Kia Picanto Si 2016 Review

Kia Picanto Si
Road Test

While a large percentage of the Australian market is devoted to jacked-up rides and SUVs of all shapes and sizes, the micro car plays an important role for several markets. Affordable and economical, they’re a great option for first-car buyers. While at the other end of the spectrum, city-based empty-nesters looking for a simple A-to-B kind of car may also find relevance in this segment.

Kia’s micro car, the Picanto, hit the market soon after Holden’s Spark, so I proceed with that benchmark top of mind.

The Kia Picanto offering is a one-size-fits-all approach. Its lone model – the Si – features a 1.2-litre four-cylinder engine that produces a class-competitive 63kW and 120Nm. It’s matched exclusively to a four-speed automatic transmission.

Jumping inside the cabin I’m faced with much dark plastic – but it’s nicely offset by chrome highlights and a well-executed design. I can quickly adjust my seats, manually, to get a good driving position. Without steering wheel reach adjust however this may not be as easy for all drivers.

On the road, the Picanto’s engine feels quite spritely – particularly short-burst inner-city driving. Weighing in at just 994kg, it feels fairly nimble, too. With city-car driving as its forte, the Picanto is a very good drive. Plant your foot and it moves. Hit the brakes and it stops nicely – with good feel under foot.

It’s the four-speed automatic box that is a tad disappointing. Another gear would have made things feel far more flexible and give the Picanto a more mature driving appeal.

The Picanto felt competent at freeway speeds, sitting confidently among a sea of much larger vehicles, but the engine was at its limit in overtaking scenarios.

Steering, however, is bang-on for a city-car. It’s light, but with feeling, which makes manoeuvring the Picanto a breeze. Needless to say, its proportions make parking a cinch, too, even without a reversing camera.

The Picanto rides on 14-inch steel wheels, and adopted a very firm suspension set up, much too firm for the job at hand. Every bump and road imperfection can be felt through the car and overall ride comfort suffers as a result.

The Picanto’s technology suite is fairly basic and more likely to appeal to retired luddites than tech-hungry millennials. The audio offering consists of a CD player with MP3 compatibility, AM/FM radio and four-speaker sound. Bluetooth functionality allows for phone and audio streaming, all of which can be controlled via the steering wheel mounted controls and it has speed dependent volume control.

Auxiliary, USB and 12-volt outlets are conveniently located in the storage well to the front of the centre console.

It’s the things that are missing which set the Kia Picanto back a notch when comparing like for like: no satellite navigation, no reversing camera and no cruise control. And the audio interface feels a bit budget – a small monotone screen flanked by buttons. It works, and feels good to touch, but there’s better out there. Much better.

While space is a little tight, storage up front is commendable. Two sturdy cup holders sit in the centre console, with room to spare for your smartphone or purse. The side of the cupholders can retract to offer larger space if you so desire – it actually ends up being a very useful space, right by the charge points. There’s also room for drink bottles in each door and the glove box is also generous, for a micro car.

Dual visors with vanity mirrors (but no lights), day/night rear view mirror, LED lights in front foot wells and manual air-conditioning are standard.

The second row was a good home to two children. It may have three seats, but you’re not fitting three of anything in there – not comfortably, anyway. It does have three child-seat anchor points and two ISOFIX positions. It has two back of seat pockets, which are a good inclusion for any car.

No dedicated lighting in the second row meant I was often fidgeting around in the dark to find seatbelt points or missing Lego parts.

The Picanto offers 200 litres of cargo space (53 less than the class-topping Celerio). A 60:40 split-fold arrangement allows for greater flexibility, and with second-row seats folded this space grows to 605 litres.

The Picanto sips regular unleaded and has a 35-litre fuel tank on board. Average fuel consumption is pitched at 5.3L/100km for a combined cycle, on par with its rivals. However, real world driving revealed an average closer to 7.0L.

The Picanto wins maximum points when it comes to safety – five-star ANCAP – featuring front and side airabgs, anti-lock brakes, stability and traction control. Bolstering the entire offering is Kia’s seven-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and capped-price servicing scheme that sees the all-up cost of servicing a Picanto no more than $2345 for the warranty period. It’s real value-add for first-car buyers who can do without the uncertainty of servicing costs.

Priced at $14,990 drive-away, the Picanto again brings a compelling case. But it’s not alone in this segment, going pretty much dollar for dollar with the new Holden Spark, which flaunts more extensive technology as standard, for one. Then cheaper rivals come in the form of Nissan Micra and Suzuki Celerio.

The Kia Picanto undoubtedly delivers a decent ride and it’s a pretty nice place to sit – it’s a very good A-to-B car. But is it the best value this segment has to offer? I’m not entirely convinced…

2016 Kia Picanto pricing and specifications:
Price: $14,990 (drive-away)
Engine: 1.2-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 63kW/120Nm
Transmission: Four-speed automatic
Fuel: 5.3L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 130g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP

Also consider:
>> Holden Spark (from $13,990 plus ORCs)
>> Nissan Micra (from $13,490 plus ORCs)
>> Suzuki Celerio (from $12,990 plus ORCs)