[achintatri]

Dear All,

In continuation of the research that I am doing to select the best automatic Kia Carens Model, I took the test drive of the Diesel 1.5 AT as well (did 1.4 DCT petrol yesterday) today. Some of my impressions:

1. Ride Quality was similar to DCT as I did not find any lag anywhere (Considering you can't drive a 7 seater and actually should not drive one like a sedan/hatchback, both DCT Petrol and AT Diesel gearbox performs equally)
2. It worked well in all the driving modes
3. In city driving as well as long highway stretch, it performed without showing any signs of underpower
4. I also got the chance to test the Cruise control and it worked with ease
5. NVH levels are great, nothing to complain about it here
6. BOSE system however surprisingly is not up to the mark (Only hope is that through settings, one should make it better)
7. Brake was much better as compared to 1.4 DCT where it was Spongy
8. Steering feedback was good, I could drive with confidence
9. Best part is - No DEF/Adblue stuff required

Now considering the issues with the 1.4 DCT and having faith more towards a Torque Converter, I think I will better go with Diesel AT now as against 1.4 DCT. Now only waiting to get the best price for my current car.

Thanks everyone for sharing the related information to help me choose the right variant.

Best Regards,
Achint

[schwartz]

I am a little surprised to see the comments on pricing for Carens. Certain variants (particularly at the low end) appear to be price warriors.

However, the model line of Carens does have its oddities. The automatics for the car start only INR 16.84 lakhs (on road Mumbai). In comparison Ertiga Auto (VXi) starts at INR 11.92 lakhs while XL6 (Zeta) AT is priced at INR 13.34 lakhs.

The 40% price difference potentially puts Ertiga and Carens different segments at the margin, IMHO. Also keep in mind Ertiga is available in CNG variants as well.

Carens is certainly compelling. A death knell to the Ertiga it may not be.

[Lalitha Venkat]

Originally Posted by sidharthg

Holy Moly!! I just jumped in my office chair! They are literally killing it. I mean in one go they have collectively smashed Suzuki, M&M and Tata. Heck, even Hyundai! Love the sibling rivalry! Brilliant! Yes, agreed, metal quality of Tata and M&M will be better but its too much of an undercut!

Now, even Jeep has its work cutout! They will literally have to fill Meridian with all the comfort creature on the planet to justify an almost double price tag. (I'm predicting it to be around 30+L)

Mate, I dont think Jeep Meridian will be worried about Kia pricing. Its selling 1,000 plus units a month on cars which are priced at 33-35 L on roads and I am sure Meridian will be priced over 35 L MSRP else they will cannibalise Compass. They feel that their brand is more premium than MUL/ Kia / Hyundai. Kodiaq another 7 seater is also sold out on cars planned for 22 which are priced INR 43 L on road and so dont think its an issue for these brands. But its good pricing from Kia and if you are planning suggest you book quickly and get the Diesel with TC. The Diesel engine is the best in Hyundai/ Kia.

[kmadhok]

Originally Posted by schwartz

The 40% price difference potentially puts Ertiga and Carens different segments at the margin, IMHO. Also keep in mind Ertiga is available in CNG variants as well.

Carens is certainly compelling. A death knell to the Ertiga it may not be.

I think we should wait until the updated Ertiga launches, and compare those prices to Carens. Ertiga will definitely undercut, I do not expect the difference to be more than 20%.

Also Ertiga, will not be available Diesel. So that market is Carens to own.

[RaceHorse]

Though I have a budget for Kodiaq, I waited for checking the third row space personally before booking, and even before doing that, the bookings were closed.
And after checking the car, though I liked the kodiaq very much, the third row space was underwhelming.

The other options are Meridian, Tucson and Innova.

The Jeep commander review videos shows that even it has poor third row seating.

Didn't find any reviews about Tucson 7 seater.

The only 2 options right now are Innova and Carens.

The Carens Diesel AT costs 21L onroad and Innova ZX Diesel AT costs 30L onroad Hyderabad.

If I need to compromise on power then Carens makes sense, otherwise Innova is still the better car out there.

Waiting for Tucson launch before taking final decision.

[sou_3749]

Test drove the carens today. As I am interested in petrol variants, did back to back good 6-8km drive in city conditions. They had only 1.4 manual and dct both top end versions for test drive.

Enough has been discussed about the space, style and features. So I will only be talking about driving differences.

1. The DCT felt fast compared to manual. I really enjoyed DCT drive more than manual although this DCT is nowhere close to DSG.
2. The clutch is super light and gear throws are precise.
3. NVH levels are fantastic as you can expect. This felt more hyundai than kia.
4. Suspension is on the softer side but the thud sounds felt inside. For reference creta is better here.
5. I shouldn't talk about FE as this is a big car and the engine is comparatively small. But the shock I got during the XUV 700 test drive made me look into this aspect as well. I can't believe the DCT gave 12kmpl + mileage in small 6km city drive with not so consistent speeds. However the manual showed around 11 kmpl for the exact same route and traffic density. XUV 700 for reference showed 6-7 kmpl. I am pretty impressed as the venue 1.0 that I drive now gives around 13 kmpl.

Now the problem. They didn't have 1.5P for test drive, which I am really interested. For same prestige variant the on road price difference is around 3lakhs which is huge. So I have 2 questions.

1. Is it worth to go for 1.5P prestige and save a lots of money? What about the ground clearance as the wheels are 15 inchers, is it going to be less or they would have raised the suspension accordingly?

2. Is the FE figures of 1.5P comparable to 1.4P? Will the 1.5P struggle with power?

3. For me if it's 1.4, I am inclined towards 1.4 prestige plus DCT. The price difference is going to be 6lakhs between these models. Is it worth of an upgrade?

Need suggestions please.

[rahil_29]

Kia Carens pricelist from the Andheri showroom in Mumbai. Took a test drive of the 1.5 luxury plus Diesel today. Prefer the Petrol since everyday drive doesn't warrant a Diesel buy but the Turbo Petrol test drive will only be available in another 5-7 days.

The waiting period quoted was a maximum of 12-13 weeks but verbal assurance given about delivery before that. Went ahead and booked the 1.5 Luxury Plus Turbo Petrol for the 25k booking amount.

[UD2021]

I guess Maruti (Ertiga, XL6) and the Alcazar will be affected the most. Someone who is eyeing the Crysta/Safari/XUV 700 may not consider the Carens as an alternative.

[Paddy19]

Originally Posted by achintatri

Dear All,
5. NVH levels are great, nothing to complain about it here

Originally Posted by sou_3749

3. NVH levels are fantastic as you can expect. This felt more hyundai than kia.

Curious about the NVH experience. I took a test drive last week and was disappointed with ride quality and cabin noise. I could hear a lot of road noise and traffic, and felt all the minor undulations on the road. Did you find the cabin quiet and the ride smooth when going over uneven surfaces and speedbreakers?

I couldn't believe it myself and am planning to test drive a vehicle from a different dealer, in case the first vehicle was somehow defective. For reference, I TD'ed Innova today (and the TD vehicle had 10K on it), and that's more like the quietness and smoothness I had in mind. Is that too much to expect from Carens?

[ajaiD]

I have a Magnite booked already and was almost convinced into shifting to a Carens since I did not like Triber and my wife wanted a larger car. In the end the reasons I stayed with Magnite was the 50% extra money Carens was demanding "ex-showroom" & the 3-4 month wait time.

Overall this is a great product and will sell well for sure. The Triber looks bad infront of this hell the Triber looks long in the tooth infront of Magnite/Kiger add to that the additional 500mm length and the premium over Triber just seems justified. Triber needs 1L Turbo with a facelift and for god sake larger tyres asap to fend off some of this heat

[achintatri]

Originally Posted by Paddy19

Curious about the NVH experience. I took a test drive last week and was disappointed with ride quality and cabin noise.

Ride Quality goes for a toss if you drive fast on the uneven surface, the only exception I found is Duster. Otherwise on proper roads, it works well. Regarding NVH level, the important thing is able to communicate well with the copassengers and enjoy the music while the AC is ON. Both diesel AT and petrol dct had good nvh levels with all windows up. Diesel will have more noise as compared to petrol but diesel AT noise was very well contained and infact was not at all disturbing. The max speed that I drove was 60 kmph.

For me Diesel seems to be a better choice. The only thing I need to test is climbing up with full load.

I will decide and book after the full load test now. The car should climb a hill with full load without any fuss. I usually believe in my own test drives.

[Paddy19]

Originally Posted by achintatri

Ride Quality goes for a toss if you drive fast on the uneven surface, the only exception I found is Duster. Otherwise on proper roads, it works well. Regarding NVH level, the important thing is able to communicate well with the copassengers and enjoy the music while the AC is ON. Both diesel AT and petrol dct had good nvh levels with all windows up. Diesel will have more noise as compared to petrol but diesel AT noise was very well contained and infact was not at all disturbing. The max speed that I drove was 60 kmph.

Thanks. I should have clarified - The vehicle was petrol AT and TD was in city traffic so I doubt if I went past 40. The road was good - no potholes or craters - just the typical uneven surface of city roads (as opposed to highways) and some rumble strips, and I felt all of that come through. I did turn off music and lowered AC fan as one of my needs is a quiet cabin. In my current Ertiga, it's impossible to hear the copassenger when driving at 80-100 on highways! Maybe I should moderate expectations.

[morphique]

I could not find the turning radius specified anywhere in the brochure. Does anyone know?

[sou_3749]

Originally Posted by Paddy19

Curious about the NVH experience. I took a test drive last week and was disappointed with ride quality and cabin noise. I could hear a lot of road noise and traffic, and felt all the minor undulations on the road. Did you find the cabin quiet and the ride smooth when going over uneven surfaces and speedbreakers?

Ride quality and cabin noise are relative to the segment. If we compare with safari or xuv 700, then it’s not at that level. If we compare with ertiga, xl6, hector or similar models, it’s surely superior. Compared to seltos or sonet, it has definitely upped the standard. Where it gained in ride quality, it loses on handling and that’s the trade-off with softer setup aimed at comfort for a people mover. Overall it’s a good balance keeping in mind the price point and the target audience. It doesn’t excel in any of the departments, but it’s right there at hyundai standards. But it’s correct when you push hard over uneven surface, you will feel the undulations. From nvh front, I didn’t feel outside noise even without music and I am comparing with Venue which has excellent nvh levels.

[akn1984]

With this pricing, safety equipments and feature list, Kia Carens should be the first choice of prospective buyers who are looking at a value for money MPV. Ertiga/XL6 is certainly going to feel the pain in the coming months!

Absolutely stunning prices!