Not too long now before the new Kia Picanto is launched in Malaysia – local distributor Naza Kia has released a teaser image showing the entire front three-quarter of the A-segment city car ahead of its launch next week, January 10.
From what we can see, the third-generation JA will come without the GT Line appearance package that was on the cars previewed in Malaysia thus far. As such, the aggressive front and rear bumper design, side skirts and visible chrome-tipped exhaust pipes won’t make it to our cars, and the 16-inch eight-spoke two-tone alloy wheels will be swapped out for 15-inch silver rollers.
That said, the tiny little runabout will still be packed with kit, including LED daytime running lights within the halogen projector headlights, LED tail lights, fog lights and keyless entry, along with safety kit such as six airbags, ABS, stability control and hill-start assist.
Of course, that’s not surprising, given that the previous-generation TA had all these features as well. What is new is a floating seven-inch infotainment touchscreen, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity and a reverse camera with dynamic guidelines.
Although there were no mention of the powertrain on offer, expect the Picanto to soldier on with the same 1.25 litre four-cylinder as before – making 87 PS at 6,000 rpm and 122 Nm of torque at 4,000 rpm – mated to a four-speed automatic transmission. A five-speed manual was briefly offered on the previous model, but the low take-up rate means that it’s unlikely to make a return here.
To recap, the new Picanto is said to be safer than before, using double the amount of advanced high strength steel as before, at 44%. Despite roughly similar dimensions as before (3,595 mm long, 1,595 mm wide and 1,485 mm tall, 2,400 mm wheelbase), Kia claims increased head-, shoulder- and legroom, and luggage space has increased from 200 litres to 255 litres, expandable to 1,010 litres with the rear seats folded.
During the preview of the new Picanto last month, sales advisors present hinted of a sub-RM60,000 price tag. That would be more or less identical to the previous model, which retailed at RM61,888 on-the-road with insurance. You can register your interest here.
GALLERY: 2018 Kia Picanto previewed in Malaysia
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a Kia beyond 60k. who will buy?
We must thank the old Kia Picanto. It came with VSC and 6 airbags. This brought a lot of shame to UMW and Proton.
Proton and UMW was selling us cars with no VSC and only 2 airbags.
Even worse, Gomen GLC UMW was selling us cars with no VSC until 2017. But 5 years earlier, the previous Picanto gave us VSC and 6 airbags.
Becaus eof the old Picanto, both Proton and UMW had to increase their airbags and give VSC in all their cars.
So shy that a Korean car company had to teach Malaysian car companies to give safe cars to Malaysians
Thanks to Iriz, kimchi continued the safety ball rolling, then Honda, and only now selowpoke P2. Iriz wasnt just a game changing car, it was a market changing car. It made everyone, and i mean EVERYONE, from gov, to sales pipu, to customers, to competitors, & even reviewers, to take safety features seriously. Iriz was the car that changed everything.
Well, I don’t care who started which. As long as automotive co. kept giving more goodings, seems good for me.
No manual transmission???
Also, if below RM40k will sell well…..
No turbo engine, still 4 spd auto, 60k for A segment
Why buy this over the new myvi? Oh yeah some people feel tarak muka bawa perodua
Should have bring in the Kia Kona and not Picanto since Myvi sudah bunuh semua competition in this segment.
Kia Kona? You mean Kia Stonic.
Its true it is pricy bcoz of its features, but if kia put the price like in range of rm40k-rm50k it will attract more buyers as well as youngsters
Buy 2nd hand god car more bijak.
Saw a white JA Picanto on the MEX highway yesterday (3 Jan). It was running with trade plates, and was completely undisguised. Unfortunately, I couldn’t photograph it cause I was driving at the time.
Personally, I have doubts that the new JA Picanto will be as successful as the old TA model in Malaysia. When the old TA launched (in 2013 ? I think), it had 5-star safety, premium packaging and a manual-with-top-spec as USPs. Having driven one myself, I can tell you that the TA Picanto feels more premium and ‘solid’ than the old Myvi and Iriz. The interior materials and design were also very good for an A-segment car.
Now though, Naza Kia will have a hard time convincing buyers to choose the new Picanto over the new Myvi. The gap in safety and packaging has narrowed between the two models. No doubt, the new Picanto will get favourable press reviews (as do most new Kias), but sales is another matter entirely.
To be fair, we should keep in mind that the Picanto is an A-segment hatch and the Myvi and Iriz are both B-segment models. The new Rio is actually Kia’s B-segment hatch, and that costs RM80k. We should be comparing the Picanto to smaller hatchbacks like the Axia, Mirage, Alto/Celerio, i10 and the like. In this A-segment comparison, the Picanto is leaps and bounds ahead of its rivals.
The fact that Kia’s A-segment hatch can hold its own against many larger hatchbacks is a strong statement in its own right.
Dah agak dah tahun ni Picanto baru akan keluar dah lama tunggu style yang macam ni. Lawa betul Kia ni, memang comel
My new balik kampung car for this year. Why not? Still 4 speed auto what, and also no turbo engine. Oklah segment A car like this.
Penantian berakhir juaaa wohoo. Memang dah lama tak sabar tunggu Kia Picanto release ni.
Have been using Kia Forte for 5 years now and has no major problem with it. Definitely has been waiting for updates on new model and this new Picanto looks very nice for a compact car. Would recommend my younger sister to buy!
Fuhh tetiba je Kia Picanto launch, warna kuning tu padu sungguh, merecik gila tengok
new myvi 4 speed only
can somepone ask perdoua stop 4 speed
why new myvi only 4 speed
year 2018 still 4 speed?
anyway i am buying this new picanto
just went to salesman and booked
getting
lime green color
maybe we get AEB
Wah, tau tau je Picanto baru keluar. Kalau dapat warna kuning macam bumblebee siot. Lawa jugak. Lain daripada yang lain.
Design picanto kali ni cantik , sblum ni tgk teaser warna kuning, mcm ala2 transformer . Ada warna lain ke selain warna kuning?
jangan malu
mari beli ramai ramai
picanto baru
ada 5 color
maybe ada AEB
Bukan main lawa lagi Picanto baru ni punya style. Aku dah agak dah yang tahun ni keluar Picanto baru ni. Steady betul design dia.
Wow! The new Kia Picanto, very nice design. I have a plan to get a new compact car and i also interested with Picanto’s new model. It can be my new car to balik kampung this year. I do like the black one.
Wah can’t wait to test drive kia picanto! Kia selalu lain daripada yang lain. Picanto ni pun totally different dari picanto yang dulu. Lawaaaa
Dia bagi info sikit-sikit dulu info pasal Picanto ni. Tak macam kereta yang lain. Tapi info sikit pun dah tergoda dah. Tengok kereta dia ni, memang nak try la jawabnya.
I knew it Kia would release Picanto like this, can’t wait to see them in the showroom. Will go and test drive this car and see how it goes. I’ve waited a long time for Kia to release this kind of car. Good job Kia!
Menarik gila design Picanto ni. Tengondia punya headlamp dan rim. Memang jatuh hati terus
Aduhh, baru tengok mata pun rasa menawan sangat dah, garanggggg
Kia ni kasi teaser dulu. It is not like others brand. Tengok teaser pun nampak best dah. I need to give a try
european design
ade android and apple car play
6 airbag
maybe AEB
best
i bayar booking rm500
lime light and bambee color
dua bijik beli park porch memang menggoda
Finally Kia, this is what I’ve been waiting for! Can use my new Kia Picanto to go back to my hometown hehehe.
Design Kia picanto ni memang lawa! Teringin jugak nak tahu siapa yang design. Kia Picanto ni ada berapa warna eh? Sebab sebelum ni tengok teaser macam ada warna kuning je. Comel!
Dah ini dia yang aku tunggu2 selama ni,kia picanto 2018,tak sabaq nak balik bawa tunjuk kat orang kampong kereta baru woiiii
Is that this all new picanto qualify as EEV? HOPEFULLY is yes bcoz the price will lower than previous generation. Pls bring in the 1.0T engine but with competitive price to compete with our nation champion MYVI 2018. Below 60k for highest spec is better. TQ naza kia Malaysia…
Sikit sikit je hint dia bagi eh. Tolong la jangan siksa jiwa raga aku camni. Give us the full details!
Peh, sebagai iFag. Memang aku sangat berminat dengan kereta ade Carplay. Boleh connect guna iphone je. Waaaaa. Myvi takde. Cuma connect android tu pun wired.