Quick overview
- Lots of fun to drive
- Compact size
- Roomy cabin
- No hybrid or EV option
- Small boot
- Rear seats don’t fold flat
The Kia Picanto is one of a shrinking number of city cars in the traditional mould of small hatchbacks. Some of this is down to move towards electric cars and several of the Kia’s rivals now use battery power, such as the Fiat 500 or Renault Zoe. Another factor is city cars have been replaced in many buyers’ affections by small SUVs, with the likes of the Ford EcoSport and Nissan Juke appealing to those who want something small that also has a hint of a raised driving position.
Understandable as all of this is given current trends, there is still a huge amount in favour of the Kia Picanto. Prime among the reasons to consider this city car are the affordable prices across the model’s spectrum. Compare them with most others and you’ll struggle to find better value, especially when the Picanto comes with Kia’s superb seven-year warranty cover.
If you’re looking for other reasons to put the Picanto on the to-consider pile, think about the way it drives. Town cars should be agile, nimble, easy to park, and also a bit of fun to drive. The Kia Picanto is all of these things and its cabin is roomy, looks good, and is well made. That counts for a lot when you could be spending a lot of time looking at it when trickling through heavy traffic. You also get a decent amount of tech to pair with your phone, so the Picanto doesn’t offer affordability at the expense of connectivity.
Sure, there are downsides to a city car, though the Kia does its best to minimise these. For starters, there are two engine options, and the less powerful motor is also offered with an automatic gearbox to be an even better city slicker. Which means the Kia Picanto still adds up to a very good city car and one we’re very fond of.
Infotainment, comfort and practicality
Kia has pulled of something of a magic trick by conjuring up so much cabin space in the Picanto despite the car’s compact exterior dimensions. What this means for the driver is a very roomy environment in which to spend any journey, short or long. All but the basic 1 trim has height adjustment for the driver’s seat and this chair moves back more than far enough so that even tall drivers will be happy. The only demerit is the steering doesn’t move for depth, but it can be altered for height and most people will still be more than satisfied with the Picanto’s seating arrangement.
Only the S versions of the X-Line and GT-Line have heated front seats, and you need to choose a Shadow or higher trim to get the centre armrest between the front seats that doubles as a storage cubby. Other space for odds and ends comes from the door bins, a tray in front of the gear lever, and the small glovebox.
In the 1 and 2 trims of the Picanto, you make do with a 3.8-inch monochrome display for the stereo. Take any of the higher trim models, though, and you get an 8.0-inch colour touchscreen for the infotainment, and this is further upgraded with integrated sat-nav in the 3, X-Line S and GT-Line S. Every Picanto with this infotainment screen also has a reversing camera, which seems an extravagance in a city car, but it also means you can slot the car into the tightest of spaces with casual ease. Coupled with the rear parking sensors fitted to the 3 trim and above, and the Picanto is parking boss. Also included with the infotainment screen is Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, so you can access apps from your phone, and both can be worked with voice controls.
The main dash display for the Kia Picanto uses two round dials and the 1 trim makes do with a small 2.6-inch monochrome display in between for basic driving data. In the other Picanto models, you get a larger 4.2-inch display that’s easier to read and can show a greater variety of useful information on economy, fuel, and radio settings.
Moving into the rear of the Kia Picanto’s cabin, it’s just as generous with space as the front. As the Kia only comes as a five-door, access is good and most adults will find enough room to be comfortable. Anyone over six-feet might struggle on longer trips, but kids will be perfectly happy and the view out is good thanks to the reasonably large rear door windows. A trio of three-point belts keeps rear occupants securely in place, and there are Isofix child seat mounts integrated into the bases of the two outer rear seats in all models.
The only disappointment in the rear of the Kia is there’s not much storage as the doors have no bins. That leaves the boot as your only option for stashing most items and it’s the one area where the Kia Picanto falls a little short on how much space it offers. At 255-litres, it’s one of the small city car load bays, and there’s a bit of a drop from sill to boot floor that makes lugging heavier items in and out more laborious than it might be if the floor sat flush with the entrance. However, the rear seat tumbles 60-40 to free up more room, though there is a big step Ieft in the floor where the seat hinges that makes it tricky to fit in longer items as easily as in some others.
2017 Kia Picanto engines: how does it drive?
In keeping with the straightforward nature of the Picanto, Kia offers two engines in this city car. The first is a 66hp 1.0-litre three-cylinder motor that does without a turbocharger. If that sounds like it will be slow and underwhelming, think again, as the Picanto’s engine is chirpy performer that is more than happy to rev hard to get you up to speed and settles down once you’re there. It comes with a five-speed manual or automatic gearbox, though the 1 and Shadow trims are only offered with the manual ’box.
Off the mark, the 66hp 1.0-litre Picanto needs 14.1 seconds to go from a standstill to 60mph. While not quick, the Kia is perfectly peppy up to city speeds, so you won’t be left straggling at the back of queues at the traffic lights. The auto ’box takes the edge off of acceleration, needing a further 2.5 seconds to deal with 0-60mph. Even so, it’s smooth and lends the Picanto a laid-back nature around town that lends itself to arriving without any stress. This is also true of the more powerful 99hp 1.0-litre turbo petrol that’s only offered with the GT-Line models of the Picanto. It comes with a five-speed manual gearbox as the only choice, and it feels almost sporty thanks to 0-60mph in 9.9 seconds and plenty of zip through the gears.
As you’d expect, parking the Picanto is very easy thanks to its size, good all-round vision for the driver, and parking aids fitted to most models. It also gives an excellent account of itself over urban niggles and potholes thanks to composed ride. On faster roads, the Kia remains just as happy to isolate its occupants from bumps and ripples, making it one of the most refined city cars you’ll find.
Head on to more arcing country lanes and the Picanto does lean a little in corners when the driver presses on, but it maintains grip and poise, and the steering has decent feel. The Picanto also does a good job of keeping wind, road and engine noise to acceptable levels given it’s a city car. There are some superminis that could learn a thing or two about refinement from this city car.
Value for money: how much does a 2017 Kia Picanto cost to buy and run?
The Kia Picanto range starts off with the very keenly priced 1 trim from £12,250, which is only offered with a five-speed manual gearbox. Next is, logically enough, the 2 trim that starts at £13,750 for the manual or for £700 more you can have the automatic gearbox. This price premium for the auto is the same with all the other trim levels where it’s offered. A Picanto Shadow asks £14,650, while the 3 starts from £15,250 and an X-Line goes from £14,900. To upgrade to X-Line S comes with a list price from £16,300, while the GT-Line begins at £14,900. The GT-Line is the only model offered with both engine options and upgrading to the 99hp 1.0-litre turbo petrol motor adds £1000 to the price. For the GT-Line S that only comes with the more potent engine, you’ll pay from £17,050. If you do a bit of digging, there are savings of between £500 and £1000 on brand new Picantos depending on which trim level you choose. Go for a nearly new Picanto and prices start at £10,500 for cars with little more than delivery mileage to their names. A two-year old Picanto with average mileage will cost from £10,000.
Trim levels for the Picanto kick off with the 1, which has 14-inch steel wheels, remote central locking, plain black cloth upholstery, and electric front windows. It has a 3.8-inch display for the stereo and makes do with two speakers. Safety is accounted for with six airbags, but automatic emergency braking is an option for this model whereas it’s standard on the rest of the range. Choose a Picanto 2 and you get alloy wheels and heated door mirrors on the outside. Inside, there’s driver’s seat height adjustment, air conditioning, electric rear windows, and leather covering the steering wheel and gear knob. The 2 also gains a couple of extra stereo speakers, and the larger 4.2-inch main dash information display. Next is the Shadow trim that has 15-inch alloys, rear privacy glass, and front foglights. It comes with man-made leather upholstery, storage cubby between the front seats, six speakers and the larger 8.0-inch infotainment touchscreen. On top of that, you get a reversing camera, too.
With the 3 trim for the Picanto, Kia provides electrically folding door mirrors, rear parking sensors, automatic air conditioning, cruise control with speed limiter, and sat-nav. The X-Line comes with 16-inch alloy wheels, and a flat-bottomed steering wheel. The S version adds body-coloured door mirror caps and chrome door handles, keyless ignition, and heated front seats and steering wheel. The GT-Line has some silver accents for the exterior, as well as red stitching for its faux leather upholstery, and the S version has the same upgrades as the X-Line S.
Insuring a Kia Picanto can be as cheap as it gets as the range goes from group 1 and then extends to group 11 for the most expensive model. Other running costs are similarly affordable as the 66hp 1.0-litre manual engine emits 110g/km of carbon dioxide to attract a first-year road tax rate of £170. It also returns a combined economy of 58.9mpg. With the automatic gearbox, this engine gives 54.3mpg and 118g/km of CO2, so has a £190 first-year road tax payment. That’s the same for the 99hp 1.0-litre engine with its 119g/km, and it delivers average economy of 53.3mpg.
Verdict: Should I buy a 2017 Kia Picanto?
The Kia Picanto is a brilliant city car and one that deserves your attention if you’re in the market for such a car. It’s zippy performance around town, controlled ride and comfort, and the generous amount of space in the cabin for people make it hard to ignore. There are also low running costs to consider, which makes it easy on the budget.
There are some areas to think about with the Picanto, such as its small boot. You also need to skip the lower couple of trim levels if you want to enjoy a better level of equipment and infotainment, as well as some vital safety kit. However, overall, the Picanto is a great city car that does its job well beyond the original brief.
What could I buy instead of a 2017 Kia Picanto?
Fiat 500
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The Fiat 500 might be getting on a bit under the skin, but the exterior looks are as fresh now as they were when the car first arrived back in 2008. It’s also worth remembering the 500 has been updated over the years beneath than stylish exterior, so it now comes with mild hybrid assistance for the sole 1.0-litre petrol engine. It’s not the quickest or most refined, but few seem to mind this as the Fiat is nimble about town and looks great. That’s the 500’s key selling point, but you can have it in a number of different trim levels, which gives you the option of making the 500 quite opulent inside. It’s cheap to run a 500, but it’s not great to drive on faster roads, so stick to urban routes in this city car.
Hyundai i10
If you want to be all sensible about choosing a city car, the Hyundai i10 is about common sense as it gets. Yet, the i10 is also a striking car to look at and good to drive thanks to its peppy engine and slick manual gearbox. It also handles well and is much more refined on long trips than many in its class. Throw in a good spread of standard kit and the Hyundai is a very strong contender for any townie’s business. The only small disappointment is prices for the i10 have crept up over the past few years.
Toyota Aygo X
The Toyota Aygo X affects the looks of an SUV, but underneath this is a city car through and through. It’s very well made and comes with a cabin that has just the right amount of style and substance. It’s good to drive and the engine is a keen performer. A tight turning circle makes the Aygo X tough to out-manoeuvre around town. However, rear seats space is not the most generous even by city car standards, so it’s better viewed as space for kids back here than adults.
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