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By
EWAN KENNEDY
28 May 2007
The latest Kia Carnival, the VQ series, comes with the choice
between standard and long wheelbases. The latter has been out for about
18 months now, but the standard is a relative newcomer so is the subject
of this week’s road test.
Carnival has European-inspired styling inside.
Though it doesn’t really break any new ground, the shape works
nicely and potential buyers should no longer feel there's some
sort of stigma in owning a people mover. Indeed, this is the sort
of vehicle that should be replacing huge 4WDs in Australia, as the
latter are chiefly being bought as people movers, not 4WDs at all.
A Carnival, or one of its competitors, provides better interior
space, uses significantly less fuel, and is cheaper to buy and
run.
There's seating for eight within the Kia Carnival,
set out in a two-three-three layout, individual bucket seats are
used in the forward five positions. The rearmost seat is set out
as though it were two individual seats and is comfortable when
used that way. A centre-rear passenger straddles the two
individual seats and doesn’t get a lot of comfort. Regard it as
an emergency seat and it makes more sense.
The occupant of that rearmost centre seat only
gets a lap-sash safety belt, as does the person in the middle-centre
seat.
There are separate air conditioning outlets for
each of the rows of seats and the centre-row passengers have some
control over temperature and air flow.
Drink holders are there in almost overwhelming
numbers. We counted 12 in all, so junior travellers will have
trouble finding something to argue about when it comes to storing
their sustaining fluids. Then again, they can always find
something to disagree with one another, can’t they…
There's far less luggage room in the
standard-wheelbase Carnival than in the long-wheelbase Grand
Carnival. A large suitcase may not fit if you need good legroom in
the seats so slide them well rearwards, but a couple of medium
sized units can probably be housed.
The three individual seats in the centre row
double-fold forwards to further increase load space. Because the
rearmost row of seats has a central split, folding down one side
means you lose the use of two seats, not just one. All the seats
behind the driving compartment can slide back and forward and can
be removed completely without too much of a hassle. The rearmost
seat doesn’t fold flat into the floor the way it does in the
Grand Carnival.
In its favour, the standard Carnival is easier to
park that its Grand brother. The latter needs plenty of space and
it may be worth getting out your measuring tape to make sure it
fits in the garage if you feel the need for extra luggage room.
You wouldn’t call this people mover a driver’s
machine, but it handles in a satisfactory manner with reasonable
feel through the steering and decent stability in corners. The
speedometer is large and easy to read and the driving position is
comfortable. This standard Kia Carnival is simple enough to drive
and park with good visibility in all directions.
Ride comfort is good and the work done on
suppressing NVH (Noise, Vibration and Harshness) is impressive.
There are plenty of late model passenger sedans that aren't as
quiet as this moderately-priced people mover when cruising at 100
to 110 km/h on good road surfaces. There's added noise intrusion
on rougher surfaces and some bumps are sometimes transmitted
fairly harshly into the interior. You wouldn’t say this is only
a good-road cruiser, but long trips in the Aussie bush aren't it’s
forte.
Our test car was an automatic and the position of
the gear selector in the lower part of the dash area works
surprisingly well. This layout, combined with a drop down tray
between the front seats, gives you the chance to squeeze from the
front area into the centre row of seats to settle down a toddler,
discuss matters with unruly kids, or the like.
You wouldn’t call it a rocket, but the 2.7-litre
V6 engine has decent torque and provides enough get-up-and-go to
suit the typical buyer. We didn’t get a chance to load it to the
max with kids and luggage, but feel that it will struggle at times
on long hills.
Pricing starts at a low $32,990 for the Kia
Carnival with a 2.7-litre V6 engine and five-speed manual gearbox.
Most owners will opt for the Carnival with four-speed automatic
transmission at $34,990. Paying another $1500 buys you the added
safety of side and curtain airbags, as well as automatic
windscreen wipers.
The Kia Grand Carnival uses a big 3.8-litre V6
engine as well as a five-speed automatic and comes in at $37,990
plus on-road costs. You do get a lot more for your money in the
Grand, not only increased luggage space, but also plenty of
performance from that larger V6. But see our comments on possible
parking problems.
Kia quality is improving in leaps and bounds and
the finish of this latest Carnival is most impressive. In
particular, the body and paint finish are almost as good as that
of Japanese vehicles in this class, and arguably better than many
Europeans. Yet the price of cars from South Korea remains low
despite this upward movement in quality.
Carnival is certainly a vehicle that should be
somewhere on your shopping list if you want a quiet, spacious
people mover at a modest price.
AT A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
Carnival EX 2.7-litre five-door people mover - $32,990
Grand Carnival 3.8-litre five-door people mover - $37,990
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard in both models
Air Conditioning: Standard in both models
Automatic Transmission: $2000 option in both models
CD Player: Standard in both models
Central Locking: Standard in both models
Cruise Control: Standard in both models
Driver Airbag: Standard in both models
Passenger Airbag: Standard in both models
Front Side Airbags: Standard in Grand Carnival, not offered in EX
SPECIFICATIONS (Kia Carnival EX 2.7-litre
five-door people mover)
ENGINE:
Capacity: 2.656 litres
Configuration: V6
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 10.0:1
Bore/Stroke: 86.7 x 75.0mm
Maximum Power: 136kW @ 6000rpm
Maximum Torque: 246Nm @ 4000rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Front
Manual Transmission: Five-speed
Automatic Transmission: Four-speed
Final Drive Ratio: NA
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4810mm
Wheelbase: 2890mm
Width: 1985mm
Height: 1760mm
Turning Circle: 11.6 metres
Kerb Mass: 2027kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 80 litres
Towing Ability: 650kg (2000kg with braked trailer)
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Multi-link coil springs, anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: 11.9 secs
Standing 400 Metres: 18.7 secs
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Fuel Type: Petrol 95RON
Fuel Consumption - Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 11.0 L/100km
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Five years / 130,000km
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Marque Publishing Company
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