Kia Cerato. Weekdays are over / KIA test drives

Kia Cerato. Price: from 559,000 RUB. On sale: since April 2009

How are the Audi TT, VW New Beetle, and the new generation Kia Cerato connected? It turns out they share the same "parent" — the person responsible for the exterior design. That is Peter Schreyer, who was once a leading designer at Volkswagen and now holds the position of chief stylist at Kia. It is he who gave the Korean sedan the same daring and youthful look as those very coupes. It seems that Cerato buyers will noticeably get younger.

Test pilot

Dmitry Tytyuchenko, 33 years old, automotive journalist, 14 years of driving experience, personal car — Jeep Wrangler

2009 Kia Cerato
© Photo: Kia Motors

The first generation Cerato did not evoke any emotions — neither positive nor negative. The model could be described with words from science fiction about the planet Shelezyaka: "No water. No vegetation. No minerals. Populated by robots." The reliable and inexpensive car was as expressive as a tube of acne cream and as boring as a jacket hanging on the back of an office chair of a clerk in a midlife crisis. By the way, the car had plenty of such buyers.

Just a brief glance at the Cerato II makes it clear: this model is far from the Balzac age. Yes, the design cannot be called unique — experts will immediately notice borrowed solutions. But it definitely has elegance, dynamics, interesting lines, and hidden aggression. With such a bright appearance, the new model will easily attract a young audience that previously did not even look in Kia's direction.

The car, like the third bell in a theater, makes you pay attention to the change in Kia's image course. The multifaceted cee'd started this process, and the controversial Soul continued it. Interestingly, the Cerato does not resemble either of them: the sedan has its own face. So it is premature to talk about a unified style for the entire lineup. But sympathy for the Korean brand is growing — that is certain.

2009 Kia Cerato
© Photo: Kia Motors

In essence, the Cerato fills a gap in the cee'd lineup, where there was no sedan at all. The car shares the suspension with the hatchback (McPherson at the front and a torsion beam at the rear). But the chassis is different: the Cerato is built on the platform of the future generation Hyundai Avante, known in Russia as the Elantra.

Compared to its predecessor, the sedan has become slightly longer and wider, and due to a reduction in height, a bit lower. With the increase in dimensions, the trunk has also grown — by 15%. Now you have 415 liters at your disposal, like in a large refrigerator. Loading is convenient thanks to the low height and flat floor, which resulted from the compact spare wheel.

The wheelbase (2650 mm) is quite decent for the C-class; it has also grown a bit. Four adults will sit comfortably in the cabin without any compromises regarding dimensions. Within reasonable limits, of course. A tall driver will have to get used to the position of the steering wheel relative to the instruments: the column adjusts in two planes, but even in the upper position, the rim covers part of the information. At the same time, the seat can be lowered quite low.

There is nothing else to complain about: no ergonomic miscalculations, no design blunders. The interior looks modern and pleasant. Inexpensive but neat trim materials look good up close, and all buttons and controls are intuitive. In short, you won't have to take your eyes off the road.

2009 Kia Cerato
© Photo: Kia Motors

And that's great, because the Cerato has a feature — a surprisingly sharp steering wheel, which is unusual for cars of this class. The sensitive steering wheel does not forgive sudden movements: you can veer off the trajectory with unpleasant consequences. But there is enough of a dead zone to avoid constant corrections on a straight line. The only power steering available here (for Europe there is an optional electric power steering) copes with the load and provides clear feedback from the front wheels.

Engines for the Russian market are announced twice as many. Gasoline units with a volume of 1.6 and 2.0 liters produce 124 and 156 hp, respectively. Buyers did not favor the second version before, so there is no particular interest in it. But the less powerful engine, familiar from the Kia Soul, is a clear favorite in the new Cerato generation as well. It again did not deliver vivid emotions comparable to the impression of the exterior. However, it did not bring disappointments either. If you actively work with the 5-speed manual, the car can even be called dynamic. True, you have to rev it quite a bit, and the roar at high revs has to be drowned out by music. But the lack of torque is almost not felt. The outdated 4-speed automatic aggravates the situation with both noise and dynamics. Acceleration to 100 km/h takes a heavy 12 seconds, and with energetic driving, delays appear during shifts. But fuel consumption is promised at the level of 6–7 liters per 100 km, and these figures should worry a potential owner much more!

Love it — don't love it

2009 Kia Cerato
© Photo: Kia Motors

Connect your iPod to the audio system, and gigabytes of favorite music will flow from the speakers. Pleasant

If you want to save money, you can do without climate control. Not cheap

Super Vision lighting appears on the instrument panel along with an info display on the speedometer. Nice

Advantages and disadvantages

+ Modern design, spacious and comfortable cabin, well-calibrated ergonomics, good handling.
- Mediocre dynamics, insufficient steering wheel tilt adjustment, outdated automatic transmission.

Technical specifications

Make and model — Kia Cerato 1.6 MT
Dimensions — 4530x1775x1460 mm
Engine — gasoline, 4-cylinder, 1591 cm3, 124 hp/6300 rpm
Transmission — manual, 5-speed
Dynamics — max 190 km/h; 10.3 s to 100 km/h
Competitors — Chevrolet Cruze, Mazda3, Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic

Our opinion

With such an impressive appearance, the Kia Cerato will clearly grow in the eyes of a younger audience than before. And since in Russia appearance often plays a decisive role when choosing a car, the model will finally be able to compete worthily with such favorites of the golf class as the Mazda3, Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, Mitsubishi Lancer, and even, God forgive me, the Ford Focus!