[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by rahul_dg123

Do the roof mounted air vents provide better cooling than the standard ones (between the first row seats)?

The roof vents have airflow pattern adjusters, a bit like the spray/stream toggles on cleaner fluid bottles.

As to cooling efficiency, we don't have a direct comparison but I would think yes.

Floor or pillar mounted vents are easier to obstruct due to stuff or passengers getting in the way. Roof-mounted vents, I surmise, would cool more uniformly top-down due to being unobstructed.

Originally Posted by lemedico

That air purifier, bad for the knees and worse for the face when the driver slams the brakes! How many sahibs and memsahibs actually wear the seat belt in the rear?!

It's not unique to this car, is it? Plenty of cars, even in luxury segments, have hard surfaces for front seat-backs. Not a trend I prefer in general but hardly something I'd criticise a specific car for.

I would relocate the purifier to the roof to liberate space though.

[Hayek]

Kia clearly seems to have gone for head over heart while designing the Carens. For a manufacturer which has so far launched 3 beautiful cars in the Indian market, I was a little surprised they brought in something so ugly. A mini Carnival would have looked nice; an extended Seltos would have been even better; but this is something that is a cross between an MPV and a SUV - neither fish nor foul.

However, from the review, this seems like a very practical vehicle - and is therefore likely to appeal to the Indian family audience enormously. Priced around ₹18 l ex showroom for the top end automatic, this should draw customers from both the XL6 and the Innova, and potentially decimate the MG Hector. Now to wait for the pricing and the launch.

[chirag08]

Great review!! Had pretty much written off the Carens based on the limited space in the Alcazar but must say Kia has surprised with the interior space. The car is supremely ugly but seems a practical family car ,only 360 degree camera is missing. It should have been there in the top variant atleast.

Will definetely have a look at this one when TDs are available instead of earlier when was not even planning to have a look.

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by Hayek

... Priced around ₹18 l ex showroom for the top end automatic, this should draw customers from both the XL6 and the Innova...

Something Viddy & I discussed throughout the drive. While a lot of people would compare it to the Ertiga twins, we found ourselves regularly drawing comparisons with the Innova.

Haven't driven the 1.5 diesel so won't make definitive claims, but for someone who doesn't care for outright poke the Innova's 2.4 oil-burner provides, this is a much better package overall in terms of cabin quality, space, NVH, ride manners (esp. over imperfect roads) and features.

If top variant is priced close to Innova mid-variants, it makes a compelling case for itself.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by amol4184

I really wish the review included 7 seater model with all the details about bench seat as well as how the 1.5NA and diesel motor behave in Carens. Besides that, loved the review and car itself. Against XL6 this seems to have an ace with that diesel engine offering.

We got the car for a full day but that was only enough to test one variant. Also, most events were cancelled but have to appreciate Kia for arranging a car at home in Bangalore which nobody does easily.

In future we may get our hands on the 7 seater and diesel variants and we will update this review.

Originally Posted by Akshay6988

I second this ! I know we are demanding too much from mod team but with every other manufacturer jumping on the LED headlights bandwagon, I believe it is need of the hour, team BHP tests the headlight performance. ( I remember few older reviews did include headlight performance - Volvo X40 was tested I believe, please correct me if I'm wrong )

With most manufacturers providing the car for a single day it is near impossible to review the head lights. It's only when we get the car after launch for a few days can we give more details on this.

Also I can tell you the lights are average like the Seltos. LED's rarely offer amazing illumination unless you go for the european brands with adaptive/dynamic lights. That's the workaround to overcome the LED's poor lighting.

Originally Posted by BoneCollector

Good review although not as comprehensive as the previous reviews.

Our new review format since almost 2 years now is to ensure you get maximum details for a buying decision as soon as the embargo is lifted.

Originally Posted by rahul_dg123

Do the roof mounted air vents provide better cooling than the standard ones (between the first row seats)?

Yes they do cause they are directly aimed at your face vs your knees. See the distance the standard vents are from the passengers body vs the roof ones. The roof ones are far superior and infact need more engineering as the AC cooling vents need to be routed from the B pillar to the roof.

Kia was able to do this since they didn't use the Panoramic sunroof so had the space for the vents. The panoramic sunroof plus huge glass house would make the AC work harder and result in much lesser cooling.

[Sen]

I can add one thing to this thing's performance factor, i haven't driven it, but it definitely performs like an absolute stonker. Met a brand new one a few weeks ago blasting to kingdom come at the Anantapur factory going towards Hyderabad on my way back from Bangalore, I could barely keep up at full tilt on the highway. No speeds mentioned, but it felt like a crisp machine mechanicals-wise with how it behaved on the road.

[neeraj08]

Well detailed review as always!
Having booked the Prestige Plus 7DCT variant, I am now waiting to check out the car in real. No communication from dealer so far about the launch.

Good to see the amenities provided for the 3rd row passengers such as:

• Electric seat tumble
• Two USB-C ports
• Cup holders
• Air vents
• Reclining seats

For the folks looking for the 7-seater review, check out the below video by ICN (it's in Hindi though). Most details about seating are covered.

https://youtu.be/qg9HTiMo_wU

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by Bibendum90949

Keen to know if the control switches are back lit unlike Seltos which was a big goof up. I remember groping in the dark for few days in the first few weeks after I bought Seltos. Few of the owners had to order radium stickers from Ali express/Amazon.

Control switches are indeed back lit. I saw the driver side fully lit as well as the passenger power window switch (which you can see in 1 of my images). I did not check the rear switches.

[rahil_29]

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

I'd go so far as opining they should've eliminated it altogether and mounted the purifier on the roof too, creating more space in the slightly compromised 2nd row right passenger seat (give it a retractable tray too, maybe?).

completely agree with this. don't think the sunroof was needed, they might as well have given the 360 degree camera instead of the sunroof but being a family car, they would have figured sunroof would be one of the factors for the children in the family and went ahead with it

[Carpainter]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

.
Our new review format since almost 2 years now is to ensure you get maximum details for a buying decision as soon as the embargo is lifted.
.

While I do appreciate that some people need to know the facts about a new car launch and basic details, we bhpians expect or more like habituated to the more detailed reviews we used to get. Recent reviews are informative but there's something missing that team bhp reviews are known for. Is it possible to do a mini review once a car gets launched and then a full detailed review may be a month later. I think that would help make a decision for many future buyers.

Regarding the car I'm really surprised that Kia managed to do so good with interior space management. Are they going to be the next Honda here. The local Kia dealer is bugging me to check the car out but I was not interested in a cramped 7 seater but this review shows I was wrong. Being an user of Innova for more that 6 years, probably I'm not going to buy it. It looks horrible even compared to other Kia cars and the second row seat is still cramped but for someone deciding between Ertiga and Hector, this is going to be a good alternative if priced sensibly.

[Storm2.0]

This car looks extremely disproportionate. I don't know what they smoke at Kia to come up with such awful designs after launching aesthetically pleasing cars like Seltos, Sonet and Carnival.

[ulhas.ahirrao]

Very well packaged car but for looks! I was admirer of the Kia designs. Seltos, Sonet all look beautiful and sharp. This is a disappointment, the car looks bad and has no oomph to it (IMO).

[Rocky_005]

My main concern with Kia cars is the safety, the new Carens has a lot of potential but the only thing that would hold it back would be safety rating. Hope they learned the lesson with Seltos.
The dynamics of Indian market is also changing, with the likes of Mahindra and Tata doing fairly well in terms of safety rating, these ratings are something that would/are becoming basis of competition among many other features.

[AshiqueS]

I am shocked that kia is not providing the electrically adjustable drivers seat in any of the Carens models. I was waiting for this vehicle to buy as i was expecting this vehicle to have all the features that is already present in Seltos.
I had ditched Alcazar and XUV700 and have waiting for the Carens launch.

Being an first generation Creta diesal owner , i might go probably back to Alcazar .
Having waited already 2 months for Carens launch, i would like to TD the car before making the final decision.

I have watching the carens review today from various auto bloggers today and some of the common pros.

1) the roof air vents are doing the job well in terms of cooling
2) suspension


If anyone is looking for the middle row bench seat reviews, find the link below
(apologies that the review is in malayalam)

https://youtu.be/CSwlnTK1QE8

watch from 21:30 and from 26:20

[Bazooka]

Spacious interiors with a fairly usable boot with all rows up od what everyone wants in an MPV. I had shortlisted the Marazzo, but looking at the bootspace, I think Carens will be the winner, provided it will be priced on par with Marazzo.