Quick review: Kia Rio 1.4 TEC auto

By Ané Theron

A new six-speed automatic gearbox replaces the four-speed unit in the latest Kia Rio hatch. We drive Kia's much-loved B-segment hatchback.

Styling

The Kia Rio's looking very sensual and shapely these days, thanks to Peter Schreyer and his team working closely with the Koreans. It has already scooped up the prestigious international iF Product Design Award and Red Dot Design Award, and has been a consistent favourite in the local Kia line-up.

On the inside, the predominantly black interior looks and upmarket and stylish, with everything within easy reach and logical to operate.

The drive

Smooth and supple, the Rio has very little lean in the corners. While I would probably have preferred slightly chunkier tyres than these 17-inch alloys with a 45-profile, it does give the handling a bit more edge, though, and complements the light but direct steering. 

Performance

Compared to its rivals like the 1.0-litre turbocharged VW Polo and Ford Fiesta, the 1.4-litre non-turbo engine Rio lacks a certain vitality, but it's not what I would call lazy, it's just not going to get your heart racing with its 74 kW and 135 Nm. Kia says that the obligatory 0-100km/h sprint is up from from 13.2 seconds to 12.9 seconds, while its top speed has risen from 166 to 175 km/h. I drove in a rather sedate manner most of the time to keep fuel costs to a minimum. While the six-speed gearbox is not of the dual-clutch variety, it does its job like it's supposed to, and is a major improvement over the previous 4-speeder.

Space & comfort

The cabin is decidedly spacious, even for long-legged folk in the rear, and luggage space is generous at 325 litres. And you don't need the flagship Rio TEC model, tested here, to have access to all the niceties:

The mid-spec Rio 1.4 LX comes with air-conditioning, electric windows, electric side mirrors, central locking with an alarm and immobiliser, a radio system with RDS as well as MP3, auxiliary and USB connectivity, six speakers, steering wheel-mounted remote audio controls, a rear USB charging port, rake and reach adjustable steering, automatic headlight control, front fog lights, LED Daytime Running Lights and 15-inch alloy wheels, among others.

The Rio  1.4 EX also gets projection headlamps and LED rear combination lamps, as well as a 7-inch Touchscreen Infotainment System that incorporates a rear- park assist system with integrated rear-view camera, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The top-of-the-range Rio 1.4 TEC gets 17-inch alloy wheels, rain-sensing windscreen wipers, cruise control, an electro-chromatic rear-view mirror, alloy pedals and leather seats.

Safety

While there's still not traction or stability control on local models, the Rio has ABS and EBD with six airbags, which isn't to be sneezed at in this segment.

Fuel consumption

Still naturally-aspirated, Kia's 1.4-litre Gamma engine is not wildly frugal. After getting consumption figures of 4.8 litres per 100 km in the 1.5-litre diesel Duster, the 7.8-8l/100 km (combined) petrol usage of the Rio was a little disappointing, but fuel consumption may improve with time.

Price  

The Kia Rio 1.4 TEC auto is priced at R311 995 and you do get plenty of bang for your buck. However, you can also get a Volkswagen Polo hatch 1.0TSI Comfortline R-Line auto for R 310 050, but you're going to fork out extra if you want features like leather seats, the rearview camera and cruise control, for example.

Verdict

The Rio is superbly comfortable, spacious, well-bolted together and laden with convenience features. While not cheap, it does carry a better warranty than its main rival, the VW Polo, and is rather nice to look at too. It's hard to find fault with the Rio if stylish, reliable motoring is what you're after.

A note on reliability...

The 2018 J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study  ranks the KIA Rio as the leader in the Small Car category. This study examines problems reported in the last year by original owners of three-year old vehicles (2015 model year). The Rio had the least amount of problems/complaints per 100 vehicles.

“The Rio’s stellar performance in this study – which relates to one of the biggest automotive markets in the world – should be no surprise to South African owners of our bestselling Rio, which is sourced from the same world-class assembly,” says Gary Scott, CEO of KIA Motors South Africa. To read the review of the 2015 Kia Rio, click here. 

For a more recent Kia Rio review from February 2018, click here.