New Kia Ceed Sportswagon

THE new Ceed Sportswagon has just gone on sale in Ireland, joining the all new Ceed 5-door model that arrived in July . Designed, developed, engineered and built in Europe, this third-generation model is the most practical, spacious and versatile Ceed Sportswagon to date – with more cabin and cargo space than its predecessor..

A C-segment tourer designed to meet the needs of European motorists exclusively, more than 512,000 Ceed Sportswagon models have been built at Kia’s Slovakia manufacturing facility since its introduction in 2007. Historically, Sportswagon models have accounted for around 40% of all Ceed sales – compared to around 30% for other C-segment vehicles with tourer variants.

The new model’s body echoes the sporty design character of the Stinger, bringing design flair to the compact tourer class with emotive and precise details to its confident tourer silhouette. Lower, wider, and with a longer rear overhang than the car it replaces, the new Ceed Sportswagon is characterised by a cab-rearward silhouette, creating a mature athleticism in its overall design. Like its five-door hatchback counterpart, straight lines replace the rounded-off edges of its predecessor, and the front features a wider ‘ tiger-nose’ grille and lower air intake, framed by precise, linear shapes. The new model features ‘ice cube’ LED daytime running lights as standard, echoing those from the outgoing Sportswagon GT-Line.

The new platform supports the Ceed Sportswagon’s more efficient packaging, with a more spacious cabin than before. The wider body creates greater shoulder room for rear passengers while a 15mm-lower seating position in the rear creates more knee and leg room for passengers in the second row. Despite the lower roofline, the platform and lowered front seating position ensure 987mm of frontrow headroom, similar to its predecessor. The lower rear bench also ensures similar levels of headroom for rear passengers.

The new Ceed Sportswagon also boasts significantly higher cargo capacity than ever before. The boot is 72 litres (14%) larger than the outgoing model, expanding to 600 litres in capacity – larger than most D-segment tourers. The boot lip is also substantially lower – the lower lift-over height compared to the outgoing Ceed makes it easier to load heavier items into the boot.

The new Ceed Sportswagon has been engineered exclusively for European roads, with European buyers in mind. The ride and handling characteristics of the new model have been tuned to elevate the Ceed over its predecessor in terms of dynamism and driver engagement. The new fully-independent suspension system will provide drivers with more agile and immediate handling responses, complemented by revised spring and damper rates and a faster steering rack. The new Ceed Sportswagon shares the same 1.0-litre T- GDi (turbocharged petrol direct injection) as the five-door hatchback. This T- GDi engine is fitted with a particulate filter to further reduce tailpipe emissions, ensuring the new Ceed Sportswagon goes beyond the requirements of the Euro 6d TEMP standard.

The new Ceed Sportswagon is also available with Kia’s all-new ‘ U3’ diesel engine. Designed to go beyond the stricter limits laid down by the latest Euro 6d TEMP emissions standard, the new ‘ U3’ 1.6-litre CRDi 115 PS (common-rail direct injection) uses Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) active emissions control technology to significantly reduce emissions. The new engine produces less carbon dioxide, particulate matter and NOx compared to earlier Kia diesel engines. The new 1.6-litre diesel produces 280 Nm of torque, providing effortless acceleration in all conditions..

The Ceed SW comes to Ireland inititally in just one trim level K3 available in one litre petrol (€25,295) and 1.6D ( €27,595 ).