Kia Ceed Hatchback (07 on) - Review

Review by Simon Harris on
Last Updated: 11 February 2010
For buyers who think Kia is merely a manufacturer of cheap cars the Cee'd will come as a real surprise. Designed for European buyers it's a huge improvement over its predecessor (the dull Cerato) and matches many of the mainstream alternatives. The styling is neat, it's spacious inside and the interior is modern and well-finished. Driver appeal isn't its strong point but it is safe and comfortable with a good range of engines including two excellent diesels. The best bit however is the seven-year/100,000 mile warranty which comes as standard on all new cars and can be transferred to subsequent owners. The Cee'd was given a mild facelift in late 2009 with changes to the exterior styling, improvements to the interior and the introduction of a new economical engine with stop/start technology called ISG. This system is used in the low-emissions EcoDynamics models. Not happy with one award, Kia has scooped two accolades with the Cee’d 1.4 VR-7. The car is well built, stylish and has huge space inside and the materials are of a good quality. It also comes with a seven-year/100,000-mile warranty. This model took the medium hatchback and more importantly the cee’d won the inaugural 2011 Parkers New Car Award after fending off strong competition from the likes of BMW, Audi and Skoda.
4 out of 5

Other Kia reviews

3.5 out of 5

Running costs

Looking at the specification included, the Cee'd undercuts its mainstream rivals on list price. Petrol models promise more than 40mpg on average, while diesel owners could see up to 60mpg on a regular basis. The reassuring warranty package, which from January 2010 covers seven years/100,000, is a welcome move and shows Kia's confidence.

* based on most recent data

Estimated fuel cost for 10,000 miles per year

Unleaded

£1,279 - £1,534 *

Diesel

£890 - £1,364 *

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

First three years with unlimited mileage. Bumper-to-bumper warranty package for five years/100,000 miles. Engine and gearbox seven years/100,000 miles.

Road tax (12 months)

£20.00 - £170.00

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

4 out of 5

Green credentials

  • A
  • B
    103
  • C
  • D
  • E
  • F
  • G
    165
  • H
  • I
  • J
  • K
  • 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 Cee'd is an environmentally friendly model. In October 2009 the EcoDynamic model was added to the line-up with stop/start technology that produces emissions of just 110g/km of CO2 and impressive economy of 67mpg. The 2.0 CRDi model was also dropped from the line-up helping to reduce the average emissions.

Find the exact engine and CO2