Overall, we loved the car, and all the cons we found can easily be ignored because of the price it is being offered at right now.
BHPian Rambo-RS recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
Went to Yashodha Kia, Patiala yesterday evening for a test drive of Kia Carens. They had Diesel Manual TD vehicle available. Although I have booked the 1.5 Petrol variant, went ahead with the test drive of diesel itself, to check out how it rides, handles, and the NVH levels.
The car is going to be used 80% of the time by my mom on her daily commute of 50Kms on a smooth state highway with mild traffic and an average speed of about 75 Kmph. I and Dad were already sold on this car, but it was Mom who had to give a final go-ahead. This test drive was to check if she was comfortable driving a big vehicle daily.
The Dealership experience of Kia is by far the best we have experienced out of all that we have gone to during our new car hunt. Their staff although quite busy (even more so after the Carens’ price reveal), is polite, knowledgeable, and well versed with their product’s features. Special shout out to Mr. Danish (our sales executive) here.
(I am sharing this after visiting them multiple times as we had also booked Sonet before the Carens here).
Let me share my 2 cents on Carens with you all. This short review contains the combined opinions of three of us (parents and me), thus I will be using “we” here. There are occasional comparisons with Sonet because we had booked it earlier and Alto K10, which is our current ride.
What we Liked:
1. Car(ens) looks very elegant, proportionate, and BIG.
2. Interiors are very premium looking, good to touch (although not soft-touch, which is justified for the price it is being offered at) and overall there is a pleasant ambiance here.
3. The infotainment system is lag-free and looks very well integrated into the dash.
4. The amount of safety equipment offered as standard is truly commendable. We loved that it has 6 Airbags, 4 Disc brakes, Tyre Pressure Monitor, Hill-start assist apart from a host of other safety features it offers.
5. Ground clearance is rated at 195mm which is great! Although we didn’t had big speed breakers to try, it will not be an issue (In comparison: XL6/Ertiga offers 180mm, Innova-178, Alcazar/Marrazo-200).
6. The headroom and legroom is humongous! 3rd row is very usable in our case because all of us have a short height. The best part is that even in the second and the third row, 2 type-c ports are offered each (so no fighting for chargers, even when the extended family goes on vacations).
7. After adjusting the driving seat (6 way, manual) and the steering (tilt and telescopic), we got a great commanding view of the road. This was especially missing in the Sonet, Seltos, and likes. You sit quite high off the ground which adds to that big car feel in a good way.
8. Getting in and out of the car is easy. Unlike Innova, where one has to climb up. Mom especially finds it difficult to climb onto the Innova, but she was very comfortable entering the Carens.
9. The glass area is exactly what it should have been, even in the third row.
10. Once on the move, the car(ens) doesn’t feel big to drive. It almost feels like driving a Sonet. The car didn’t feel cumbersome like it did when we drove an Innova earlier. The steering is extremely light, far lighter than the Alto K10 which too has a power steering but is nowhere close to how light Carens has. I expect the petrol one to be even lighter because of the low load on the front end. This is both a good as well as a bad thing.
Good – Because mom although loves driving is not an enthusiastic driver but more of a cruiser and thus it is easy to handle and less tiring.
(Bad – highlighted in Point 5 in the cons section)
So mom found driving this car to be very easy even though it’s a big jump from a tiny K10.
11. Ride quality is very good and comfortable. It is on a slightly stiffer side, this is especially felt when you go through extremely bad potholes, but not bone-jarring (like Sonet). The rough patches on the highway were not noticeable. On a smooth stretch, the car felt very planted at speed of 100kmph.
12. Although many Bhpians have complained about the NVH levels, we found the car to be very silent inside. Even though it was a diesel, the car was refined. However, we could hear the diesel clatter when revved hard on a smaller gear which is expected.
What could have been better:
1. As many Bhpians highlighted, those odd welding spots on all the doors near the door-beadings were present. This although not a deal-breaker is a sore point.
2. The Piano Black panel used all around the dashboard is prone to scratches. Telling this from our personal experience because even our Alto K10 has a piano black panel in the center console which is a fingerprint magnet and very prone to scratches.
3. The front armrest is unusable for short drivers, I would say at least up to 5’9 height. There should have been a sliding armrest.
4. Body panels are a tad bit lighter than Seltos maybe, but definitely not like Baleno. They are still better than the Maruti’s.
5. The steering doesn’t weigh up enough to inspire confidence when going above 120 Kmph. Forget sharp cuts, even quick lane switching at higher speeds would require a strong heart.
6. Body roll is present and you can easily feel it around the corners. Although it’s not scary like a Scorpio, still makes its presence felt.
7. No headrest for the middle passenger in the 2nd row. If the company is calling it a 7 seater, then 3rd headrest on a middle row should be offered, at least a non-adjustable one.
Overall, we loved the car, and all the cons we found can easily be ignored because of the price it is being offered at right now. Prestige 1.5 Variant which covers almost all the essential features and a good amount of feel-good features is being offered at 9.99Lacs ex-showroom, which is an incredible VFM and a steal deal.
We booked it online on 15th Feb just after the price reveal and have got a tentative waiting period of 9-10 weeks on the booking docket emailed to us. Let’s hope we get the delivery of our car(ens) soon, so I can make a fresh new thread on my ownership on our forum.
Also, I am sharing the current price list of the Carens indicating the on-road price of all the variants in Punjab. Hope it would be of some help.
Keyword: Kia Carens: Initial Impressions