Kia Picanto (2012)

CAR GARAGE | Kia Picanto (2012) | With looks That Convey a sense of solidity and maturity, new efficient engines and reduced CO2 emissions from 90 g / km, high levels of specification and safety features, the Kia Picanto will be Offered for the first time with a choice of 5-door and 3-door body styles. "Our new Kia Picanto is now a small car, grown-up," comments Soon-Nam Lee, Director of Overseas Marketing, Kia Motors Corporation. UK consumers will benefit from the next generation Kia Picanto's greatly reduced CO2 emissions, improved fuel economy and reduced ownership costs when the models goes on sale in 2011.

For Greater side-impact protection, the B-pillar and side sills are reinforced with high-tensile steel plates, the anti-intrusion door-beams are extended to overlap the B-pillar and polyurethane pads are fitted within the front door trims. New Kia Picanto's suspension and running gear has been developed from the previous models to retain That car's responsive handling while improving ride quality and refinement. The Mac Pherson strut front suspension features an Increased castor angle of 4.1 degrees, for enhanced straight-line driving stability, 12% softer springs and longer wheel travel with 20mm shorter bump-stops.

At the rear, the Coupled Torsion Beam Axle is 60% stiffer to Reduced-under-steer, with 29% softer springs, 15 mm shorter bump-stops and larger trailing-arm bushes for improved stability and a more compliant ride. The Kia Picanto's all-disc braking system, the which is standard on all models fitted with Electronic Stability Control, is backed up with standard anti-lock ABS, electronic brake force distribution and emergency 'brake assist' systems.

In Europe, every new Kia Picanto will come with a highly efficient Kappa engine that helps lower the model's CO2 this base-line to just 95 g / km and improves fuel consumption to as much as 67.3 mpg. Two three-cylinder, 998 cc units will present customers with a choice of petrol or Bi-fuel technologies (LPG + petrol) - Bi-fuel is available in selected countries but not the UK. The petrol engine Produces 69 ps and 95 Nm of torque. The Bi-fuel unit delivers 82 ps and 94 Nm of torque. Made in Korea, the Kappa family of engines share many common characteristics, Including dual CVVT (continuously variable valve timing), a cast aluminum block, off-set crankshaft, maintenance-free long-life timing chain and low-friction 'Beehive' valve springs. The standard transmission for all engines in the new Kia Picanto will be a 5-speed manual, while a 4-speed automatic gearbox will be available as an option on the 1.25 liter 85 ps engine.

Kia Picanto 3-door (2012)

CAR GARAGE | Kia Picanto 3-door (2012) | The Kia Picanto 3-door has a unique, sporty character while still managing to deliver the same, seemingly contradictory, upgrades as the more family-focused five-door: Stronger performance with lower fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, the safety and luxury features of a large car without an outrageous price tag, and practicality within a compact package. If the five-door Picanto is 'the small car, grown up', then the 3-door is the same but with a twinkle in its eye.  Globally, the market for Picanto-sized cars in 2014 will be around 2.4 million.  Around a million of these will be 3-door cars.

The changes are most obvious in profile, where new doors, rear panels and glass AFT of the A-pillar give the Kia Picanto 3-door a fresh, dynamic appearance, accentuated by the rising belt line That slices through the door handles on each side , and the aerodynamically shaped side sill moldings. Unique alloy wheels on the upper two trim versions are other distinguishing features of the Kia Picanto 3-door. At the front and rear the 3-door Picanto Kia reveals its own personality, too.  The rear bumper has a black rectangular central section in place of body color, a simple measure Relatively That makes the Kia Picanto 3-door sportier Appear instantly. The finishing touch is created by exposed twin chromed exhaust outlets in place of the hidden single tailpipe of the five-door car.

The Kia Picanto 3-door offers brand-new 1.0-and 1.25-liter Kappa petrol engines family, the which deliver fuel economy of up to 67.3mpg with CO2 emissions as low as 99g/km. The larger engine is available with Kia's Eco Dynamics fuel-saving technology - an Intelligent Stop & Go engine stop / start system - or, Alternatively, with automatic transmission. The three-cylinder 1.0-liter unit develops 68bhp and 95Nm of torque. Finally, there is the Eco Dynamics version with fuel consumption at 65.7mpg. The same new running gear developed for the five-door Picanto also Appears on the 3-door.

Whilst the five-door Picanto Kia's simple trim follows naming structure of '1 'for the entry model, '2' for the mid-spec and '3' for the top-of-the-range version a different approach has been taken with the three-door. 3-door Picanto is Offered in four trim specifications: 1, 1 Air, Halo and Equinox.  By offering both entry level and Characterful, more luxurious 3-door Picanto specifications appeals to a broad customer audience within the growing A-segment. Picanto 1, 1 Air, and Halo have four speakers and Picanto Equinox has six. Hello and Picanto Picanto Equinox also have USB and AUX ports, an iPod cable and steering wheel-mounted audio controls.  Whilst the Halo and Equinox versions have differing levels They share equipment Certain items Such as Bluetooth connectivity with voice recognition, automatic lights, front LED daytime running lights and LED rear lights, body-colored side sill moldings and a red front grille surround.