The new Kia Rio has been revealed ahead of its Paris Motor Show debut.
With a new exterior and interior design, it is defined by ‘straight lines and smooth surfacing’, giving the car a distinctive, ‘confident’ new look.
At the front, the Rio displays the latest evolution of Kia’s ‘tiger-nose’ grille, now thinner in height and wider across the front of the car. Integrated bi-function projection headlamps – also thinner and more sculpted than those of its predecessor – project a new U-shaped LED light signature. Changes to the front of the car, including moving the fog lamps’ position outwards within the front bumper, are designed to add greater visual width for a more stable overall look, says Kia.
The Rio’s lengthened, balanced stance is achieved with a long bonnet and longer front overhang, a 10 mm longer wheelbase, a thinner, more upright C-pillar, and a shorter rear overhang. Overall, the new car is 15mm longer than its predecessor (now 4,065mm long), and 5mm lower in height (to 1,450mm). Straight, defined lines run down the full length of the car’s shoulder and along its doors, further stretching the appearance of the car.
The rear section of the Rio is now described by Kia as more upright, with a near-vertical rear windscreen and a shorter overhang. The straight line that runs from the grille, through the headlamps and along the top of the doors, continues around the back of the car, paired with thinner, more sculpted rear lamps, which now feature a new arrow-shaped LED light signature. Like the wider-looking ‘face’ of the car, the rear design of the new Rio gives it a stronger overall appearance.
A new, modern cabin design, is more ergonomic in layout than its predecessor and like the exterior, straight lines run the width of the dashboard and characterise the shape of the interior. The dashboard itself is now angled towards the driver, and at its centre is a new infotainment system, a ‘floating’ HMI (human-machine interface), with a high-resolution touchscreen to power the Rio’s audio, navigation and new connectivity systems. The new HMI has allowed Kia to reduce the number of buttons on the centre console.
The new Rio is available with a choice of black or grey cloth seat upholstery, or with black or grey faux leather. A ‘Red Pack’ gives buyers black with red faux leather-trimmed seats throughout the cabin. The cabin itself features gloss black and metallic trim throughout, for a more modern finish.
The next generation Kia Rio will enter production towards the end of 2016 for the UK.