The Kia Pro Cee’d is a 3 door version of the excellent Kia Cee’d, it sits 40mm lover than its big brother, and it certainly looks the part, the tiger grille, sweeping lines, long nose and massive doors give it a sporty look without being overly aggressive, but if you are after a firm riding ‘throw into corners’ car then the Pro Cee’d may not be for you, the car rides in a similar way to the regular car, which given the state of roads in the UK is only a good thing in our book. The Pro Cee’d is a practical runabout, comfortable for the two up front, yet a squeeze for rear passengers, the 360 litre boot space is the same size as the regular car but the lip is high and a bit narrow to get the golf clubs in without a push. If you are after a sheep in wolf’s clothing 3 door then the Pro Cee’d is an excellent rival to the Vauxhall Astra GTC.
The Pro Cee’d is in two versions, the ‘S’ and the ‘SE’ and they are very well equipped, the entry level ‘S’ comes with, 16” Alloy Wheels, Bluetooth with Voice Recognition & Music Streaming, LED Daytime Running Lights, Reversing Sensors,, Cruise Control, Electric Folding & Heated Door Mirrors, Leather Trimmed Steering Wheel and Gearshift, Privacy Glass and Chrome Window Surrounds. The SE adds 17” Alloy Wheels, Rain Sensing Front Wipers, 7” Touchscreen Satellite Navigation, Reversing Camera System, Engine Start /Stop Button with Smart Entry System, Power Lumbar Support and Dual Automatic Air Conditioning. The ‘SE’ model is our choice but it does attract a pricing premium; if your funds do not stretch then the ‘S’ offers an excellent cost effective option.
Two engines are available, the 133bhp petrol is confusingly badged as a GDi and the 126bhp diesel as CRDi, both are 1.6 litre in size and while the petrol performs well offering 0-62 times as quick as 9.5 seconds and economy of up to 52.3 miles per gallon, the diesel is the way to go: economy in ‘S’ trim of 74.3 miles per gallon, this drops to 65.7 miles per gallon in ‘SE’ trim due to larger wheels and slightly different gear ratios but it does mate the ‘SE’ a little faster off the line, 10.5 seconds 0-62 compared to 11.5 for the ‘S’ model. The dual clutch Automatic is available on the petrol engine (in SE only) that offers economy of 46.3 mpg but the £1999 advance payment is way too high, the Astra GTC is the Automatic choice.
Summer Best Buy – Kia Pro Cee’d ‘S’ CRDi 1.6 diesel (126bhp) 3 door hatchback 6 speed Manual - £99 Advance Payment
Summer Best Buy – Kia Pro Cee’d ‘SE’ CRDi 1.6 diesel (126bhp) 3 door hatchback 6 speed Manual - £999 Advance Payment