2022 Kia Carnival review | Car Reviews

Auto123 assessments the 2022 Kia Carnival.

I’d noticed the visuals of the new Kia Carnival – in fact the upcoming era of the Korean automaker’s Sedona minivan, rebadged to sync with the nameplate utilised elsewhere in the world – but I was nonetheless astonished by the glance of the thing when I confirmed up to decide on up my tester. There is not substantially of the conventional minivan to the 2022 Carnival MPV, or Multi-Intent Automobile, as Kia hopes we’ll all refer to it.

We’ll adhere with minivan as a designation, thank you pretty substantially, but there is no denying Kia created real hard work to length alone from the format as it is been ordinarily identified. Which is to say, rather rounded in condition, conservative, sort of bus-like, and just plain uncool esthetically. Here, the Kia literature throws all-around terms like bold, self-assured and masculine to describe the Carnival, which tells you a good deal about exactly where their design and style emphasis was.

The glance
To my eye, the Carnival seems to be additional than a small like a stretched, very low-riding Ford Explorer, with its bold, bossy entrance finish and rectangular over-all condition. My wife mentioned it is a wagon. Kia suggests its design and style is crossover-impressed. Frankly all of those people sights are legitimate to a place, so let us just say this is a fashionable reimagining of the minivan. Mainly because as soon as you phase within, this is nonetheless pretty substantially a minivan. And I imply that in a complimentary way.

Besides, some of the exterior things – plastic entire body cladding, the skid plates, that chrome C-pillar element – that would find to trick the eye out of seeing a minivan are less convincing than others. But nonetheless, glance at the profile of this thing you’re a prolonged way from the aged Sedona, or the present Pacifica for that subject. At a single place I could even visualize, by removing from my mind’s eye the higher rear portion of what Kia calls the “Island-Type” floating roof, as delineated by the chrome C-pillar element, that I was searching at a Honda Ridgeline-variety profile!

The again finish seems to be additional like a conventional minivan than the rest, what with its width and vertical stance.

The interior
Now, jazzing up the outside is likely to draw in some purchasers reluctant to be noticed in a minivan. But what’s within nonetheless signifies the accurate check of regardless of whether the Carnival will satisfy the needs of those people who want the measurement and practicality of the format. And on that entrance, Kia’s new merchandise absolutely provides a pretty roomy, pretty comfortable and pretty practical interior surroundings.

Hold in thoughts that our tester, the visuals of which surface right here, was the assortment-topping SX trim, and so throws in anything attainable to render this an upscale interior.

The seats are rather comfortable and easily positioned for the greatest driving position. Usually, there are things of the new K5 right here, but the products experience upscale and consist of interesting woodgrain, painted or chrome things. The sprint functions two 12.3-in screens (in the SX), a single for the driver and their knowledge and the other for infotainment the two are linked to create a satisfying solitary horizontal display screen rectangle. Thankfully there are bodily buttons for specific frequent instructions.

The infotainment technique involves a camera for spying on the youngsters in again, and an intercom for yelling at them as a result of the audio technique. Overall, you’ll experience like you’re sitting in a high quality SUV.

Driving that first row is exactly where the enjoyable is, nevertheless. Obtain to the meat of the minivan from outside is uncomplicated many thanks to the very low flooring, and buttons on your key fob allow you to solitary-click on open and shut each and every sliding facet doorway. Open up those people and you reveal a truly welcoming second row (legroom clocks in at 1,029 mm) featuring, in the circumstance our tester, “VIP Lounge” seats – or captain’s chairs if you choose – that recline again rather much and function a liftable footrest.

The Carnival’s conventional second-row seats are buckets, which, if the need arises, you can take away for a actually cavernous cargo space. Be aware that you just cannot take away the captain’s chairs.

Of the a few second-row seats in that configuration, the center a single slides again and forth independently from the others and can be folded down to make a table. In the two iterations, there is a 3rd row that is not notably roomy but can be utilised to in good shape travellers if wanted those people seats can be created to disappear fully in deep slots in the cargo space flooring.

The versions
The design assortment starts off with the LX (setting up price $34,495). Conventional functions consist of heated windshield and entrance seats (in addition that windshield is photo voltaic and acoustic addressed), as effectively as lane hold help, rear seat reminder notify, driver notice warning, substantial beam help and rear parking sensors. Android Vehicle and Apple CarPlay integration is involved. Climate management vents are discovered in all a few rows, and USB ports are sprinkled about like pixie dust (there are nine in all).

The display screen in this version is 8-inch, alongside with a four.2-inch Lcd knowledge display screen. Be aware that this version can only be experienced with the 8-seat configuration. Conventional wheels are 17-inch in diameter, and you get skid plates entrance and rear.

The LX+ ($37,995) provides prolonged bars on the prolonged roof, and within, wi-fi smartphone charging in addition a rear baggage USB port and a smart key and thrust button. The driver’s seat is ability-adjustable, the sliding doors can be opened remotely and the tailgate is also ability-operated. The local weather management technique gets multi-zone, and the steering wheel and entrance seats are heated.

The EX ($forty one,995) provides excess protection and tech functions (for instance with the inclusion of UFO Intelligence Telematics), the wheels mature to 19 inches, the grille turns matte chrome coated, the seats get leatherette masking, and the passenger seat is now also ability-adjustable.

Future is the EX+ ($forty five,295), which brings in LED fog lights and Twin LED headlights, as effectively as larger screens (12.3-inch instrument cluster and 12.3-inch multimedia display screen).

Lastly, the king of the castle is the SX ($forty eight,295), which gets niftier black wheels, a twin sunroof, Bose high quality audio, a passenger-perspective camera, blind perspective checking, ventilated entrance seats, heated and ventilated second-row seats and even additional protection things. As effectively, right here you can opt for the 7-human being configuration which makes it possible for you to consist of those people Power Loosen up Captain’s Chairs that recline way, way again.

The powertrain
The Carnival’s sole motor is a 3.6L V6 providing 290 hp and 260 lb-ft of torque with an 8-pace automated transmission. Travel modes are obtainable, but hey this is a minivan not a effectiveness SUV, bold and masculine entrance finish be darned, so no having all psyched. You could possibly give the Activity mode a shot at the starting to tighten up the parameters a wee bit, but my guess is you’ll soon just leave it in Ordinary mode and be completed with it.

The Carnival provides fuel usage (officially 12.0L/100 km metropolis, 8.9L/100 km freeway) that is suitable but won’t be a certain promoting place for the design. Its numbers place it slightly guiding and the Chrysler Pacifica and the Honda Odyssey and the Toyota Sienna.

The generate
The powertrain provides numbers slightly higher than those people of the Chrysler Pacifica, but commonly the generate you get is comparable. Kia suggests the chassis is stiffer than any Sedona’s ever was (the design is crafted on the N3 system also utilised by the Sorento and the K5), and it does surface you get a tighter experience for the reason that of it on the road. This is nonetheless a large, significant vehicle, so halting length should really be measured appropriately, and slaloming alongside your favorite place road will reveal the limits of this minivan.

But of system, that is not what you’re typically going to be performing with the Carnival. The suspension is made to guarantee maximal comfort and ease, but the flip facet is the vehicle gets a small flustered when encountering purposeful potholes.

Overall, what you want is a reassuring, comfortable ride, but a single that doesn’t experience approximate both in the steering or the suspension and on that entrance, it is mission accomplished for Kia. I looked for signs of entire body roll and discovered small sign of it. The ride through the time I experienced with the Carnival was rather exceptionally tranquil – good information for those people travellers who will be seeing or listening to things plugged into any of the piles of USB ports scattered about. If they are not snoozing on the fully reclined Power Loosen up Captain’s Chairs, that is.

We like

Great practicality
Daring exterior seems to be, notably the entrance finish
At ease, reassuring ride
Loads of ability underneath the hood
Those people VIP Lounge captain’s chairs
Inside ergonomics
Intercom so you can yell at the youngsters!

We like less

Not the most fuel-cost-effective
A small susceptible to road imperfections
Usually takes a bit of time to master the art of folding/removing seats
A couple reasonably “essential” functions not involved in the foundation version

The competitors

Chrysler Pacifica
Honda Odyssey
Toyota Sienna

2022 Kia Carnival images