New Kia Carnival here in March

Kia’s first all-new Carnival in nine years will go on sale from March, packing eight seats, petrol and diesel power, three equipment grades and loads of new high-end technologies.

Pricing and full specification details have yet to be announced, however, prices are unlikely to waver much from the current model (from $39,490), sales of which are down almost 40 per cent this year as Honda's newer Odyssey and the Hyundai iMax eclipse it as Australia's most popular people-mover.

Motoring.com.au understands the Carnival will not arrive with the dual sunroof and UVO infotainment system offered in Korea and North America.

Kia’s Australian head of public relations, Kevin Hepworth, says the low uptake and relatively high cost of optioning the dual sunroof makes it unviable for the local market, adding that Kia’s high-end eServices navigation, telematics and entertainment package will also be unavailable here due to our lack of infrastructure.

On the plus side, the Carnival will arrive loaded with new style, space and safety features. It will be offered here in eight-seat guise (it is available with an 11-seat configuration in some markets) with up to three trim levels, a five-star ANCAP safety rating, ISOFIX child seat preparation and an elegant two-tone grey interior, in lieu of the black-on-black offered currently.

It will also receive the sharp Sports Package exterior as standard and may feature alloy wheel sizes ranging between 17- and 19-inches, depending on the variant.

Kia will also land higher-grade Carnival variants with a proximity-operated Smart Tailgate (as featured on the new Hyundai Santa Fe), radar-based Smart Cruise Control, Rear Cross-Traffic Alert (which can detect cars and motorcycles), a Lane Departure Warning System, Forward Collision Warning System and High Beam Assist.

Sat-nav, a choice of audio systems, push-button starting and electric sliding doors are also likely to appear across mid- and high-grade models.

Engine choices will see the YP-series Carnival continue to sport the 2.2-litre R-Series turbo-diesel offered previously, as well as an all-new 3.3-litre Lambda II V6 petrol.

First revealed at the New York motor show in April, the Peter Schreyer-designed people-mover is the last model in the Korean manufacturer’s portfolio to receive the ‘Tiger Nose’ corporate styling seen across the rest of the range.

Visit motoring.com.au again soon for our first drive of the 2015 Kia Carnival.