The facelift model of the Kia Picanto hatchback which is set to make an official debut this month is out in full flesh as its photos have been leaked online
Kia’s most affordable offering globally, the Picanto hatchback will soon get a facelift model, most probably by the end of this month i.e. June 2023. Ahead of its global debut, the photos of the updated model have been leaked online, thus revealing all the design details of the upcoming hatchback. The Picanto also goes by the Morning in some international markets and the 3rd generation model which is currently on sale internationally will get its second facelift update.
Taking a close look at its design and you will quickly realise that the hatchback looks quite modern as compared to the current model. This comes down to the fact that Kia decided to give a heavy update to the current model, instead of introducing a new generation model. Upfront, the hatchback sports a set of vertically stacked LED headlamps accompanied by a prominent Tiger Nose front grille finished in chrome.
Along with this, the hatchback gets a completely new bumper with a hefty lower grille and vertical air inlets on both ends. Towards the sides, the overall silhouette remains the same, minus a new set of alloy wheels. The rear profile gets new LED tail lamps with a connected light bar coupled with a sporty rear diffuser finished in gloss black, which is a part of the GT-Line package. To sum up, the overall design draws a lot of inspiration from the brand’s upcoming electric SUV, EV9.
Inside the cabin, the dashboard layout will see minor tweaks along with a new 4.2-inch driver’s display, however, the 8.0-inch infotainment system remains exactly the same but gets a new interface. Talking about features, the upcoming Picanto Facelift will get ventilated front seats, heated steering wheel, wireless charging and more.
However, the Australian spec model will likely miss out on all these features, something similar we have seen in the current model. Apart from this, the Australian Picanto gets two advanced safety features, namely, autonomous emergency braking and forward collision warning.
Under the hood, the Picanto will continue to be powered by the familiar 1.2-litre NA petrol engine putting out 83 bhp and 122 Nm of peak torque, while the 1.0-litre turbo petrol unit is good enough for 100 bhp and 172 Nm of peak torque. As of now, Kia doesn’t have any plans to bring the Picanto hatchback to the Indian market and the company is primarily focusing on the fast-growing SUV segment.