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Kia

Wednesday, 8th of October 2008

There are four engine derivatives available in the Kia pro_cee’d. We drove the 1.6 litre petrol engine which returns 124 bhp although a 1.4 petrol is available alongside two diesel options in the form of a 1.6 CRDi and 2.0 CRDi unit which packs an impressive 138 bhp. For a 1.6 litre hatchback the performance is impressive, the engine is designed to be revved hard and judging by the sound coming from the sporty oval exhaust it doesn’t seem to mind being pushed at all!

The sporty nature of the pro_cee’d is reflected in the ride which is quite firm but not uncomfortably so, as can be the case in some German marques at times. Anomalies in the road surface are negotiated with relative ease whilst the handling is direct and communicates what is happening beneath you from the wheels upwards. The pro_cee’d feels like a very nimble car, a quality which some of its direct competitors sadly lack.

A seven year 100,000 mile warranty is available on the Kia pro_cee’d! That is a sure sign of how confident the manufacturer feels about the reliability and build quality and we didn’t see any sign of anything which would indicate this confidence is misplaced. The cabin is dominated by quality soft touch materials and cheap feeling plastic components are kept to a minimum. This is indicative of how much Kia are catching up with their European counterparts and now brings the pro_cee’d in direct competition with likes of the VW Golf, Vauxhall Astra Sport hatch and Ford Focus 3dr.

The pro_cee’d felt just as safe and secure as other cars in its class with airbags abundant and alarm and deadlocks fitted a standard.

Kia has aimed the pro_cee’d at a relatively young market who want a vehicle which is a little more substantial than the traditional Super-mini but don’t want to scream ‘I have two kids and a mortgage’ from the top of their lungs as a consequence. The majority of the space inside the car is taken up by the driver and front passenger, although rear passengers aren’t completely compromised, if you wanted a car which made rear passengers as welcome as those in the front you would go for the original cee’d which is a five door family orientated vehicle.

This is Kia’s big plus. The Pro_cee’d undercuts the vehicles it is now in competition with quite substantially, although the residual values of the pro_cee’d may not be quite as certain as those of the Golf for example, the up front costs are a lot less! Running costs should also mirror this and the seven year warranty is always a key selling point for Kia. The majority of customers will probably opt for the 1.6 CRDi diesel engines, which gives good performance with equally impressive running costs. pro_cee'd - the third cee'd variant

When you sit down in a 1.6 litre Kia pro_cee'd, one thing you don’t expect is performance. However, the car has surprising acceleration right into the mid-range, and the stylish exhaust certainly makes it sound even more impressive than it feels. Acceleration is smooth right up to 6,500 revs, which gives it more than enough power to overtake when needs be.

As you’d expect from a car in this bracket, the handling is excellent. I was able to negotiate awkward country lanes with ease and speed. The ride was smooth and relatively solid, though perhaps not as firm as some of its European rivals. However, the agile nature of the car certainly makes up for this, and the “fun” element of the drive is definitely there in abundance.

With a 7 year 100,000 mile warranty, it’s hard to argue with how solid this car actually is. Every feature of this car functions perfectly, and there were no signs of that changing any time soon. I was especially impressed with the smooth, modern interior, which feels much more luxurious that you would expect from a car in this price bracket.

The safety features of this car are excellent, as indicated by its’ Euro NCAP crash-test results (5-stars for Adult Protection, 4-stars for Child Protection and 2-stars for Pedestrian Protection), which makes it one of the safest C-segment cars in the world. There are as many airbags as you could ever need, and useful indicator lights on the dash for every seatbelt in the car. On top of this, the solid build of this car makes you feel safe as you weave your way in and out of the rush hour traffic.

Whilst you’ll never be able to fit yourself, your spouse, your 3 kids, the family dog and everyone’s luggage in this car, the front is exceptionally spacious for a vehicle of this class, and even I at 6’ 5” tall had no difficulty in the front seat, which extends as far back as you’d expect for a car that’s clearly targeting a younger, trendier market than Kia normally would. There is limited room on the back seats, but good boot space for a car of this size.

The petrol version of this car achieves a reasonably impressive 37.2mpg, though the diesel version manages a whopping 49.6mpg. This combined with the 7 year warranty ensures this will be one very cheap car to own, and certainly a lot cheaper than its’ European counterparts. Additionally, with CO2 emissions of 152 g/km, whilst not a particularly green option, it should be low enough to ensure you don’t get clobbered on road tax.