Kia Cerato GT coming early 2019

There's no sign of a 202kW Kia Cerato cranking the same running gear as the critically-acclaimed Hyundai i30 N, but the next-best thing is coming to Australia in early 2019, the Kia Cerato GT.

Images of the all-new Kia Cerato GT sedan and hatch have emerged in Korea and Kia Australia's corporate communications manager, Kevin Hepworth, said the turbocharged 150kW hotties will arrive here in early 2019.

The Cerato GT models will follow the launch of the regular Kia Cerato hatch in December 2018, while the new-generation Cerato sedan has been on sale here since June 2018.

The arrival of the new models expand Kia's GT range too, following in the footsteps of rear-drive Stinger GT.

The Kia Cerato has been a success story for the Korean brand in Australia, starting life as an unloved oddity but has slowly evolved into a contender and is currently the fifth-most popular car in the hotly-contested small car category where the Mazda3 and Toyota Corolla prowl.

However if the regular Cerato models with their 2.0-litre petrol engines and 112kW/192Nm output don't tickle your fancy, the new Cerato GT models may. Packing the same 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine found in vehicles like the Hyundai i30 SR (from $25,990) and much of its running gear, the Cerato GT models will pack a 150kW/265Nm punch.

Two transmissions are expected to be offered on the front-drive GT models, a six-speed manual and a seven-speed dual-clutch auto.

It isn't clear what price the Cerato GT hot hatch and sedan will command but current range spans $19,990 to $32,490.

Some of the features of the Kia K3 GT, as the Cerato GT is called in the Korean market, include 18-inch alloy wheels with sporty tyres for a bit of extra grip and more advanced rear suspension, with multilinks replacing the torsion beam of vanilla Cerato models.

There's a more athletic body kit with side skirts, a bolder, sportier front end with red highlights, a new rear section with a subtle diffuser and dual exhaust outlets.

If Aussie versions of the warm hatch and sedan are like the Korean models, drivers will be greeted with a fancy flat-bottom steering wheel and leather sports seats with GT logos. Expect a smattering of advanced driving aids such as lane-keep assist on top of the usual features like autonomous emergency braking.

At the time of writing, the Kia Cerato had found 14,725 buyers between January and September 2018, making it the fifth most-popular small car in Australia with 10.2 per cent market share.

The current leaderboard from first to fourth is the Toyota Corolla (27,687) with 19.1% market share, Mazda3 (24,344) on 16.8%, Hyundai i30 (21,989) with 15.2% and Volkswagen Golf (15,066) on 10.4% market share.

The Kia Cerato GT duo are expected to debut in mid January during the Australia Open tennis tournament for which Kia is the major sponsor.