Kia Carens (06 on) - Review

Review by Simon Harris on
Last Updated: 05 January 2010
The Kia Carens is a good value people carrier that majors on equipment and interior space. It's similar in length to the Vauxhall Zafira but comes better equipped and crucially, can be chosen with seven seats - this makes it ideal for larger families with younger children. It's far from a budget car though, with a comfortable and well built cabin while practicality is excellent thanks to rear seats that fold down easily to create a huge load space. So while it may not be the most stylish or modern of people carriers, the Carens is an affordable and versatile family car. All models from January 2010 come with a seven-year warranty as standard, which replaced the previous five years, making the Carens even better value.
3.5 out of 5

Other Kia reviews

4 out of 5

Running costs

Entry-level five-seat version of the Carens are good value, but the seven-seat mid spec GS model is the best value for money choice. Running costs are low too, especially with the CRDi models which average 46mpg. Kia servicing is usually excellent value while newer models come with a five-year warranty, taking care of any unexpected costs for a large chunk of the cars life. The five-seat model will be an attractively priced entry point to the range for people who don't need the extra seats. The Carens offers higher power outputs than most rivals at the lower end of their ranges, and air conditioning is standard. Expect an asking price of about £13,000 for the 2.0 GS, and about £15,000 at the lower end of the diesel seven-seat versions. Offering a four-speed automatic is a little disappointing, as a five-speed automatic would have offered better fuel consumption.

* based on most recent data

Estimated fuel cost for 10,000 miles per year

Unleaded

£1,574 - £1,860 *

Diesel

£1,308 - £1,644 *

The estimated fuel cost figure is a guide to how much this model will cost to fuel each year, so you can compare between cars. It's calculated by using the model's average mpg (calculated from both town centre and motorway driving) and the average fuel price. It's based on the following cost-per-litre: petrol 135p and diesel 141p. Prices are updated daily.

Summary Running Costs

Servicing period

12 months or 10,000 miles.

Warranty

Five years/unlimited miles. From January 2010 this was increased to seven years/100,000 miles.

Road tax (12 months)

£135.00 - £270.00

Vehicle excise duty (VED) varies according to the CO2 emissions and the fuel type of the vehicle. For cars registered after March 1st 2001 VED or road tax is based on the car's CO2 emissions. For cars registered before March 1st 2001 it is based on engine size.

Full running costs data

3 out of 5

Green credentials

  • A
  • B
  • C
  • D
  • E
  • F
    146
  • G
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
    201
  • L
  • M

CO2 emission figure (g/km)

Fuel economy rating

The arrows indicate the best and worst CO2 bands for this model.

Emissions summary

The Carens is relatively green but there are no super-low emissions models in the line-up. The diesel is unsurprisingly the cleaner engine of the two - it emits 165g/km of CO2 and returns 45mpg.

Find the exact engine and CO2