Kia Picanto 2017 Review

No city slicker
Threading the new Kia Picanto down a chopped up excuse for a road in the Queensland Sunshine Coast’s hinterland, it occurred to me that there was something wrong.

The tiny Kia was completely settled over the sort of road surfaces that it should find heavy going. This lightweight, entry-level car should be bobbing up and down like a tinny in a storm at sea.

It was the opposite, despite the many dips and bumps – often mid-corner – on this very ordinary piece of road.

You can thank Kia’s local ride and handling team for making the Picanto a fun, composed, smooth – and above all surefooted – car to drive.

No, it’s not perfect; the tyres (OE fitment is either Kumho or Nexen) generated odd noises varying in pitch over some surfaces and the Picanto S won’t ever be mistaken for a hot hatch.

But for a plain-wrapped mini hatch, it’s very good. It’s a city car but you don’t have to feel nervous about venturing out on our crook country roads in it.

Quick turnaround
The third-generation Picanto arrives just 13 months after its predecessor in Australia.
Key points include a sharper design, more technology and, for the first time, a manual transmission.

Pricing is up overall, to $14,190 plus-on road costs in manual form and $15,690 drive away when paired with a four-speed automatic. The automatic-only predecessor was set at $14,990 drive away.

The 1.2-litre engine in the newcomer is no firecracker, but it feels more responsive than the 62kW/122Nm figures suggest.

It’s quieter and smoother than you might expect, too: it’s only once the tacho has hit about 5000rpm (redline is at 6500rpm) that the engine gets rowdy.

We got to sample the Picanto in both auto and manual versions at the launch this week.

The four-speed auto was better than expected, with smooth shifts and, despite having only four speeds to play with, an adequate spread of ratios.

Even though the engine was spinning at about 3000rpm in top gear at 100km/h (not unusual for this class), the Kia didn’t sound or feel like it was busy (the manual revs at about 2800rpm at the same speed in top gear).

The five speed manual had a really positive, light shift action, although the clutch felt a bit too light. That and the lack of torque down low made taking off a bit awkward on hills.
Usually in a manual versus conventional auto contest, the manual transmission wins hands down with small cars like these. In this case, because the auto works so well, it’s not such an easy choice.

The auto achieved 5.6L/100km according to the trip computer while the manual’s was showing 4.9L/100km.

Cabin ergonomics
Jump behind the wheel of the Picanto and its only real downfall becomes obvious:
the driving position.

No matter how much I fiddled with the seat reach, rake or height adjustments, it always felt as though either I was too close to the pedals or too far from the steering wheel. The rake-adjustable tiller sorely needs some reach adjustment too.

It’s like Italian cars of old; you feel like you need to have relatively long arms and short legs to fit properly behind the wheel.

In all other respects, the Picanto driver is treated to a pretty good set-up; vision out to the front and sides (and from the side mirrors) is very good; the rear three-quarter view not so much.

Justifying the increased sticker price is a 7.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, cruise control, a multi-function trip computer, air-conditioning and front and rear power windows.

When parking, you have no excuse for making a meal out of it; a tiny 3.5-metre body length and rear-view camera makes maneuvering a piece of cake in this car.
Even though a micro car like this isn’t typically laden with features that require myriad controls, it’s good to see the Picanto’s instruments and controls are clear and well laid out.

The infotainment screen is a good size and well positioned - although some menus (such as deleting paired phones) could be more intuitive.

The safety suite is likewise impressive, with six airbags, reverse parking sensors and ISOFIX child seat mounts.

Room fit for a city car
There is ample head, leg and shoulder room up front; it’s not a car where you’ll be knocking elbows with your travelling partner every five seconds. The seats themselves are quite supportive, too.

In the back, leg room is a bit tight and shoulder room is adequate for two adults, thanks to well-sculpted and comfortable chairs. Squeeze three adults back there and, like any car in this category, there’ll be a mutiny before you’re very far down the road.

The little things
Storage isn’t perfect in the Picanto; up front, there’s adequate door pockets (with a drink holder in each) and a couple of drink holders and storage trays in the centre console. But rear occupants get just one drink holder to share in the back of the centre console and one storage pocket on the back of the front passenger’s seat.

The boot, 55 litres larger than the predecessor at 255 litres, appears a relatively wide and tall space but doesn’t have a lot of length to it.

Similarly, the 60:40 split-folding seatbacks fold flat – but not flush with the boot floor - leaving a sizable step-up from the boot floor to the seatbacks. Two useful shopping bag hooks are fitted to the cargo walls.

Despite some of these setbacks, the new Picanto remains a real surprise package. It’s a refined, surefooted micro hatch with a generous features list (for the class) and a willing engine.

Add Kia’s seven-year/unlimited kilometre warranty to that and the Picanto becomes an enticing package.