Kia Picanto: All you need to know about the cute little hatch

Kia certainly knows how to design a car to attract youngsters. A clear example of this is the Picanto. It’s a cute little hatch that has been targeted at the youth of the country. And considering the growing percentage of youngsters in the Philippines’ total population, it’s quite important for car companies to have products like Picanto to stay parallel to changing times, trends, and intense competition.

The Kia Picanto isn’t just charming us Filipinos but it is also spreading its magic in other international markets. The Kia Picanto price starts at Php 635,000 and the hatch is available in the Philippines in three variants - 1.0 SL MT, 1.2 SL AT, and 1.2 GT Line AT.

Since it’s a youth-oriented product, it gets a total of eleven colour options - Orange, Blue, Titanium Silver, Aurora Black, Clear White, Shiny Red, Light Yellow, Alice Blue, Honey Bee, Milky Beige and Sparkling Silver. There are many reasons why we love the Picanto. In this story, we will share them with you so that you will also get to know everything about this cute little hatch.

Exterior

We don’t really need to elaborate on the design and styling of the Kia Picanto because it is most likely that you will fall in love with it in a glance. However, there are certain features that you should be aware of. The gorgeous bi-functional projector headlamps are a part of the GT model and so are the integrated LED daytime running lights. Even the tail lights are full LED on this variant. We also love the alloy wheels. They are super attractive and emanate a mix of both classy and sporty look. So, it is quite obvious that if you want more style and attractive youthful looks, then you have to go with Picanto GT.

Interior

You might find the Picanto cute from the outside but on the inside, it feels quite sporty. This is mainly because it has an all-black interior theme including the three-spoke steering wheel which comes wrapped in leather on the GT Line.

Another great touch by Kia is the alloy pedals in the GT model. They look & feel premium and sporty. All this makes you drive the car more enthusiastically.

Even though the Picanto is a hatchback and measures 3,595 mm x 1,595 mm x 1,495 mm in terms of length, width, and height, the cabin space is pretty impressive. Kia has also provided a large 7-inch touch screen infotainment system that supports Bluetooth, Apple Carplay, and Android Auto. There is a USB port and an AUX port located down in the centre console.

Engine options

Under the “Engine” heading on the Kia Picanto specs sheet, two options are listed. There is a 1.0-litre 3-cylinder Kappa engine which produces 67 PS at 5,500 rpm and 95 Nm of torque. If you are a “stick person”, then this is the only option that you can have. On the other hand, if you want to have an automatic transmission, then you can have the other 1.2-litre 4-cylinder engine which churns out 84 hp at 6,000 rpm and 121 Nm of peak torque at 4,000 rpm. It is slightly powerful and should be a better option.

Safety features

Since manufacturers have to make sure that cars like the Kia Picanto are priced very aggressively otherwise they would be lagging behind the competition, they tend to ditch a few features here and there. This is one of the reasons why we usually don’t see high-end or advanced safety features on hatchbacks.

The Picanto gets very basic safety features which we think you wouldn’t even like to know about. Dual front SRS airbags and ABS are the two worth mentioning, and they, too, are available only on the GT Line model.

So, there you go, guys, these were some of the important points about the Picanto that were worth mentioning and you should keep in mind if you are looking to buy it. Not everything is perfect and the Picanto is no exception. It has its own ups and downs but that’s life, right? Focus on the ups and you’d find it very beautiful, both life and Picanto.

Also Read:- Kia Picanto - Manual or Automatic