[TusharK]

The Kia Carnival has been phased out from the Indian market. The car is no longer listed on the brand's official website.



The Carnival was launched during the 2020 Auto Expo as the brand's flagship offering. It was powered by a 2.2-litre, 4-cylinder diesel engine producing 197 BHP @ 3,800 rpm and 440 Nm @ 1,500-2,750 rpm. The engine was paired with an 8-speed automatic transmission.

The fourth-generation Carnival is already on sale in the global markets. The MPV was also presented in India during the 2023 Auto Expo. Moreover, reports suggest that it is likely to launched in India next year.

Globally, the fourth-generation Carnival is offered with 3 engine options. These include a 3.5-litre GDi V6 petrol, a 3.5-litre MPi V6 petrol and a 2.2-litre diesel engine. An 8-speed automatic transmission is offered as standard across all variants.

Source: Autocar India

Link to Team-BHP News

[Sahil]

As per Kia dealers, the new Carnival is going to be a CBU and priced at almost double of the outgoing model. Seems like they want to bridge the gap between the Innova Hycross/Invicto and the Vellfire.

The new Vellfire has just been unveiled today. I hope Toyota has the courage to bring it in as CKD and bring the price down. The sales numbers the vellfire has been doing for its high price tag are pretty good and makes a case worth considering for local assembly.

If they decide to do so then Kia ought to consider the same rather than go CBU.

[kkunal.shah]

This is sad news, always liked what carnival offered at its price point. Hope the locally assemble the new model.

[Nilesh5417]

Originally Posted by Sahil

As per Kia dealers, the new Carnival is going to be a CBU and priced at almost double of the outgoing model. Seems like they want to bridge the gap between the Innova Hycross/Invicto and the Vellfire.
...

Guess our market never appreciated the Carnival for what it offers. Barely saw any running as hotel fleets or premium taxis across Pune - Mumbai runs. So Kia does not lose much in terms of sales by bringing the new one as CBU and whatever it loses, maybe it might make up as margin gains.

I've done Jodhpur-Jaipur-Delhi runs in the Carnival multiple times with family and I can vouch for the comfort it has especially as a highway runabout. Much nicer than the Innova.

[Shreyans_Jain]

The Carnival did decently well for itself and is a fairly common sight here in NCR. The product had its limitations - it was too big to drive around in typically congested Indian cities, a real pain to park, had low ground clearance and wasn’t really conducive for self driving. Still, it was the best thing in the business to haul large families with all their luggage. It was an excellent highway car.

It was sandwiched between the two big Toyotas price wise, and could never command the resale value of either. That, and the 10 year limit for diesels here in Delhi meant it’s audience was always niche.

[Drivaholic@2727]

Sad to see it go. When we were purchasing a new car I tried to convince my parents to get a Carnival, they outright rejected me stating that our Scorpio barely fits as it is, how do you think a carnival is going to fit? PS we live in a super cramped road so even parking our nios right now makes my mom super stressed. Hope Kia will consider locally produced units rather than CKD or CBU and make it super expensive.

[diwakarmuthu]

I hope the Kia prices the 4th gen sensibly in India. My guess is the top variant may be touching upwards of 50-55L. The limo variant may be costing much more. The space between the Hycross top variant and Velfire is VFM premium segment that has not been tapped yet. So maybe there is a market to be tapped there.

The outgoing Carnival will now be available on good pricing through the pre owned routed. Though am not sure about parts / service as it could end up being a dampener.

[riteshritesh]

With Diesel going out of fashion/non-preferred category, what they need is a Hybrid Engine to sell it to the mile munchers.

[Sahil]

Originally Posted by Nilesh5417

Guess our market never appreciated the Carnival for what it offers. Barely saw any running as hotel fleets or premium taxis across Pune - Mumbai runs. So Kia does t lose much in terms of sales by brining the new one as CBU and what ever it loses, maybe it might make up as margin gains.
I've done Jodhpur-Jaipur-Delhi runs in the Carnival multiple times with family and i can vouch for the comfort it has esp as a highway runabout. Much nicer than the Innova.

The taxi market is tough. Newer brands like Kia will take some time to break into that, but frankly with their premium positioning, I don't think they are even trying. They are after the end consumer and don't want to dilute the brand going the taxi route.


The Innova is and will continue to rule to Taxi market with its well established track record on maintenance and customer acceptability. If an Innova Cysta for an 8hr/80km rental costs 3000-3500 then I am willing to pay 4500 for a Kia Carnival instead. However, that 1000-1500 premium does not justify the cost to the taxi owner for the higher ticket price and higher maintenance cost.

I am just glad that Toyota keeps raising the bar and hopefully by next year we can have enough Innova Hycross available as taxi rentals.

This is where other brands have an opportunity to focus on the end consumer as they do not want a car thats also used commonly as a taxi.

[sarathlal]

Carnival, with all due respect to its features and comfort, stood out mainly because of its sensible pricing. Even with that, it was not all smooth selling either.

Bringing in a model that is almost at the last leg of its generations life, with an increased price tag will be a dead on arrival proposition.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Sahil

the new Carnival is going to be a CBU and priced at almost double of the outgoing model.

Just heard from a reliable source that the next-gen Carnival is indeed going to be locally assembled. Will be expensive and positioned higher than the current one, but not exorbitant CBU pricing.

I loved the Carnival and would buy it over the Fortuner or Innova any day, any time. Going by international reviews, the 4th-gen is vastly superior. Really looking forward to it. Never thought I'd love a van, but I do!

[Aquitej]

India-bound Kia Carnival facelift revealed in spy shots

https://www.autocarindia.com/car-new...y-shots-429648

[volkman10]

New Carnival spotted in India. Launch likely in mid 2024.

Test mules spotted in India show facelifted 4th gen Carnival model in full camouflage. But no amount of camouflage in this world can hide new Carnival’s imposing presence established by its strong fascia and large LED DRLs.

Link

[ashvek3141]

Originally Posted by volkman10

New Carnival spotted in India. Launch likely in mid 2024.

What is this new fascination with Kia to have a Mahindra-esque (read=extended) headlamp design?

Doesn’t quite suit their design language which has been pretty sober , until the recent Sonet facelift.

[sarathlal]

Originally Posted by GTO

I loved the Carnival and would buy it over the Fortuner or Innova any day, any time. Going by international reviews, the 4th-gen is vastly superior. Really looking forward to it. Never thought I'd love a van, but I do!

Absolutely! It's a real stunner of a van.

Originally Posted by volkman10

New Carnival spotted in India. Launch likely in mid 2024.

The headlights from the test mules indicate that this is indeed the latest refresh model of the current 4th generation, which is a good news.