When I first got my hands on the Kia Pro Cee’d I thought that this is a nice looking machine and it is, but to be honest with you my feelings towards this car were initially mixed. This week we take the Pro Cee'd for a spin.
To drive
Initially I opted to drive away in the Pro Cee’d just as it was. There are options in this car, but for the first few days I was doing what I call “normal” driving so I opted to drive it in “normal” mode. That’s right; this car gives you options as to how you want the steering to respond to your driving needs, it comes with three settings which in my view substantially change the responses of the car. The steering options come courtesy of the ”Flex Steer” option from Kia which allows the driver to choose from “Comfort Mode” (for those of you who need a lighter wheel to park), “Normal Mode” and “Sports Mode”. I found that the “normal” setting wasn’t really my cup of tea.
After three days of driving this car I decided it was in need of a road trip, and I drove the Pro Cee’d to wonderful and mystical faraway places like Wicklow, Wexford, and Sligo back to Wexford and then back home to the city I hold dear, Dublin. For this mammoth journey I opted to give all driving modes a chance, and my attitude changed towards the Kia Pro Cee’d. Once you change that mode to “Sport” things seriously tighten up and lighten up. The steering became perfectly responsive.
This steering along with the refined drive comfort of the Pro Cee’d actually made for an enjoyable ride. What assists in making the drive of the Pro Cee’d so comfortable is its rear multi-link suspension and front MacPherson suspension. Another bonus is that this car has been fitted with sound insulation to keep road noise to a minimum.
The Pro Cee’d which I was driving was their 1.6CRDI four cylinder turbo diesel engine offering 112hp at 4,000 rpm offering 0-100kmh in about 12 seconds.
Inside
The interior of the Pro Cee’d let it down a bit in my opinion. I’m not talking about space, because for a three-door like this the space is actually great, even the rear seats give plenty of room, what lets it down in my view is a very plastic cabin. This car looks really nice and sporty on the outside, I only wish the same care and attention was brought inside with it.
Aside from my little moan about the plastic interior the cabin is actually very comfortable, and functional. This car comes fully loaded in terms of Bluetooth, USB points, etc. Another plus about the interior is its boot space; it’s surprisingly big with a capacity for 340 litres.
As standard and optional
Other than the fact that they make a good car one of the best features of any Kia is their exceptional warranty. The warranty that they offer is 7 years (or 150,000km) and to be honest that says a lot about their cars. It tells customers that they have a lot of faith in what they are selling.
Apart from the warranty there is a host of extras available with the Pro Cee’d including steering wheel audio controls, USB & AUX input, tinted glass, 16” alloy wheels and a 6-speaker audio system.
Price, fuel economy and road tax
In terms of price the Pro Cee’d is reasonable enough starting at just under €23,000. In terms of road tax it falls into category B1 which means you will be paying €190 per annum at today’s motor tax rates.
In terms of fuel economy I found this car to be exceptional. As I said at the beginning of this article I brought this car on a massive journey covering over 800km. I drove the car as I would any car and I submitted it to three days of driving in and out of the city. After that I drove as far as Wexford stopping off at Wicklow on the way. In the same evening I brought it back from Wexford to my home in North Dublin city where I then drove down to the far side of Sligo. Two days later I brought it back to Wexford to pick up my kids and then back home to Dublin, where the following morning I again brought it into the city centre and then out towards Ballymount where I gave it back to Kia. All of this was on one tank, and the odometer told me I still had another 70 or so km. The fuel economy really impressed me, especially considering that I gave it a good mix of city and motorway driving.
The CBG.ie verdict
The Kia Pro Cee’d is a very nice looking car which drives well. We do feel however that it’s not nearly as sporty as it looks. The fuel economy impressed us hugely but the car needs a bit of fine tuning.
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