Review
Fed up with its diminutive share of the European market, Kia invested ?1.1 billion into building a state of the art factory in Slovakia and went about hiring a team of top designers and engineers to develop an all-new car. That car is the Ceed, or officially (and rather stupidly) the Cee'd, and it's the first Kia to offer more than a budget price tag and a big warranty.
Major European manufacturers should stop and take note because Kia's new Zilga factory is obviously on the ball - the Ceed's paint finish is of much higher quality than anything the Koreans have shown us before and the panel gaps look tight and neat. Stand back, take in the whole shape and you realise that this is actually a decent looking hatchback. Its got a strong shoulder line and the rear is squat and taut - admittedly, the design's not exactly groundbreaking but at least it doesn't offend the eye. Inside, you perch on a high-set, firm but comfortable seat and are struck by a soft-touch dash of real quality. The buttons are logically set-out, rubber-finished and make a reassuringly firm click when pressed or turned - something which will be familiar to Volkswagen owners. There's also a dashboard-integrated Blaupunkt CD stereo (another first for Kia) and an appealing auxiliary audio box which plays MP3 tunes from your iPod or even a USB flash drive. At night the cabin's bathed in a pleasant red glow from the dials, which works well and creates a relaxed, upmarket ambience.
So the looks are impressive, but performance was where Kias of old flagged furthest behind. The high-end 1.6 litre, 115bhp CRDi diesel model we tried won't set your hair on fire, reaching 60mph in 13.8 seconds, but it has decent mid-range shove, revs enthusiastically and, critically, is capable of over 60mpg combined. A top-spec 2.0 litre diesel will be available from late 2007 and will need to provide a more performance-focused alternative to the 1.6. Other engines in the current crop include a 1.4 litre petrol, a 1.6 petrol and a more powerful, less fuel efficient variant of the 1.6 diesel.
The biggest surprise of all comes when you drive the Ceed on the open road. It flows from corner to corner, the front end grips and the steering is quick and accurate. Not quite up to Ford Focus levels of handling prowess, but impressive nonetheless. And this hasn't been achieved by luck - the Ceed has an advanced multi-link rear suspension set up instead of a basic torsion beam affair which, although it isn't fully independent, helps the cars' behaviour when cornering quickly. However the ride suffers as a trade off, often feeling choppy and occasionally jarring occupants over bumps.
We said earlier that the Ceed has more to offer than a budget price and a big warranty - and it does - but these benefits will still attract buyers like bees to a melted Mars bar. On a keenly priced range that starts at £11,000, Kia is offering a seven year/100,000 mile warranty for the oily bits, a five year/100,000 mile warranty for the bodywork and three years breakdown recovery. Europe's biggest motor manufacturers are still working out how they can economically match that.
However Kia's biggest problem is still its cheap and cheerful, low-quality image. If that's to change the brand must move away from bargain basement prices and mega-warranty offers, which inevitably attract older, more sensible and (whisper it) boring buyers rather than the affluent, fashionable young things who car companies lust after. That's a process which will take time. But, if Kia continues to develop quality cars that match and improve on the impressive Ceed, then the Korean badge might become desirable in Europe sooner than we could have imagined.
