The Kia Picanto is a city car that has been produced by Kia since 2003, with the third generation Picanto making its debut at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show.
Across its 20 plus years on the market, the Kia Picanto has proven time and time again that it's a serious competitor in the small car market. In 2024, it was named "City/Small Car of the Year" at the annual News UK Motor Awards and in 2023 it surpassed 250,000 lifetime sales.
The third generation further improves over its predecessors, building on the impressive sales momentum, and offering a modern, stylish model at an affordable price point.
The exterior design of the new Kia Picanto cars has been crafted to look robust yet refined. An expanded radiator grille convey high performance alongside the confidence of the black high-gloss bumper and body coloured bumpers. The rear design is visually widened, emphasized by vertical combination lamps and an LED tail centre lamp, complemented by a robust rear bumper and a sporty diffuser on GT-Line models.
LED lights, daytime running lights, and rear lights are standard from the GT-Line onwards whilst heated door mirrors with LED indicators will also increase your visibility. There’s also a heated rear window as standard across the range, making it even easier to get up and go in all weather.
The headlights and daytime running lights are also connected with a striking LED Lightbar on GT-Line and GT-Line S models, similar to what you can see on new models from other brands such as Volkswagen but without the same price tag.
The interior design of the Kia Picanto has been crafted to offer comfort and style alongside practical features to make driving joyous.
This includes an 8 inch touchscreen in the centre console which is powered by Kia Connect services free of charge for seven years. It provides real time updates for satellite navigation and the other services or you can connect your phone with Apple Carplay and Android Auto and utilise your own apps for the information you need.
This is combined with the 4.2 inch digital instrument panel in front of the driver which provides important driving information in an easy to read format. The driver display screen brings “extra-modern ambience to the cockpit” with its high brightness setting for optimum visibility, regardless of the light conditions in the car.
Additional features you’ll find around the interior space includes wireless phone charging, front and rear USB-C charging ports, a USB port for media connection, and a four speaker audio system.
Across the range you’ll have either black cloth or black cloth and grey artificial leather upholstery and extra features such as heated front seats, heated steering wheel, and automatic air conditioning to really get yourself set up. Your driving position can be altered with manual driver’s seat adjustment and manual steering wheel adjustment, allowing you to get entirely comfortable before you head off.
Despite its compact size, the Kia Picanto offers a spacious interior with a reasonable amount of boot space: 255 litres with all five seats in use. Travelling without rear passengers and folding the rear seats down opens the space up to 1010 litres, depending on how you have the 60:40 rear seats split. There’s also a broader rear design which optimises the boot space in a much better way than in previous models.
Those in the rear seats will benefit from the extra head room that the flat roof provides, and leg room is ample, although not as generous as you’d find in a larger car.
There are two petrol engines available on the new Kia Picanto: a 1.0 litre petrol and a 1.2 litre petrol engine.
The 1.0 litre engine is available with either a five speed manual gearbox or five speed automatic gearbox and offers 62BHP with both. This gives a maximum speed of 90mph and a 0-62 mph time of 15.4 seconds and you can expect a combined mpg of 54.3. It’s also not a high polluting engine with CO2 emissions at just 116 g/km, making it a great choice for those prioritizing fuel efficiency.
The more power 1.2 litre petrol engine is also available with a five speed manual or five speed automatic gearbox and a top speed of 98mph. It’s also quicker than the smaller engine with a 0-62mph time of 13.1 seconds whilst the combined mpg drops a little to 51.4. The extra power also increase CO2 emissions slightly to 124 g/km.
The 1.0 litre engine is available of the 2, GT-Line, and 3 trim levels whilst the 1.2 litre engine is available on the range topping GT-Line S model only.
The new Picanto offers four different trim levels in its line up, each with a range of standard features and technology: 2, GT-Line, 3, and GT-Line S. All of these offer a range of features and technology, allowing you to choose the Kia Picanto model that best suits your needs.
The 2 trim level offers 14 inch alloy wheels, automatic halogen headlights, bulb daytime running lights, bulb rear lights, rear fog lights, electrically adjustable and heated door mirrors, body coloured bumpers and side sills, heated rear window, rear wiper, black cloth seat upholstery, manual front seat adjustment, manual steering wheel adjustment, manual air conditioning, automatic defog system, Apple Carplay and Android Auto, 8 inch touchscreen navigation, 4.2 inch digital driver display, free 7-year Kia Connect Services, rear parking sensors, reversing camera system, cruise control, and speed limiter.
Upgrading to the GT-Line adds 16 inch alloy wheels with GT-Line styling, GT-Line exterior styling, LED headlights, LED daytime running lights, LED rear lights, electrically adjustable, folding, and heated door mirrors with LED indicators, gloss black radiator grille, rear privacy glass, GT-Line interior styling, alloy pedals, luggage board, and a rear passenger USB-C charging port.
The Kia Picanto 3 includes standard 16 inch alloy wheels, front heated seats, heated steering wheel, automatic air conditioning, start/stop button with smart entry system, and wireless mobile phone charger.
The Kia Picanto GT-Line S combines the features of the GT-Line trim with the features of the 3 trim for a fully equipped city car. If you'd like something a little bit different, the Kia Picanto Shadow Edition adds fun Adventurous Green artificial leather upholstery to the specification.
The current safety rating from Euro NCAP has expired so the model is due to be retested in the near future. Notably in the previous test some features were not present for testing such as lane keep assist and automatic emergency braking, which caused a lower test score of four stars. The new Kia Picanto offers both of these across the range so it may test higher at it's next retest.
The current generation Picanto has advanced safety features available as standard which includes: rear parking sensors, reversing camera system, forward collision avoidance assist 1.0 (city, pedestrian & cyclist), lane keep assist, lane follow assist, cruise control, intelligent speed limit assist, and hill start assist control.
Kia offers a great warranty on all of its new cars: seven years or 100,000 miles. For the first 36 months the mileage is unlimited but from month 37-84 it is capped at 100,000 miles, but this is a much better warranty than some other small cars available on the market.
At time of writing, the Kia Picanto starts at £15,845 and prices vary depending on your chosen engine and trim level right up to £19,395. Choosing additional equipment or upgrading to a premium paint option will amend your price further.
For comparison, the Toyota Aygo X starts at £16,515, the Hyundai i20 starts at £21,880, and the Dacia Sandero starts at £14,200. The Kia Picanto falls into the middle of the group, offering great technology, comfort, and practicality, at an affordable price.
The Kia Picanto, a long-standing contender in the city car market, continues to impress with its 2024 iteration, earning accolades like "City/Small Car of the Year." This third-generation model boasts a refreshed exterior design, a comfortable and tech-forward interior with an 8-inch touchscreen and digital instrument panel, and practical features like ample boot space and comfortable seating.
Ultimately, the 2024 Kia Picanto represents a strong and value-driven option for those seeking a modern and capable city car.
Whilst there are good alternatives to the Kia Picanto, why would you need one? Contact John Clark Kia Peterhead today for more information or to book a test drive.
