With a tagline like ‘All in Small’, Naza Kia’s confidence that the new Kia Picanto comes with all that small car buyers want is apparent. With pricing starting from below RM60k for the manual to around RM64k for the automatic (estimated, final price yet to be rubber-stamped by the government), it’s not a bargain, but you do get plenty for the money.
UPDATE: Pricing for the Picanto has been confirmed – RM54,888 for the M/T and RM59,888 for the A/T, OTR with insurance
Some of the toys in the Picanto’s backpack aren’t even available as options in large executive sedans, so things like six airbags, ESP, disc brakes at each corner, Hill Start Assist, keyless entry/push start, LED DRLs and Bluetooth certainly stand out in a segment that includes the Mitsubishi Mirage, Suzuki Alto and sister Hyundai i10. Size aside, the Kia will also have to draw punters away from Malaysia’s best selling car, the Perodua Myvi.
Its case looks pretty solid on paper, so the only thing left to do is to drive it and find out if the second-generation Picanto TA really does have it all.
First impressions are pleasant. The Picanto is unmistakably Kia, but there’s an extra dose of cheekiness to the design here compared to bigger sibling Rio. The front fascia is the chief contributor to the cheeky image, with a big protruding mouth matched with large ‘eyes’ for a cartoonish face. I can almost picture Kermit the Frog driving the Picanto in its signature Lemon Grass green. Like the Muppet, the car is cute.
The rear end design fascinates me more. It’s not conventional for the rear screen to take up a bigger portion of hatch space than the metal below, and the boomerang rear lights with its three-claw LED signature are very distinctive. The lines don’t really meet where you’d expect them to, but it all works out in a unique way.
The Picanto is an important model for Kia in Europe, where city cars aren’t bought only because they’re cheap, and characterful design goes a long way in attracting urban youth. Small cars shouldn’t be taking themselves too seriously, and the Picanto looks like a fun companion already.
Speaking of the continent, the spec that we’re getting is no poorer than what a customer in Paris gets. With six airbags (dual front, side, curtain) and ESP as standard, Malaysian Picantos can proudly display the Euro NCAP four-star sticker without fear of misrepresentation.
Also included are four disc brakes (rear drums are par for the segment) and ISOFIX anchor points for child seats. The rear parking assist has four sensors, two more than the usual two.
The creature comfort list is good in the manual, great in the automatic. Auto headlamps, projector headlamps with manual levelling, LED daytime running lights, electric folding side mirrors, trip computer and factory audio with AUX/USB are standard across the board.
The automatic variant adds on 15-inch alloys with a more interesting pattern (14 on M/T), chrome door handles, front fog lamps, Supervision cluster meter, two extra speakers (total six), steering controls and Bluetooth for the stereo, leather wrapped steering and the now de rigueur party piece – keyless entry with push start button. The standard key is a jackknife-style unit with the ‘Picanto’ logo printed on the unused middle button, a small but cool touch.
Other additions include a box for sunglasses, illumination for the cup holders and a large driver’s vanity mirror with LED illumination. The diodes, three on each side, light up in stages for a touch of Hollywood drama in this moving powder room. None of these items are essential to the business of driving, but they add to the feel good factor of driving a full-spec car.
All those things are contained within a cabin that is minimalist in layout and simple to use. The dashboard design isn’t too different from that in the Rio, with a centre stack that’s an extension of the instrument panel. Here, the central air con vents flank the factory stereo instead of sitting above it.
The three hooded dials are also familiar from the Rio, although the contents and design are pretty basic in the Picanto. A fuel efficiency coach is present in both variants – upshift prompts for the manual and a green ECO light for the auto.
It’s all nice and safe, save for the steering wheel design with its highlighted mouth grinning widely at you. I like interaction and feedback from the steering wheel, but not in this form. Also, a nicer manual shift knob than the basic black ball wouldn’t go amiss.
Nothing outstanding quality wise, but there’s no sore thumb either. As expected in this segment, dashboard plastics are hard but at least they aren’t shiny and the texture is smooth to the touch. Fit and finish is good, and the overall feel is more premium than in the i10 or Mirage. The latter somehow feels very basic despite boasting kit like climate control and push start, highlighting the importance of design in creating the subjective, but all-important “feel”.
The seats are comfortable and there’s a pump-style height adjuster that allowed the driver’s chair to go low enough for my liking, avoiding the “sitting on, instead of in the car” feeling.
The Picanto is an easy car to drive from the get go, even the manual, which has a very light clutch and cushioned gear shift action. The clutch’s lack of resistance and vague action aren’t plus points for keen drivers, but it’s forgivable in a car like the Picanto, where ease of use is top priority.
You’ll get used to it in no time, as I did, rowing through the gears often to keep the 87 PS/120 Nm 1.2 litre Kappa engine on boil. With two adults on board, the four-cylinder CVVT unit was adequate to the task. The engine starts slow but comes alive in the mid band, so you’ll need to work it hard for fast driving. I can imagine it struggling a bit with a full load of four adults, but that can be said of its classmates, too – this is a small city car after all.
Fortunately, the Picanto has the best refinement and insulation in a car of this size in Malaysia, and then some. The engine may be working hard, but you hear and feel very little of it, much less than in a Myvi, Vios or City, in fact. Even wind noise is well suppressed at speeds above the national highway limit.
Encountering a small car with such grown-up manners wasn’t that big of a surprise – we rate the Hyundai i10 highly because of this, although the newer car raises the benchmark by a notch.
The polished performance was abetted by great ride comfort on the manual’s 14-inch wheels. The Picanto rides over bumpy roads with the authority of a bigger car, although we can’t confirm if it’s the same on the auto’s 15-inch rims – our stint in the top spec car was on smooth highway.
The four-speed automatic performed as expected, smooth shifts coupled with the propensity to kickdown at slight demands for more shove. The latter isn’t an issue in normal daily driving for normal people, but a heavy footed driver is sure to coax out plenty of noise from an otherwise civilised engine.
Personally, I feel that there are few motoring experiences better than driving a small, manual low-powered car to the max, as opposed to being a mere passenger in a heavy, powerful tech-laden beast. There’s a certain joy to it that’s not easy to explain.
Like the Mirage, the Picanto can be pushed harder than you’d think. It serves up a fair bit of roll in corners, but ignore the lean and you’ll find decent grip from the narrow tyres. Would have been more fun if the electric power steering didn’t feel so isolated. On the other hand, the brakes were a touch sensitive, but stopping power is good.
The Kia Picanto is a likeable runabout, and it’s good that Naza Kia is offering a decently specced manual version for those who don’t need an auto. It’s not a standout dynamically, but the Picanto is a small car that feels like a bigger car, as cliched as that may sound. Good ride comfort and rolling refinement are its strenghts, wrapped in a stylish body with plenty of kit. Just don’t approach it expecting Myvi levels of space.
So, all in small? Close, if you’re a keen driver. For the 99% of shoppers in this segment, yes.
one question, does it feels like driving a Viva?
Where is the Fuel consumption and NVH test?
i agree. fuel consumption test is important. the previous picanto is a guzzler. those perodua haters who think they made a great choice were left burying their head in the ground like ostriches.
i do hope this new version has improved fuel efficiency.
My yard is full of this Kimchi, Mazda CX5 and Proton. So many losers have traded in their cars for a Toyota
@Sam Loo, that’s a good revelation… except when you mentioned toyota then you’re lying bigtime, 100% correct that no one own toyota in your area and 100% correct that they trade-in because they want to upgrade with same brand.
Yeah Yeah, soon your yard will have new polo sedan as well as people trade it in for new vios.. but in your own Toyota hilux wetdream.
Don’t mind selling me the CX5s, waiting period is more than 3 months now…
somehow the odd looks grows on you after awhile. wonder how it sizes up against the myvi in terms of interior space. Cant really visualize from photos.
Good car but sold with wrong tax and price competition structure…right MITI??
If you compare the interior space by numbers, its not much difference even with MyVi. Its certainly bigger than Viva & comparable to myvie (in terms of its interior space)
Small, underpowered and exorbitantly priced car. Myvi is better in anyway..
Is MyVi better in the following?
1. Safety
2. Kits
3. Elegance
It’s an A segment vehicle – commpetes against ViVa.
LOL…Myvi is nothing!!!!
An A-segment car which blows a B-segment car out of the water at roughly the same price.
Myvi?really?
myvi 1.3 91kw 117nm
picanto 1.2 87kw 120nm
who underpower ? and you are now comparing B segment with A segment.
Myvi??? Cornering with less 1200km/p also still began to panic.
oppsss…120km/p
just came back from the showroom, all i can say the interior is huge. it has more interior than ford fiesta and even feel bigger than the ford focus. almost the same price as myvi extreme, why dont buy this.
It defy physic of the universe when a small A-Segment car has bigger interior than a C-Segment car.
haha..agreed..
Maybe he talked about space utilization… Not outright space… But comparing A to C segment is just wrong..
Go test drive or check the ford focus by yourself. u will be amaze by how cramp the interior is. i agree with him, the rear seat of ford focus is so cramp that the front seat was touching my leg no matter how you adjust the front seat. go try it, trust me.
He did say interior wise n ford ocus sport does have a bit crampy rear seat.
But it supports the physics of universe that wee teck is a Kia salesman.
While I agree that the Kappa 1.2 is not that torquey in the low revs, in the city its pretty decent. In traffic you can happily doddle about nice and fine. On the highway, it is a pretty nice little tyke actually. Paired with the class competitive suspension setup in the i10, which is reused mostly in the Picanto anyway, I see that the Picanto actually fixes everything the i10 misses. Once again, well done Kia. Especially the price.
And btw, although it is classified as an A segment on paper, the i10/Picanto is pretty comfy too. Good leg and head room front and rear.
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haha..poor this sam loo..if u cannot afford to buy this little expansive car..just shut you mouth..only poor guy buying a stupid vios..rich guy dun even care bout price and RV..always condemed korean car..go buy ur cheap vios..dun disturb others people mind set..n u better comment as a professional..
Tin kosong Vios with 2 airbags and no ESC and TRC?? Ah Beng bodykit, navigation?? No thanks… Preve better… No car will profit you during resale, a house/land have better RV anyway.. So don’t talk about that RV crap…
Can’t tell who is the real Sam Loo anymore. It’s like anyone can just be him.
Fake Fella
This version of sam loo is getting on my nerve….the other one just raving about rv….this one start calling others idiot just becos they dont buy toyota vios…..
60k n above for compact car is very2 expensive. Not worth as engine cap at 1.25cc. Perodua Myvi is worth to buy, even safety feature cant be compare but most Malaysian affordability is only reach at 40k to 55k. We cant say this car is bad but price wise is amazingly huge gap.
Gosh..you really need to improve your English, the sentence doesn’t make sense!
Nothing can beat pricing advantage of Myvi, except Saga… Malaysia’s taxation system are the culprit of the high pricing of non-national car..
Great supermini but not so great the pricing! Aside from the pricing issue, this small little chili padi can outperform and out style all the Japanese small cars hands down, Vios included, ;) cheers!
64k..? Wow, can get 2 brand new saga with this hefty price tag…Mr. Policeman, only bangla will feel elegance driving this junk
Saga suck…Never in my wildest dream to buy this saga car aside from boring style I don’t want to spend money to this saga car with poor reliability and safety…
This one is for you brother… Kia Picanto (5 star Ancap).
http://www.ancap.com.au/crashtestrecord?Id=497
The car is reasonably good. Your language sucks.
@Salambangi… Yah you right picanto is absolutely astonishing and you too sucks bigtime…sorry it hurts but if I were you better sell your saga now and get one kimchi for you…
Saga maybe not a 5-star car or full of style/swag, but it’s definitely a very reliable car. STFU if you never have experience with one.
Sorry bro if my comment hurts you as well, I didn’t know that you own saga… hahaha peace man…
If you’re referring to old Saga then yes it’s reliable. I got a used 13 year old unit and abused it for 5 years. Never failed.
Well my 09 Saga has been reliable so far. But will it last 18 years? I doubt it.
Poor Policeman still driving Jurassic saga, a high pollutants car. Of course it will last long because what you do is to start in the morning for a few minutes and never drive out on the road because its too embarrassing to drive…
I dont care what u ppl wanna say.. 1 billion kudos for this mouse.. another 1 billion kudos for paul..
Kudos to you to crab.
I’ve been in enough situations that I’m “saved” by driving a Viva because of it’s size, due to living in a place where everyone has no choice but to park illegally and making the road extremely narrow.
While bigger is better seems to be common sense for many, but I don’t know why they can’t agree that to some other people, small is more. I drive alone most of the time, why on earth do I need a large car, taking up space on the road?
The missus is pressuring me to change to a bigger Honda, but that “The engine may be working hard, but you hear and feel very little of it, much less than in a Myvi, Vios or City, in fact” in the article is making me thinking twice now…
I understand what you are saying, but its not a big leap to apply your logic to a motorcycle as well.
Small is good, and has many attributes like ease of parking and economy… but not when someone runs into you, while other people may need the extra space.
I still commend Kia for having the Picanto fully equipped safety wise. If not wrong, this should be the cheapest new car with 6 airbags.
Myvi is far better and value for money and good resale value…you can expect 30% drop after few months driving this car..just in case you feel wanted to sell it
Obviously another one with brains the size of H5N1 Virus.
Kimchis devalue 50% within a year
What?
Lets go buy a 2012 Kia Optima for RM70K, or better yet, wait another 2 months + and get a 2013.
Simply good enough for city runabout and light highway use.. Good for 2nd car for work commute… So far the “safest” A-segmenter that I can think of in Malaysia, ESC, TRC, six airbags. Good job Naza Kia Malaysia…
I was in South Korea recently and this car (called the Kia Morning over there) is seriously everywhere..
Almost every other car on the road is this cute little fella..
I just don’t understand why can’t they give the same options to the manual as well??
Because I’d seriously go for the manual which all the options and it will be a fun little rocket to squeeze around the roads..
cute little car, but pricing not so cute
Pricing will be cute 1 year later, real cute
Another korean junk. After what happened to the i10 , u guys still dare to buy Korean? Hahaha..
A Myvi is so much better than this KiA
Hmmm a 5 star rating at Ancap a Korean junk??? see a doctor bro…@Maserati you rather say my brainless comment is a junk…
5 star ANCAP so what when its going to break down every now and then.
Most reliable in the UK? Yea of course,different weather! Korean cars always have problems in Malaysia.
Cant believe people say they are improving! LOL..
@Maserati did I hurt you? sorry bro but your Myvi looks terrible for me but I understand because your budget is way below on buying kimchi cars…. peace man…
I think I saw one when I was in Seoul few months ago, it’s called Kia Morning.Is it the same, Danny? whatever it is, the specs are damn nice..Sam Loo should start thinking of selling this car too
Yes, Morning is the Korean domestic name for the Picanto
I would simple call all Kia’s HAILAT to the power of 4
In January 2013, the Picanto was named most reliable car in the UK, according to data published by Moneysupermarket.com in conjunction with Warranty Direct. Out of an average Reliability Index (RI) score of 100 (the lower the score, the less problems reported by owners), the Picanto achieved a score of 3.00/100
dont know with one is better.. is it myvi 1.5 or this picanto? myvi looks more sporty and have touch screen gps EPS etc.. this picanto have all the safety. and the insulation danny said this is better than myvi.. but, im afraid of the resale value and maintainence cost. just look at the 2008 or 2009 forte.. its only 50k for highspec second hand car now.. thats only the selling price. wonder how much if we want to let go to used car dealers.. 40k something? how about their spare part?
please someone explain to me.. im confused
While not sure of the resale value, but the new Picanto ranked #68 out of 150 in UK’s driverpower/AutoExpress car owner satisfaction survey.
It’s ahead of Suzuki Swift, Audi A1, VW Polo, Hyundai i10, Fiat 500. But it’s behind of Citroen DS3, Kia Rio, Honda Jazz, as far as small cars are concerned.
bro..resale value is just based on market demand..its not based on the cars..if u talk about 2008 or 2009 forte..ofcoz the resale value lower than 50k..bcoz it is 4 speed forte.. naza only introduced the 6 speed forte is on 2011..if u go n ask about 2011 above forte u will saw the price is more higher than 4 speed forte..n fyi most manufacturer start to change to 6 speed.only toyota still trust their 4 speed transmission for most of their models especialy vios..and if u want to talk about resale value..almost all high performance car in malaysia will get lower rv..u go buy the 1.6 mil ferrari..or 2 mil lambo..once u paid,ur ferrari rv already down to 50%..coz the demand is low..but the car is ok what..so u can see how much u lost if u buy even a good ferrari..more power than toyota..same goes to this kia..so for this time we cannot tell yet about the rv..bcoz we dunno the demand yet..so the most important thing u need to prepared b4 buying a car is survey the features with all competitors in the segment..n choose which one worth to buy..be professional..u can choose whatever car u wnt..bcoz every car have their advantages.
You deserve my thumb-up sir. Sam Loo should learn from you how to elaborate the rv thingy in appropriate manner.
n why i said features..bcoz features are the item that make the cars more expansive..by added features the price also higher..but if more features removed the price should be lower..becoz most of the features can be bought at aftersales, or accessories shop..mostly the dealership or distributorship will not care a lot about fuel consumption..or resale value..best fuel consumption will be an advantages for them to market their cars..and if u want to talk about pricing..car from korea and japan will be lower than europe..but higher than thailand (toyota n honda) market..bcoz the distributorship also need to pay to the manufacturer based on currency forex exchange..if it comes from asian most of them used the US dollar..but if it comes from europe..most of them will used EURO..so the price from euro states would be higher than asian..
Sam Loo would rather knock his head on the wall and die than selling this car. No doubt Korean cars have improved by leaps and bounds over years, but buyers perceptions have a long way to go. Korean cars are filled with gadgets and options whilst Japanese are good in the engine department.
Only those with narrow mindset will keep supporting a brand blindly without looking at the product itself. Just like the supporters of a party which can keep ruling for so many years despite what they have done.
You got it right, supporting Japanese Brand blindly is AS bad supporting Korean Brand Blindly.
You guys (commentors) are suck ups for Kimchis. Everything kimchi is goood, vw is cheeeap, perodua and proton uselesssss.
Its a viva segment selling at nearly 65k for the spec people would actually buy (an automatic).
I am Sam Loo too.
Buy Toyota vios, Toyota is the best.
You do not need ESC if you are a good driver.
You only need 2 airbag if you are a good driver.
But you need a Toyota Vios, because it has higher resale value and it allows you to upgrade to Toyota Camry sooner if you earned more money.
Sam Loo
It won’t work if there are still bad drivers on the road,sir ._.
You do not need RV if you die in the accident. For me safety comes first then self satisfaction. Do not have to listen to toyota salesman or any salesman for that matter, do own research and buy your choice. End of story, the power is in your hand not some car company.
This is the hailat faced bugger with the K5 that no used car dealer will even accept trade in nowadays.
Thats why his mum can’t even recognize him anymore
hi,y so serious?
The new vios is a bargain. Everything about the new vios is cheap. It’s like an all new level of cheapness. The only thing that’s not is the price.
5 years warranty with unlimited mileage. Myvi? shut up.
You have a choice. If you think that RM64k is steep, consider the more powerful and better handling but severely underspecced Polo, going for RM113k.
is it me or manual + 1.2l kappa engine really tempting?? anyway, love this car, would love to own one (manual) for sure!
sam loo loo here, buy vios if you have same brain size as me… trust me, you wont go wrong with Toyota, listen listen listen to sam loo loo, and say no to Hilux face.
Hello K5 owner, looks like your Hailat face cannot even be cured with plastic surgery
Small size or extra small.
Myvi now in serious deepshit.LOL.Jazz and this little Picanto will destroy myvi sales.dear malaysians PLEASE never buy a useless and ugly myvi/daihatsu boon.Perodua ShitVi better.Perodua=forever building JUNK shit, people last.one of the World’s horrendous carmakers on earth.MYvi.
I can’t accept the front look; like muka minta penumbuk and also the small sized front grille.
Everything else is just fine.
There’s always issue on pricing. It’s all depend on whether its within one’s budget or not, & if yes, then one would assess whether it’s worth to get one or which are his preferred one among those in the same price range. Now, its all right to even compared this to Vios, eventhough most of us know they belonged different segment…comparing here means someone may say RM60k+ for this “small” car then he thinks he might as well get Vios at about RM80k for basic spec unit. There are so many types of car buyers with or without “real” knowledge of cars & with own preference. I learned that there’s no point to bash one another for that. We can just exchange opinions on what we know (of course based on facts) & whatever the other buyer decided is his own matter. Actual exmaple i have encountered – my neighbour just booked the new Vios. He owned the previous 2 generations. I asked him why he would buy the new Vios & whether he looked at the specs, test drive it & compare with other cars. He said he bought it for RV & “it looks good”,period. He doesnt look at specs at all, he doesnt know anything abt safety features (when i told him of them, he just “huh??, what are those? Wafor?), he never test drive any other cars, he doesnt test drive the Vios even and he thinks Vios is the ONLY car under RM100k. He said so many ppl buying it therefore it’s the best. There are many such type of buyers &, well, speechless but accept it.
Have anyone seen this review?
Anyone considering buying this car should also watch this review by Bob Flavin:
Official price that i got from SA:
Auto RM 59,888
Manual RM 54,888
Great price range imo.
1 year later RM30k for Auto and RM20k for manual
If you are a smarter sorhai, get a Hyundai.
Even Sri Lankans don’t like Kia, they prefer Hyundai
Not when Sime Darby is ripping people off ._.
Been driving picanto for 5 years @120K km. So far, no problems with engine. Its smooth & quiet, albeit lethargic. Dont expect Viva like fuel consumption, its similiar to myvi’s at 13km per liter if driven casually in urban setting. Handling-wise is so-so, lots of body roll, vague steering feel & boring. The ride is better than viva but firmer than myvi. Maybe due to its thinner tyre profile (175/60R14) compared to myvi’s 65′s.
Finding spare parts is very tricky & i avoid going to Naza as the charged exorbitantly. Servicing is done by ex-nazakia ‘underground’ mechanic using ori kia parts, while for OEM parts, i source from a korea auto spare part importer (search for Hankok Automobis at lowyat.net forum). Save quite a lot of cash.. Who says korean cars are expensive to maintain?
Im sure this new picanto is a lot better than the old one, save for handling & FC.
i think the car looks weird….I dont think the price is matched with its weird look.
Of course, it’s just me…
All the hype about Vios here is nonsense. People who want to buy this car must be interested in this segment not in Vios segment. *sigh* Back to the main topic, Kia have recently come out with a very good design and quite a decent quality interior as compared to lower-end Toyota, which is something for the Korean to be proud of. Market perspective of the Korean car would be the number one threat to this beautifully crafted compact car. Some Malaysians still have the mindset that they should only buy those Japanese cars if they can’t afford high-end continental car when the Korean, if not better, is equally as good as their Japanese counterpart. Proton too have recently improve themselves by producing quite a decent car in its segment comparable to those of the the Japanese and Korean counterpart, viz., the Suprima S that all of us can be proud of (except those not-so-Malaysians everything-about-Makaysia-is wrong Nazis). In order for this car to make it, Kia after sale service must be improved and most importantly, the people mindset have to change as well as those hardcore-fans of other brands should critise it professionally rather than like poorly educated 3rd world people. Kudos to Proton.
Is the side turn signal switch to left hand side? maybe i’m wrong.. but if it yes, same as proton then..
I think Myvi and ViVa can close shop…only RM60k for an auto with all the safety features!!!!
With these comprehensive specs, I would buy it as a city car and keep it for the next 10 years la!. No need worry about RV!