[jetsetgo08]

Whatever be the price, this could be the 2nd official minting machine for Kia Motors India and the only threat to the Innova/Fortuner. The sheer number of Seltos's on the road is a testimony to the fact that people have gleefully accepted Kia as a brand.

[bigron]

The Innova desperately needs competition. There is virtually nothing out there that can match it on comfort/ease of ownership and with the new Z model power and features.

As with other models, the features vary from variant to variant and a fully loaded Carnival can turn out to be expensive. But if this can catch the pulse of our van loving population, KIA has a winner.

[vj123]

Finally the mighty Innova will be facing a direct rival and it would be interesting to see how Kia fairs in this battle. I hope Kia undercuts Innova's price and enters another segment with a bang. If anything, i can foresee success written all over this vehicle as well.

Kudos to Kia India management for taking right calls in Indian market.

[ashvek3141]

Well.. well, we have some really good news for premium MUV buyers. I have seen this car in person in the North America & I can tell you, it does feel a lot more premium than the current segment leader, Toyota Innova. Also, going by the initial teaser of the features, I am sure that majority of the global features will be coming down to our Indian market. If the success of the Seltos is anything to go by, then I have absolutely no doubts that this will be another blockbuster hit for the Korean brand!
I just hope that Kia does price it well & is not flying high on the success of the Seltos. Not to forget that they are still relatively new in here & yet to establish their hold in the Indian market akin to their sister concern, Hyundai.
Nevertheless, good days coming for the premium MUV segment.

[trishul]

Innova and fortuner are around 4.7m. At 5115mm in length, how practical it is for our roads and parking spots? Would it even work, say as a daily rider, commuting on our traffic choked roads? Would it fit in many of our apartment parking spots? seems like its tail would stick out. Feels perfect for long drives though and picking it up as a rental. Great to see a made in india luxury MUV from Kia, above constraints may not apply for many I presume.

[Radiator]

Originally Posted by trishul

Innova and fortuner are around 4.7m. At 5115mm in length, how practical it is for our roads and parking spots? .

I don't think anyone would buy it as their daily-driver. Its undoubtedly huge. A possible new favourite of the politicians in my view.

[Avenger_123]

This is good news as market matures we need products like this.
I for one believe they should think about the Telluride now, I drove one recently here in US and am really impressed with the feeling of space, quality and sheer value offered.

[NICHE]

It is a very popular model in South Korea. It is longer and wider than Crysta. But Kia has to raise to suspension for india. Otherwise there will be high chance of scraping because of its long wheelbase and low gc

[REN]

KIA India have released a teaser for the Carnival:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLK8ofYbmFQ

[Pontiac]

I don't think this will be in the segment Innova is currently. This is a segment shared with Toyota Sienna, Honda Odyssey or even Toyota HIACE. It will be definitely priced higher. Luxury Mini-van category in India.

I had test driven this (Kia Sedona in the US) while looking for a minivan here. Definitely liked this due to it's shape and features. But dropped it due to non-availability of all-wheel-drive and dropped the whole idea of buying a Mini-van itself later.

[sreejithkk]

I believe Carnival won't be competing with Innova, as it belongs to a segment higher. Also if this becomes hit, toyota and honda might think bringing Sienna and odyssey here. I am a great fan of minivans, and alway wondered why none of the MPV sold here did not offer the extremely convenient sliding doors.

[motorworks]

Originally Posted by sreejithkk

I believe Carnival won't be competing with Innova, as it belongs to a segment higher. Also if this becomes hit, toyota and honda might think bringing Sienna and odyssey here. I am a great fan of minivans, and alway wondered why none of the MPV sold here did not offer the extremely convenient sliding doors.

Probably yes. And there is a market for this. A lot of personal Innova Crysta users are people who have more than one or two cars and probably can even afford more than the Crysta. But they buy the Innova crysta because there is just no other comfortable 6-7 seater below 40-50 lakhs! So Kia will squarely target this audience, well to do families can now choose the Carnival over the Crysta, if it does offer that kind of ride. I think fleet operators would stick to the Innova, however I see some 5 star hotels opting for the Carnival as against some fancy D segment sedans.
I just wish the Carnival is not too far away from the Innova, may be a 1-2L premium, but not more, since comparisons are inevitable and the credibility of the Innova is proven beyond doubt.

[octane_100]

I will go against the popular sentiment here. I don't think people will easily adopt the Carnival as an alternative to Innova.



1. Carnival is a good 400mm longer and roughly 150mm wider. Though this results in enhanced interior space, navigating it in traffic is a nightmare. Mind you, Crysta is not just for chauffeur driven but a significantly large portion are self driven.



2. Being a minivan, Carnival rides quite low to the ground. Coupled with the long wheelbase, not exactly a convenient option to tackle our poor roads


3. Innova Crysta has a "pseudo SUV" image (though this is debatable)but the Carnival will be perceived as nothing other than a VAN


Though there may be few takers for Carnival, I don't see it as an alternative to or an upgrade from Crysta.

[Dopamine]

Originally Posted by Avenger_123

This is good news as market matures we need products like this.
I for one believe they should think about the Telluride now, I drove one recently here in US and am really impressed with the feeling of space, quality and sheer value offered.

The Telluride looks beyond gorgeous. Any guess on how much it would cost if launched in India according to the segment it is in?
They did not display it at the Indian auto expo though, so they probably won't launch it here

[nishsingh]

There is a pretty detailed walk-around of the Indain Kia Carnival on YouTube.

I though it already had been posted here, but in case anyone still hasnt seen it, here it is -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDJDDp6ux9g