The new Kia Cerato is the first car to come to Australia with the Peter Schreyer `line' grille that will spread across the rest of the range Photo Gallery
Kia has set out to upset the competition
And the korean carmaker is making that clear with an ad campaign for its new Cerato that shows unidentified German and Japanese brands indulging in some industrial espionage to keep a – very worried – eye on what Kia is up to.
The ad highlights the main weapons Kia has used to arm the little four-door sedan in a changing market that the company believes is moving in its direction.
Competitive pricing and sharpened design, segment topping power and a stacked equipment list that includes six airbags as standard are all intended to help start moving the brand away from the wallet-conscious list to the `desirable’ one.
Exterior
Developed from the Koup concept that was Kia’s star at the last New York motor show, this is the first car to hit Australia with the new Peter Schreyer- penned line grille – which the head designer likens to `a tiger’s roaring face’ – slated to spread across the range as the maker’s family signature.
The grille is flanked by integrated slim headlights, echoed at the rear with similarly trimmed Euro style tail-lights sitting between the built-in rear spoiler and two-tone bumper.
The car is widest in its class and longer than its predecessor, but also sits lower on a choice of 15” steel or 17” alloy wheels to give a sportier impression. Side-on, the wedge-shaped body – which has helped to provide increased luggage capacity of 415L – is accentuated by the strong D-pillar profile, and character lines along the shoulder and lower doors.
Interior
Kia has paid equal attention to the interior, with improved features including a new design for the Kia steering wheel – set to spread across range – integrated audio in the centre stack
The standard six-speaker audio system is MP3 compatible with iPod readout of playlists on the head unit and speed-dependent volume control.
The SLi gets `super-vision cluster’ with message centre – Kia’s term for extra information functions and warnings -- plus rear park assist system with in- dash display (rare for this segment). Safety Six airbags, including dual full-length side curtain ones are standard, as are active headrests.
It also boasts four-wheel disc brakes with ABS, and ESP as an option on the base but standard on the SLi. Kia says that, given the car’s urban emphasis, the extra airbags were chosen over making ESP standard, and to help keep it at a competitive price point.
Use of high-tensile steel has strengthened the body, and while the Cerato has not been independently tested, Kia engineers claim it will score a minimum of four stars when put through the ANCAP process in Australia later this year.
Drivetrain and economy
The Cerato carries the 2.0-litre Theta II engine with contuous variable valve timing to improve both economy and power, and develops a best in class 115kW at 6200 and 194Nm at 4300rpm, while managing to meet Euro IV emissions regulations and score a 4.5 on the Aussie government green vehicle guide.
Economy is claimed to be 7.8L with the five-speed manual and 7.9L with the four-speed gated tiptronic auto. The suspension system consists of front McPherson strut set-up, and rear compact torsion beam axle that is becoming popular in the segment for its reduced weight that helps fuel economy – in addition to improving rear impact performance and giving the Cerato class-leading boot space with minimal intrusion into cargo area.
To further help economy, aerodynamic performance aided by covers in engine bay, flattened wheel covers, and wheel deflectors front and rear.
Pricing
The base model CeratoS is $18,990, and the upper specced SLi $22,990, with a five-speed manual, while a four-speed tiptronic transmission adds a $2000 premium. There’s also an option pack for the S which tosses in the SLi’s ESP, traction control, cruise control and steering wheel controls for the audio system for an extra $2000.
September will see the Cerato two-door coupe, expected to stay true to the concept car shown in New York, and to replace the Cerato hatch globally.
Kia expects to sell more of the base models, consistent with asegment which has a large fleet component, with the SLi accounting for only 30-40 per cent of sales. In 2008, they moved 2000 Ceratos, and have tipped they’ll ``conservatively’’ sell more than 3000 this year, hunting the share of the Hyundai i30 which sells between 700-900 per month.
Driving
While the Shreyer line is the feature of the Cerato’s front, from the back it looks like another Euro-styled car. That’s not a bad thing, of course. But it’s the inside that you’ll be looking at most, and this is where Kia is showing they are serious about going further upscale with presentation.
Give or take the few pieces of harder plastic in the base model, the overall effect is one of quality … decent materials, well designed and laid out, and with what seems to be quite good fitting – although we did have an annoying squeak early in the first car, it disappeared a few kilometres down the road.
The engine was a capable and very frugal performer, but was not enhanced by the transmissions. In full auto, the four-speed wasn’t keen to kick down until you gave it a hefty boot to remind it you were still there, although in the sequential side it was more fun for hills and corners.
But the manual shift was notchy and disappointing, undermining what was otherwise an excellent package.
We took the launch cars over quite a bit of gravel on the day, and were surprised at how well the suspension set-up handled most of the challenge, the only exception being the rear doing an occasional side sashay on a bumpy corner. Bitumen surfaces were no problem, although we managed to get the rubber chirping from time to time.
Cheap tyres 
Credit crunch 
Ford Fiesta 
Hyundai ix35
