Kia Stonic: Everything You Need To Know

The all-new Kia Stonic is the brands latest addition to their growing SUV range. The new Kia Stonic is a compact SUV and hopes to cash in on a fast-growing market.

The Kia Stonic is the brand's entry to the compact SUV segment. The compact SUV segment is a rapidly growing market, with over 1.1m new car sales in Europe each year, which will soon rise as a wider variety of vehicles from different manufacturers are set to join the compact SUV class.

Kia expects to sell 70,000 Stonic models across Europe in 2018 and hopes to rise to 100,000 later in the Stonics life. Could the Kia Stonic beat the likes of the Nissan Juke and Volkswagen's new T-Roc?

Here's everything you need to know about the new Kia Stonic.

Kia Stonic: Pricing

The Kia Stonic will be priced from £16,295 and will range all the way up to £20,495 for top spec models. In comparison to rival vehicles it sits in the middle, for example, the Nissan Juke is priced from £14,625, whereas the new Volkswagen T-Roc is priced from £19,610.

Kia Stonic Car Leasing Offers

Although it may cost a bit more than some rival vehicles, the specification levels - even lower spec levels - are pretty generous. Every model of the Stonic gets 17-inch alloy wheels, all-round electric windows, roof rails, rear parking sensors and more advanced features are included as standard.

Kia Stonic: Exterior and Design

Kia's new Stonic compact SUV will go up against the likes of the Nissan Juke and the Renault Captur, and with the compact-SUV market already accounting for 1.1 million sales across Europe, the Stonic may prove to be a popular model against rival vehicles.

The Stonic is sort of the middle-ground between vehicles currently on offer. The extreme end of the spectrum you have the rather bulky and frog-looking Nissan Juke, towards the modest end of the spectrum, you have the Renault Captur, the Stonic sort of sits between them as a bit more of a conventional, sensible but still fun vehicle.

The Stonic has taken on a square design similar to that seen on the Skoda Yeti, but the Tiger grille and slim lights really do bring a modern touch to the Stonic and make it stand out from competitor vehicles.

Towards the rear of the car, Kia has done something rather odd, but actually, quite a nice design feature - The C pillar on the Kia Stonic is designed so that it seems to wrap over the back of the roof, this is more prominent when the contrasting roof colour is chosen

Overall the Stonic on the outside and the overall design compliments Kia's current design language as well as giving a more modest alternative to current compact SUVs on the market.

Kia Stonic: Interior and Technology

The interior of the Stonic is pretty much identical to that in the Kia Rio, albeit more comfortable due to the increased height of the Stonic. One thing worth noting about the interior of Kia's new vehicle line-up - and the Stonic in particular - is that the instruments are clear and well proportioned.

One thing to note though is that the quality of materials used on the interior may not be as good as rival vehicles. Kia models in the past have been laid out great with a good balance of buttons as well as new technology, but one area Kia seems to lack is of material quality.

Another thing to note about the Kia Stonic and all compact SUVs for that matter is that it's more about the design and feel of the vehicle than it is practicality. The rear seats are 'okay', much like the Nissan Juke there isn't a significant amount of leg or headroom, so taller passengers may find things a bit cramped.

Setting aside the few niggles, the Stonic comes with pretty generous standard equipment, this includes; an integrated seven-inch touchscreen - including Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and SAT-NAV. Other standard features include air conditioning, parking sensors and Bluetooth.

Some great things about the Kia Stonic that make it stand out against rivals is that you get a 7" touchscreen as standard with loads of features like DAB radio, smartphone mirroring and other features mentioned above, smartphone mirroring enables drivers to mirror their smartphone display onto the infotainment screen, so if you decide to go for an entry-level model with no SAT-NAV you'll still be able to use your phone's SAT-NAV with the infotainment screen.

Overall, the interior of the Kia Stonic holds its own against rivals. Although it may lack in some areas - e.g. the cheap plastics - it makes up for it with the technology it has to offer.

Kia Stonic: Safety and Driver Assistance

The Kia Stonic is still awaiting its Euro NCAP tests, but if its anything to go by, the Rio - which it is closely based on - scored five stars due to its optional Advanced Driving Assistance packs.

Without the Driving Assistance pack the Rio scored three stars, though the raised drive height may bring a better rating for the Stonic.

As standard the Stonic gets six airbags, ISOFIX points for the rear seats, hill start assist and stability control.
The First Edition of the Kia Stonic comes with autonomous emergency braking and lane-departure warning systems as standard along with blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert.

Kia Stonic: Engines and Performance

Engines on offer in the Kia Stonic are a 1.0-litre petrol, which will probably prove to be the best seller. The 1.0-litre petrol engine has a turbocharger which gives it a power output of 118bhp, 20bhp more than the 1.4.

Other engines on offer are a 1.4-litre petrol and a 1.6-litre diesel engine. The diesel engine produces 108bhp and can go from 0-60mph in 10.9 seconds. Although it may have more power than the 1.0 petrol engine the petrol will offer a more fun and fulfilling drive for this type of car.

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