The future of all Kia models revealed! Petrol and diesel continue amid EV onslaught

With Kia’s international product focal point now heavily skewed towards electrification, the lifespans of its existing combustion-engined vehicles will be extended past the aged 5 – 6 years, in a tell to operate certain that that Aussies aren’t left in the assist of in the transition.

In most conditions these combustion vehicles will be geared up with more environment friendly drivetrain picks – while new-period devices reminiscent of the 2025 substitute for the Cerato/Distinctiveness and the consuming European-market Ceed, will merge into a single model, produced in one manufacturing facility, for all international markets.

Cleaner tiny vehicles to proceed in Australia

Speaking to Australian motoring media on the EV9 gargantuan SUV’s international originate, Kia’s head of international product planning Hyungsik Park said that dwindling tiny-vehicle gross sales in fundamental markets meant that Kia would likely no longer proceed producing two totally a range of vehicles of the the same measurement – one completely for Europe (the Ceed, inbuilt Slovakia and Russia) and the Cerato (also badged Distinctiveness and K3 in a range of markets).

Kia’s new-period tiny vehicle will be unveiled later in 2024, with Australian gross sales draw for early 2025, with this now-confirmed Cerato/Ceed substitute being constructed completely in Mexico. This can even debut Kia’s new naming convention for all its subsequent-period combustion-engined devices, which scheme a ‘Okay’ prefix – in this case, K4.

Given that the Mexican manufacturing facility can even be installing Euro-spec engines, Kia Australia needs in tell to give a unfold of more environment friendly drivetrains – in particular if the federal authorities’s proposed Recent Automobile Effectivity Identical outdated (NVES) comes into assign – to give the K4 a noteworthy-fundamental fuel consumption enhance over the outdated existing Cerato.

Kia’s new-period Rio tiny vehicle – also inbuilt Mexico – has already switched its nameplate to K3, but since the UK and Western Europe aren’t taking this vehicle, the K3 isn’t obtainable to Kia Australia because of our consuming engineering requirements can’t be financially justified.

An the same scenario occurred with the Kia K5 – the mid-sized Optima substitute that launched in Korea in slack-2019.

The logo’s native arm modified into substantial-fervent to introduce the striking K5 – “in a heartbeat,” in line with Roland Rivero, Kia Australia’s celebrated manager product planning – however since the UK (and a range of fundamental European markets) selected to not give the automobile, it couldn’t be made viable for our market.

NVES opened door to Sportage, Carnival hybrids

Kia Australia is the exhaust of the likely introduction of the authorities-mandated Recent Automobile Effectivity Identical outdated (NVES) to clarify offering new hybrid variations of its Sportage medium SUV and facelifted Carnival of us mover, and is preparing to streamline the drivetrain picks in a range of devices.

Kia’s existing ICE line-up is on the second undergoing a series of product enhancements that replicate the contemporary changes made to the facelifted 2024 Sorento gargantuan SUV and Picanto hatch.

First up is the 2024 Carnival of us-mover, which is anticipated to debut subsequent month sporting an EV9-inspired facelift and Sorento-adore updates to its dashboard screens and multimedia expertise.

But the facelifted Carnival may perhaps presumably well perhaps furthermore sneak around a pair of of Kia’s contentious new security-alert expertise seeing that it isn’t bought in Europe and doesn’t require these aspects for Euro NCAP.

As with Sorento, search info from noteworthy of the facelifted Carnival’s mechanical hardware to stay largely unchanged – it doesn’t aim an Australian suspension tune, as an illustration – even though a Carnival Hybrid will commence up production in April for our market, sharing its 169kW/350Nm 1.6-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder hybrid drivetrain with the rapidly-to-originate facelifted Sorento Hybrid.

Due to operate constraints, the Carnival’s hybrid drivetrain will easiest be supplied in top-spec Platinum neat, seeing that the US also sources its Sorento and Carnival Hybrids from the the same Korean factories.

A the same scenario applies to the staunch-arrived Sportage Hybrid, which is gripping to introduce the the same 169kW/350Nm 1.6-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder hybrid powertrain to the contemporary Sportage line-up in the approaching weeks, however with volume restricted from having to compete with the US for supply.

Seltos and Stonic in-line for updates

No longer like Carnival, the approaching up to this point Seltos tiny SUV will aim the most modern version of Kia’s tempo-alert and driver-attention expertise, in addition as the facility for over-the-air application updates.

The MY25 Seltos is thanks to commence production for Australia in Could perhaps perhaps furthermore and needs to be in showrooms by June, even though we’re not going to peep a hybrid version of Seltos till its subsequent period.

With the Rio gentle hatch now discontinued, Kia’s gentle/tiny-vehicle tasks leisure on the shoulders of the Stonic gentle SUV.

Introduced to Australia in 2021 to coincide with its first ‘product enhancement’, the contemporary Stonic dates assist to 2017 in Europe, even though will contain its lifespan extended with a fundamental facelift scheduled for 2025 – noteworthy adore what has staunch been achieved to the now seven-year-passe JA Picanto.

Nonetheless we’ll gaze an MY25 Stonic substitute first, which is gripping to in the terminate bury the often-criticised 1.4-litre MPi four-cylinder (in addition as the handbook gearbox) in lieu of a single drivetrain true throughout the differ – the 1.0-litre turbo-petrol three-cylinder engine with seven-tempo dual-clutch transmission that is on the second supplied easiest in the flagship Stonic GT-Line.

NVES to carry a certain trade to lineup, says Kia

As for the looming potentiality of the NVES affecting what drivetrains Kia can provide in Australia, Mr Rivero appears quite assured that its assign will be certain.

“We’re assured we are in a position to answer and restful provide Australians a plethora of possibility in phrases of key product line-up. Nonetheless we staunch now must always explore at our powertrains and likely grow our more fuel-environment friendly powertrain traces, the hybrid differ, sprint-in hybrid, and EVs.

“Factual now, it does more or much less trade the panorama a little bit bit. So we’ve bought to explore through all our powertrains that we were likely getting cramped supply of, and we must always utilise the upcoming rules as a mode to negotiate with the manufacturing facility for better supply,” he said.