Kia KY (Carens) To Be Offered In Six- And Seven-Seater Layouts

Kia KY MPV Spotted

Kia KY (Carens) will likely be powered by the familiar 1.5-litre petrol and the 1.5-litre diesel engines with manual and automatic transmission options

Kia India is gearing up to launch an all-new vehicle in the early parts of next year and it appears to be in its final stages of testing – judging by the test prototypes. The forthcoming three-row UV will likely be positioned between the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga and the Toyota Innova Crysta in the space where the Mahindra Marazzo competes in.

However, the Kia KY could be offered in an expansive range with two powertrain and multiple gearbox choices. To address a wide band of customers, the Kia KY is expected to be offered in six- and seven-seater configurations. The KY could carry the production name Carens and it could spawn a Hyundai sibling in the global markets known as the Stargazer.

Whether it would enter India or not is yet unknown, but the Kia Carens is set to make a strong impact as the family-based midsize space is getting plenty of attention amongst buyers. Compared to the Seltos, the Carens has a different dashboard layout as it looks much bigger in the spy pictures courtesy of a typical design seen in people haulers.

kia carens interior spied

However, it will have plenty in common with the highly popular Kia Seltos in terms of features being offered as the 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, Kia’s latest UVO Connect, an all-digital instrument console, steering wheel with mounted controls, a large sunroof, wireless charging facility, etc are expected to be available.

The mid-spec variants will more likely offer an eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system. The fully digital gauge cluster reminds us of the unit in the Hyundai i20 premium hatchback in some ways while the steering wheel is lifted from the Seltos. On the inside, the AC vents are placed below the touchscreen and they could be operated via buttons with automatic climate control to be sold in the top-spec trims.

As for the performance, the familiar 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol producing 115 PS maximum power and 144 Nm of peak torque and the 1.5-litre four-cylinder diesel kicking out 115 PS and 250 Nm are expected to be utilised with manual and automatic transmission choices.