The facelifted Kia Picanto city car is on sale in Australia boasting a fresh look, an updated interior, and more safety features. But with the update comes rising price rises, which mean it’s no longer Australia’s most affordable car, just.
With the new lineup kicking off from $17,890 before on-road costs, or $20,690 driveaway, that pushes it above competitor MG3’s $19,990 driveaway price for its entry-grade model – which makes the MG the only remaining vehicle in Australia that can be purchased below the $20,000 mark on road.
While the Picanto has seen price increases across the range between $1600 and $1950, that has come with an update to its specifications and also a tweaked model lineup, which has been reduced from five to four variants.
The 2024 Kia Picanto takes on styling cues in line with other new Kias
The range-topping GT grade has now been dropped, with an entry-level ‘Sport’ variant replacing the ‘S’, while the ‘GT-Line’ is now the top-spec Picanto.
Changes for the current third-generation small car include facelifted front and rear styling that has brought the Picanto in-line with Kia’s signature vertical light designs.
Upgraded tech and safety features mean that the base-spec S comes equipped with features including a new digital instrument cluster, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shifter, and power-folding exterior mirrors.
The 2024 Picanto will see bolstered tech and safety features across the line-up
Safety is also bolstered with blind-spot alert, rear cross-traffic alert, lane departure warning and lane-keep assist standard on the Sport.
Powering all variants is the Picanto’s familiar 1.2-litre inline-four cylinder naturally-aspirated engine which remains unchanged and delivers 62kW or power and 122Nm of torque.
All variants are front-wheel-drive and both S or GT-Line grades can be optioned with either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission, which commands an extra $1000 upcharge.
There are no changes under the bonnet for the Picanto which retains its familiar 1.2-litre inline-four cylinder engine
While the small car segment is no longer the powerhouse it once was in Australia, the Picanto and competitors like the MG3 still continue to do good business for their respective brands.
So far this year the Picanto has delivered 7298 units for Kia. While this is behind the ever-popular MG3 (14,702), it’s ahead of the likes of the Suzuki Swift (6486), Mazda 2 (4855), Kia Rio (4064) and Toyota Yaris (1887).
At $19,990 driveaway for its base model, the MG3 takes on the title of Australia’s cheapest car
It is worth noting that the Kia is regarded as number one in its ‘micro’ small car segment, with the aforementioned competitors classed as larger ‘light cars’.
What does the Kia Picanto 2024 include in each grade?
Some selected key features across both variants include:
The Picanto’s headlights are now in line with the vertical design seen on other Kias
Picanto Sport:
- 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- 4.2-inch instrument cluster display
- Wireless Apple CarPlay
- Wireless and wired Android Auto
- Manual air conditioning
- 4 x speakers (front and rear doors) and 2 x front tweeters
- USB-A and USB-C outlets
- 14-inch alloy wheels
- Spacesaver spare wheel
- Remote central locking
- Cruise control
- Anti-lock brakes
- 14-inch wheels
- Electronic stability control
- Hill-start assist
- Autonomous emergency braking with forward collision warning
- Blindspot collision avoidance assist
- Rear cross-traffic collision avoidance assist
- Lane Keeping assist
- Lane following assist
- Manual speed limit assist
- Driver attention warning
- Reverse parking sensors
- Rear view camera with dynamic parking guidelines
- Halogen headlamps
- Halogen daytime running lights
- Driver and front passenger SRS airbags
- Front side SRS airbags
- Curtain SRS airbags
- 4 x way driver’s seat adjust
- Electric folding and adjustable exterior door mirrors
The Picanto will be available with both manual and automatic variants across both grades
Picanto GT-Line: (in addition to Sport)
- GT-Line Package (incl body kit, gloss black radiator grille, GT-Line rear badge)
- 6-way manual driver’s seat adjustment
- Premium seats with grey accent
- Premium steering wheel (D-cut) and shift knob
- 16-inch alloy wheels
- LED headlights
- LED daytime running lights
- LED centre garnish lamp
- LED rear combination lamp
- Rear USB-C outlet
- Front centre console soft-touch armrest
- Electric and heated outside door mirrors
- Alloy sports pedals
- Gloss black air vent surrounds and gear shifter surround
- Centre console with storage trays and storage box with lid
The GT-Line replaces the GT as the new range-topping grade
Kia Picanto 2024: prices in Australia
All prices listed are before on-road costs.
- Sport Manual: $17,890 (up $1600)
- Sport Automatic: $19,490 (up $1600)
- GT-Line Manual: $19,690 (up $1950)
- GT-Line Automatic: $21,290 (up $1950)
