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Took delivery of my Kia Carens turbo petrol MT: 8 pros & 6 cons

9th September 2022, 12:08 by Dev Shah

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Rear camera can be used even when reverse gear is not engaged, this is helpful during driving for monitoring vehicles from rear.

BHPian vishk12 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Introduction:

I was on the lookout for a 7-seater with a budget of ₹12 lakhs

Requirements:

Petrol engine - intend to keep the vehicle for long-term, keeping in mind the uncertainty on future of diesel engines.
Spacious and comfortable seats - have multiple members in our family.
Manual Transmission preferred.

Options available : (Hyundai Alcazar & XUV700 were out of budget)

Maruti Ertiga/XL6 - I learnt driving a car on my Uncle's Ertiga, so very familiar with vehicle performance/features. XL6 has only captain seats and not a 7-seater. Hence didn't test drive both the vehicles.
Kia Carens - Premium interiors, decent exterior looks, plethora of features, good vehicle driveability/engine performance.

Immediately booked a Kia Carens Prestige 1.5 Naturally Aspirated(NA) Engine(Ex-showroom price - ₹9,99,900) on 18th March, 2022 (no test drive vehicle for NA engine was available throughout Bangalore). Waiting period was ~48 weeks.

16 weeks passed and I needed a vehicle sooner, wasn't willing to wait further. Hence, upgraded my booking to Prestige Plus 1.4 Turbo Petrol(Ex-showroom price - ₹13,89,900) on July 14th, 2022 and extended my budget by ₹1.9 lakhs. My SA promised to deliver vehicle within 8 weeks.

Didn't choose DCT variant due to reliability issues & Carens doesn't have CVT or iMT transmission option.

A week later after repeated calls to SA, I got my vehicle alloted - Prestige Plus 1.4 Turbo petrol manual in Prestige Blue

Additional features in Prestige Plus when compared with Prestige Variant:

Powerful turbo engine (138bhp/242Nm vs 113bhp/144Nm torque).
16 inch alloy wheels vs 15 inch steel wheels.
Keyless entry with Push-button start.
Auto AC.
Cruise Control.
Electrically foldable ORVMs.
Rear defogger with rear wiper and washer.
1st & 2nd row cooled cup-holders.
Window curtains for 2nd row seats.

Buying experience:

I purchased the car through LeasePlan, informed my SA that payment will only be released after I do a PDI. Vehicle was bought to Kia Singasandra showroom, ODO showed 17km. Checked the car thoroughly for any scratches/dents/re-painting.

PDI pics:

Initiated paper formalities, took ~15 days to complete the documentation process along with car registration (multiple documents between LeasePlan, my employer and Dealer).
Blue Baby was delivered on 10th August, 2022

Car delivery pics:

Price details:

Base Price ₹9,58,551.72
CGST @ 14% ₹1,34,197.24
SGST @ 14% ₹1,34,197.24
Cess @ 17% ₹1,62,953.79
Ex-Showroow Price ₹13,89,900
TCS @ 1% ₹13,899
Road Tax/RTO ₹2,62,274
Registration Fee ₹2662
Accessories ₹19,047
Extended Warranty ₹23,877
Fasttag ₹500

TOTAL ₹17,12,159 (Phew!! taxes add upto ₹7,07,521.27)

Opted for extended warranty in 4th & 5th year, for stress-free ownership experience.

Completed the traditional pooja ceremony for the car and immediately started on ~250km short trip

Pooja pics:

Pros:

Decent reverse camera with dynamic guidelines.
Safety features - ESP, Traction Control, ABS with EBD, all wheel disc brakes, TPMS, 6 airbags.
Front parking sensors.
Rear camera can be used even when reverse gear is not engaged, this is helpful during driving for monitoring vehicles from rear.
Comfortable and spacious seats with AC vents & Type-C charging ports even in 3rd row. Best in segment 3rd row space.
Wireless Android Auto/Apple Carplay (variants above Prestige Plus don't have Wirelss AA or Carplay).
Good mileage and supremely refined engine.
No need for frequent tyre air-checks, TPMS works great.

Cons:

Frequent gear change from 2nd to 1st. If speed drops below 10kmph & even though car is in motion 1st gear needs to be engaged for pick-up. This wasn't the case on Ertiga and other vehicles I had driven earlier. Is it a characteristic of turbo engine?
Poor headlight throw.
Clutch travel is deep when compared to Ertiga.
Annoying clack sound when horn is pressed(no issue with horn sound though).
Speaker volume very low for 2nd/3rd row passengers.
Disappointing 3-star crash test rating.

All members in family were satisfied with car performance & comfort during the 1st short trip!