Kia Carens will go on sale in the coming weeks and it uses a 1.4-litre turbo petrol and a 1.5-litre diesel engine
Kia India will offer the Carens three-row UV as its fourth product for the domestic market following the Seltos, Sonet and Carnival in January or February 2022. The Carens made its global debut a few weeks ago and it will be exclusively manufactured at Kia’s production facility in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh for use locally and for the international markets.
The Carens will be sold in six- and seven-seater configurations and it has now been spotted on public roads. It will rival the likes of Maruti Suzuki XL6, Mahindra Marazzo, Hyundai Alcazar and Toyota Innova Crysta along with other midsize three-row models and is expected to be priced between Rs. 14 lakh and Rs. 20 lakh (ex-showroom).
It is the first model in India based on the Opposites United design philosophy followed by Kia globally and it has notable differences compared to its Seltos sibling. The Carens comes with sharp LED projector headlamps, sporty LED DRLs, wide central air inlet, slanting bonnet, chromed door handles, horizontal chrome strip at the front, and Kia’s latest corporate badge.
The exterior also boasts 16-inch alloy wheels, wraparound LED taillamps with a thin light strip in the middle, turn signals integrated on ORVMs, chromed window line, upright tailgate, side body cladding, prominent roof rails, a large greenhouse enabling a spacious interior, etc. As for the performance, a 1.4-litre turbo petrol and a 1.5-litre turbo diesel are utilised.
The former develops a maximum power output of 140 PS and 242 Nm of peak torque and is paired with a six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed DCT as an option. The latter delivers 115 PS and 250 Nm and is hooked with a six-speed manual transmission as standard or a six-speed torque converter automatic unit.
The features list comes with Eco, Normal and Sport drive modes, an eight-speaker Bose audio system, a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system with the latest UVO Connect, digital instrument console, sunroof, 64-colour ambient lighting, dual-tone seats, ventilated front seats, standard six airbags, EPB, ESC, DBC, VSM, disc brakes on all four wheels and so on.