We’ve all been waiting for the Kia Carnival, haven’t we? The previous iteration of the MPV firmly established Kia’s presence in the segment, with luxury focussed features and no dearth of space, comfort, or even style. The body style might be a bit unconventional, especially for India, but the Carnival proved that if the product is right, the evolving market can definitely make some space for it. With the new Carnival, which is introduced following a preview at the 2023 Auto Expo, Kia plans to widen its customer base. It looks smashing and modern with a lot of presence, but does it justify the higher price tag? We try to find that out in our first-drive review of the new Kia Carnival.
Design
Let’s begin with the looks. Kia’s trademark ‘Tiger-Nose’ grille is the centre of attention on the new Carnival. It’s flanked by vertical LED headlamps, or ‘Ice Cube’ as Kia likes to refer to those. The front is imposing, to say the least, and Kia has definitely made the new MPV as exciting as an MPV could look. I would go as far as saying that it looks almost like an SUV. The side furthers that SUV-esque appearance, although with a distinct MPV profile; and those 18-inch wheels give the new Carnival a premium look. Not too dissimilar to many modern cars, the rear gets a light bar. The overall stance is undoubtedly assertive, but it reeks of sophistication, too — which should sound perfect for its target buyer. There are two colours on offer — white and black — and the latter which we drove seems quite a fitting choice for it.
The real game-changer with the Carnival obviously has to be its interior. It’s not like the previous version of the MPV didn’t fare strongly but it wasn’t quite as modern inside. The new one changes everything. A dual-screen setup (with each display measuring 12.5 inches) occupies a fair bit of the dashboard. A 12-speaker Bose speaker system ensures everyone in the cabin listens to your favourite tunes, furthering which is the Personal Announcement System. This allows the driver to transmit messages to the farthest of passengers through the speaker. The seats offer a wide variety of adjustments, but the middle-row seats deserve all the attention. Space isn’t a problem regardless of where you sit in the Carnival but if you’re fortunate enough to enjoy the captain seats, you’ll be able to appreciate the reclining lounge mode. This basically allows the seat to be reclined and a nifty footrest to be extended, to make the longest of the journeys comfortable.
Getting into the rear of the cabin is through the sliding doors and they’re a definite USP for this car. The electrically sliding mechanism can be activated through a variety of buttons, and the system also has an anti-pinch feature, which means it would automatically retract if an obstacle is detected. There’s a decent space for luggage, too, even with all the seats in place. The seven-seat version that we tried could easily hold a weekend’s worth of bags for all its passengers. The build quality seems to have improved massively. Not just in terms of feel, the fit is also worth appreciating. We drove on a distinctly bumpy stretch, and it was all calm and composed inside.
Rideability
Now this would automatically make many think that the new Carnival is difficult to drive, owing to its size, but that’s not true. Its light steering makes manoeuvring the MPV surprisingly easy, while the 2.2-litre diesel engine, which produces 190 bhp and 44.96 kg-m, makes handling all sorts of everyday situations possible. Its linear power delivery shines on long drives, and the engine doesn’t feel stressed doing continued highway runs. A 72-litre fuel tank might be unheard of in smaller cars and SUVs, but the Carnival is no small car. With an average of close to 15 km/l, you’re looking at about 1,000 km of range on a full tank of diesel. The suspension tackles bumps with ease and keeps it smooth and steady, although the combination of a long wheelbase and tall speed breakers isn’t the most enjoyable, since there’s an increased possibility of scraping the Carnival’s underside if you aren’t cautious.
A 360-degree camera is extremely useful when parking in tight spaces or just about finding your way out of bylanes that you shouldn’t have tried to negotiate in a large MPV. The new Carnival also comes with ADAS, adding to its safety quotient. It’s a definite jump from the previous iteration, and that’s evident from the overall quality inside the cabin. Its road presence is still unmatched whereas the better cabin is complemented by its more likeable styling. In comparison to cars like the Toyota Innova Hycross, the Carnival is a big step up in many ways (if not all) while when pitted against cars like the Vellfire, it presents unmatched value, especially given how improved the Carnival is over the previous car.
Kia mentions that they’ve managed to attract 2,400 bookings for the new model, which is a great sign, considering Kia managed to sell that many examples of the previous version of the Carnival. This is a clear achievement, and despite now being priced at ₹63.90 lakh, ex-showroom, the MPV looks all set to cement its position in the segment.