Kia Picanto (2020 - ) review

The various incentives to go electric or hybrid mean small, simple cars like the Picanto aren’t as cheap to run as they traditionally have been, though they are usefully more affordable to buy and a vital first rung on the ladder for young drivers in particular. For this audience the lower insurance groups will be more important than savings in VED/road tax, small cars also cheaper to maintain and fuel than their bigger and heavier equivalents, our test car easily getting 55mpg in mixed use. With monthly PCPs of around the £200 mark the Picanto is competitively priced against rivals like the i10 and Up!, while being usefully cheaper than fresher alternatives like the Toyota Aygo X.

Kia has an excellent record for reliability and, historically, older Picanto models perform strongly in popular league tables. We’d see no reason that would be different for this version, either, and if anything does go wrong you’ve got the reassurance of that signature seven-year warranty to fall back on.

There’s no escaping the sense of vulnerability you get in a car as small as the Picanto when all around you seem to be driving big SUVs, and it’s true you have less protection should the worst happen, even with seven airbags as standard. Thankfully Kia has uprated the systems to hopefully stop that happening in the first place, including flashing the hazard lights under hard braking to warn drivers behind you, sophisticated traction control and (now standard) emergency braking that kicks in if you fail to slow for a hazard. Not that you should need it in a car this small but a reversing camera is standard in all cars with the touch-screen system while the top trim gets cruise control with an adjustable speed limiter function you’ll appreciate if you intend to rack up motorway miles.

The Picanto is a narrow car so, although there’s plenty of space up front, don’t be surprised if you’re rubbing shoulders with your passenger. Nor does Kia pretend the rear bench is going to fit three people across it, the Picanto officially a four-seater with no central seatbelt in the back. In classic small car style ride quality is on the firm side, which gets a bit bouncy around town but helps the feeling of nippiness and agility you’ll appreciate when pinning it through gaps others would hold back for. Which is all part of the fun of a car like this. Credit due, with the more powerful 1.0 T-GDi engine we tested refinement on the motorway isn’t half bad and you can actually rack up big miles in relative comfort. The only things spoiling the fun are a big central armrest that gets in your way every time you reach for the handbrake (a particular pain in city traffic) and a start/stop system so unrefined it rocks the car on its springs every time it fires the engine back up. You can at least turn this off.

Although there are five trim levels to choose from the two entry-level ones are so basic we’d probably skip straight to the ‘3’ for its addition of a central touch-screen through which you can run your phone apps via CarPlay or Android Auto for all your infotainment and navigational needs. For a small bump in price GT-Line meanwhile adds bigger wheels and sportier looking bumpers, along with faux leather upholstery for a trendier look. Only available with the more powerful engine, the GT-Line S meanwhile packs in big-car tech like Kia’s factory navigation, a wireless phone charger, heated seats and more. All of which feels borderline luxurious for a city car of this nature.

The Picanto’s engine range has been simplified into two versions of the same 1.0-litre petrol, the standard 66 horsepower version available across the range while the 100 horsepower turbocharged one is reserved for the top trim only. A five-speed gearbox looks a bit old-school these days but works well with both, there being an automated version if you want it. We’ve driven it in the related Hyundai i10 and found it somewhat slow-witted, though city drivers may yet prefer it. The standard engine is enough to be getting on with and cheaper to insure but, if you can stretch to it, the T-GDi turbo is an absolute scream, with a boosty power delivery that feels like it has double the power it claims. The little bursts of speed it can unleash are just the job for nipping into gaps in town but mean it can cruise in relative comfort on the motorway as well. Forget buying a sports car in search of your long-lost youth – if you really want to feel 17 again this little Picanto will take you back to those heady days when you first got your licence and put a bigger smile on your face than many flasher, more powerful cars.