such a diddy car passenger space is pretty good for the class. Room up front is particularly impressive and the seats are well proportioned for a city runabout and offer excellent support. Space in the back is good with just enough room for a pair of gangly teens and long doors make access simple although it seems daft that the drivers seat does not move forward to allow entry.
Luggage space has come at the expense of room for passengers though as the boot only offers 200 litres. This is considerably less than Volkswagen's UP! and Fiat's Panda and a high, narrow opening doesn't help matters.
The cabin itself is smartly designed with uncomplicated controls that feel robust and everything is logically laid out. Its also nice that there's no exposed metal inside and the materials used although hardly plush feel sturdy and look good. White inserts on both the dashboard and the gawky-looking steering wheel along with concise hooded dials give the cabin of the Picanto a mature feel.
Furthermore there are quite a few neat touches in the cabin that show real attention to detail. These include twin cupholders that spin round into place in the central dash bin and a novel vanity mirror with six circular lights that illuminate in sequence then fade out when the visor is shut.
What's it like to drive?
With a tiny 998 cc, three-pot under the bonnet pushing out an equally modest 68 bhp you wouldn't expect the Picanto to win any races and you would be right. In town it zips around with plenty of zest along with a nice three-cylinder rasp under acceleration. Thanks to very light steering and an unobtrusive five-speed gearbox it's a breeze to drive. The only annoyance is the brakes that have too much initial bite so are snatchy and hard to modulate.
When venturing out of Picanto's urban comfort zone you really need to work the engine to reach higher speeds but the units eagerness to rev makes it far from a chore to do so. When cruising the Picanto is more than happy to trundle along at 70 mph and is actually very refined with little wind and tyre noise. It also rides incredibly well with lots of well-damped pliancy and can even smother larger ridges convincingly.
Where the little Kia struggles is the lack of driver engagement as the emphasis has clearly been placed on comfort and ease of driving. As a result although the Picanto doesn’t handle badly, in fact it grips keenly, but its numb steering, narrow tyres and high levels of body-roll do little to inspire confidence on challenging back roads. That said if you take things more slowly you have to admire the big car feel of the Picanto.
One of the Picanto's biggest assets is its low running costs. The tiny 1.0-litre petrol engine can return up to 67.3 mpg combined and sneaks under the 99g/km threshold which qualifies for free road tax. Whilst in our hands we managed a very respectable 50 mpg.
Tech Data
Price as tested: £10,245
Engine: 1.0 12v 68 bhp - 0-60mph: 13.9 secs - Maximum Speed: 95 mph -
Economy: 52.3 mpg (urban) 78.5 mpg (extra-urban), 67.3 mpg (combined) - Emissions: 99 g/km (Band A) - VED (12 months): £0
Dimensions: Length: 3,595 mm - Width: 1,595 mm - Height: 1,480 mm - Wheelbase: 2,385 mm
*data from Kia UK
DriverVIBE Verdict
The Picanto City makes a good case for itself thanks to its blend of good passenger space, low running costs, high equipment levels and its mature feel. The latter really sets it apart from the majority of its rivals which will hold plenty of appeal. Furthermore Kia has done a really good job with the styling and design both inside and out.
Where the Picanto struggles a little is on more demanding roads when the lack of connection through the controls doesn't encourage spirited driving. Also the boot is a little small, the brakes snatchy and although well equipped the £10,245 price tag is a little steep. Still there is plenty to like about the Picanto City making it well worth a look.
All photographs and text are the exclusive property of Rob McSorley (except where stated otherwise). They are made available for your personal viewing enjoyment only. No images are within the Public Domain. The photographs may not be copied, reproduced, redistributed, manipulated, projected, used or altered in any way without the prior permission of Rob McSorley (info@DriverVIBE.com).
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