Kia QYI will share underpinnings with the Hyundai Venue and is expected to be showcased at the 2020 Auto Expo in near-production form
Kia Motor India Limited made a lasting impression with its debut vehicle Seltos, which went on sale in August 2019 and quickly became the most sold SUV in the country in less than three months’ time. The Seltos has certainly upped the anticipation for Kia’s next product and it will more likely be the Grand Carnival.
Expected to be showcased at the 2020 Auto Expo in February, the Grand Carnival will compete against Toyota Innova Crysta in the premium MPV space. However, it might not cater to high volumes as much as the forthcoming compact SUV. Codenamed QYI, Kia has been working on a sub-four-metre SUV based on the Hyundai Venue.
It is in a similar fashion to the second-generation Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos’ connection presumably. A set of images of the alleged test prototype does put a lot of sense into that speculation. Spotted in South Korea, it gives a glimpse of what we can expect from the five-seater SUV that could be displayed in its near-production form at the biennial Auto Expo.
The test mule indicates the presence of the signature Tiger Nose grille in the upright front portion along with regular headlamp setup instead of a dual split unit as in the Venue. The fog lamps are grafted onto the front bumper on its lower section and the rear end comprises of a raked windscreen and wraparound horizontal tail lamps that do not seem to be production-ready yet.
The images do point the finger at the compact SUV being in its final stages of testing with distinctive window line and 16-inch wheels and the overall profile is rather bulbous than the square stance of the Venue. It will more likely be powered by the same engines as the Venue with the top-end variants getting a 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo GDI engine producing 120 PS.
We do expect the interior to have a lot of differences compared to the Venue especially in terms of features. Some of the key equipment on board should include a large touchscreen infotainment system with Kia’s UVO Connect, automatic climate control, panoramic sunroof, wireless charging and so on.