Kia News
Kia Pro_Cee'd

Introducing the new Kia Pro_Cee'd

· The only three-door in Europe with a seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty

· Dynamic design; European styling; a sporting first for Kia

· Third model for the European-only cee'd family

· iPod compatibility, USB port, AUX. input and MP3 capability as standard

· Pricing starts at under £12,000, on-the-road

· Designed and built in Europe

And then there were three. Kia today introduces the third member of its European-designed, European-built cee'd family – the stylish, sporty and dynamic three-door pro_cee'd.

pro_cee'd is built at Kia's state-of-the-art factory at Zilina in Slovakia alongside the cee'd fivedoor family hatchback, the stylish cee'd SW estate and the Sportage compact SUV – recently transferred from Korea. Like them, it benefits from Kia's unique, industry-best seven-year, 100,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty.

pro_cee'd remains faithful to the concept car of the same name that Kia exhibited at the Paris Motor Show in 2006. Unlike the three-door cars from the majority of rival manufacturers, it is a unique sporty model in its own right – longer, lower and lighter than the five-door cee'd. Only

the bonnet and front wings are transferable between the two. A long, 2650mm wheelbase is common to all cee'd body styles, but the overall length of pro_cee'd is 15mm greater (12mm at the front; 3mm at the rear) than the five-door.

Combined with a 30mm reduction in overall height, it gives pro_cee'd an elongated, low, coupe-like stance, an impression reinforced by the 245mm longer side doors compared with the five-door cee'd, and the subtly sporty rooftop spoiler.

pro_cee'd will attract fashionable but value-conscious customers who have never previously even considered a Kia – and they won't be disappointed. The practical, commonsense values that have always been part of Kia's DNA have not been abandoned. The key differences inside pro_cee'd are a lower roofline and larger side doors, plus a rear seat that has been totally redesigned to enhance usability with the three-door body.

The shallower windscreen, lower roof lining, big side doors and slimmer glasshouse give pro_cee'd a sporty, cockpit-like feel that seems more driver-focused. The lower roofline marginally reduces headroom compared with the five-door car, but it remains very competitive with similar models from rival manufacturers.

To boost practicality and make it easy for owners to enlarge the luggage area despite the absence of rear side doors, Kia engineers have restyled the rear seat, which now has a fixed cushion in place of the forward-folding split system in cee'd. The 60:40 split rear backrest has been re-engineered so that it is easy to release and simply folds down onto the cushion, with no need to first remove the headrests. The resulting load floor extension is stepless.

Access to the rear is aided by a front door which opens in three stages to a maximum width of  70-degrees and new front seats with a top-mounted handle which can be used to tilt the backrest. As it does so, the whole seat also slides forward in one smooth, continuous movement. A memory function ensures the seat reclines to the exact position it was in previously.

Kia plans a seven-model pro_cee'd line-up based on five engines and three trim levels that will ensure 70per cent engine coverage of the UK three-door C-segment market.

There will be no price differentiation between the three-door pro_cee'd and five-door cee'd, contrary to the course taken by the majority of rivals for whom three-door cars are often seen as poor relations. However, pro_cee'd will feature additional equipment over the equivalent five-door model.

Air conditioning and alloy wheels are standard on every pro_cee'd, while a sports equipment pack is fitted to the two upper model series.

There will be no entry-level S specification as in cee'd. pro_cee'd will be offered with just the three upper trim grades, equivalent to GS, LS and a new Sport version that Kia will introduce to the five-door cee'd shortly after the pro_cee'd launch. To reflect the latest nomenclature trends introduced on the revised Picanto and within the industry, three-door models will adopt pro_cee'd 2, pro_cee'd 3 and pro_cee'd Sport badges.

With 1.4- and 1.6-litre petrol engines, two 1.6-litre diesels and a 2.0-litre diesel, and the availability of manual and automatic gearboxes in the range, pro_cee'd offers something for everyone.

The 1.6-litre diesel engines are the CRDi units introduced in December 2006 for the cee'd hatchback. They were designed and engineered in Europe, and are offered in two states of tune. All pro_cee'd engines are Euro-4 compliant.

At public launch on February 1, buyers will be able to select from the two 1.6 diesels, Kia's advanced 1.6-litre petrol engine and the Korean-built torquey and smooth 2.0-litre turbodiesel.

A 1.4-litre petrol engine – a smaller version of the 1.6 – will become available a short time afterwards. A four-speed automatic gearbox is an option with the 1.6-litre petrol engine.

Like the five-door cee'd hatchback, pro_cee'd has the comparative rarity in this class of independent front and rear suspension, to the benefit of ride and handling, and comes as standard with the latest electronic braking aids to protect and assist owners in the most arduous weather conditions and potentially dangerous manoeuvres.

Equipment levels are generous, even on pro_cee'd 2 versions – and that is before you take into account its value-for-money pricing and industry-best seven-year warranty. Move up to the pro_cee'd 3 or pro_cee'd Sport and the list of standard items is nothing short of lavish.

Full on-the-road price list for the new Kia pro_cee'd:

1.4-litre 2 104 @ 6200 rpm 137 @ 5000 rpm 145 46.3 £11,795

1.6-litre 2 124 @ 6300 rpm 154 @ 4200 rpm 152 44.1 £12,295

1.6-litre CRDi 2 89 @ 4000 rpm 235 @ 1750-2500 rpm 125 60.1 £13,045

1.6-litre 3 124 @ 6300 rpm 154 @ 4200 rpm 152 44.1 £13,295

1.6-litre auto 3 124 @ 6300 rpm 154 @ 4200 rpm 166 40.4 £14,295

1.6-litre CRDi 3 113 @ 4000 rpm 255 @ 1900-2750 rpm 126 58.9 £14,295

2.0-litre CRDi Sport 138 @ 4000 rpm 305 @ 1800-2500 rpm 149 50.4 £15,495

NB: Metallic paint is available as an option on all models at £360