Kia Cerato is a front-wheel-drive golf-class sedan (aka the C segment according to the European classification), combining: expressive design, a good set of consumer qualities and modern technical "stuffing" ... Its target audience is not limited by any strict framework - the car is addressed to both young people and married couples (often with one or more children), and elderly people ...
The world premiere of the three-volume (called Kia Forte) of the next, fourth in a row, generation took place in January 2018 - at the stands of the international auto show in Detroit, while in the Russian specification (and already under the name Cerato) it debuted only at the end of August - as part of the Moscow Motor Show.
After the "reincarnation", the four-door "matured" outwardly, enlarged in size, received a completely new interior, "armed" with modernized technology and acquired a large number of new options ... But if for other countries the sedan was also equipped with new motors and gearboxes, then in Russia they left in build "atmospheric", familiar from the model of the third generation.
Outside, "Cerato" of the fourth incarnation demonstrates an attractive, harmonious, moderately emotional, but moderately solid appearance - of course, the car does not excite the mind, but the eye catches.
The most interesting perspective is strictly full-face, because the car most of all resembles a Stinger: frowning lighting technology (in the "top" version - LED), a narrow "tiger's mouth" of the radiator grille and a raised bumper with air intakes.
But from other sides, the three-volume can not be reproached for being inconspicuous - a dynamic silhouette with a rearward-shifted interior, a falling roofline that turns into a powerful rear pillar, and expressive sidewalls and a taut rear with graceful lanterns connected by a red stripe, and sections of turn signals and reverse located on the bumper.
The "fourth" Kia Cerato is a representative of the C-class according to European standards: its length is 4640 mm, width - 1800 mm, height - 1440 mm. The wheelbase of the car extends by 2,700 mm, and its ground clearance is 150 mm.
In the "stowed" state, the sedan weighs from 1178 to 1320 kg, depending on the version.
The interior of "Cerato" of the fourth generation looks beautiful, balanced and solidly in a European way - "plump" three-spoke multi-steering wheel, exemplary "instrumentation" with several analogue dials and a display of the onboard computer between them and a minimalistic center console that flaunts a protruding 8-inch media center touchscreen, ventilation deflectors and a modern microclimate unit.
In addition, the interior of the car is distinguished by good quality materials and workmanship.
The 2019 Kia Cerato interior is designed to accommodate five adults, with ample space provided in both rows of seats. At the front, the sedan is equipped with ergonomic seats with distinct lateral support bolsters, moderately hard filling and wide adjustment intervals (for the driver - including height), and at the back - a comfortable sofa with an optimal profile.
The trunk of a four-door in a normal state is capable of "absorbing" 502 liters of luggage. The second row of seats, divided into several sections, folds down and opens an opening for transporting long items. The car's underground niche contains a spare wheel and a set of tools.
In the Russian market, Kia Cerato of the fourth incarnation is provided with two four-cylinder gasoline "aspirated" MPI in-line configurations, an aluminum block and cylinder heads, distributed fuel injection, a low-noise timing chain, a plastic intake manifold with variable geometry and variable intake and exhaust phases:
- By default, the car is equipped with a 1.6-liter engine that develops 128 horsepower at 6300 rpm and 155 Nm of torque at 4850 rpm.
- The "top" versions are powered by a 2.0 liter engine that produces 150 hp. at 6500 rpm and 192 Nm of peak thrust at 4800 rpm.
The "junior" unit is combined with a 6-speed "mechanics" or 6-band hydromechanical "automatic", which direct all the potential to the wheels of the front axle, while the "senior" relies exclusively on an automatic transmission.
At the heart of the "fourth" Kia Cerato is a modernized front-wheel drive "bogie" of its predecessor with a transversely mounted motor and a power structure of the body, more than half of which consists of high-strength steel grades.
At the front, the car is equipped with an independent MacPherson-type suspension with anti-roll bar, and at the rear - a semi-independent architecture with a torsion beam and hydraulic shock absorbers.
The sedan is equipped with a rack and pinion steering mechanism, in which an electric power steering is integrated. Disc brakes are applied on all three-volume wheels: on the front axle - 280 mm, ventilated, and on the rear - 262 mm (already in the "base" - with ABS, EBD, BAS).
In the Russian market, the "fourth" Kia Cerato in 2018 can be purchased in five equipment options - "Comfort", "Luxe", "Prestige", "Premium" and "Premium +".
A car in the basic configuration costs a minimum of 1,049,900 rubles - this is how much you have to pay for a version with a 1.6-liter engine and a 6-speed manual transmission (the surcharge for an “automatic” is 40,000 rubles, and for a “four” of 2.0 liters - 70,000 rubles).
Nominally, the four-door is equipped with: six airbags, air conditioning, ABS, four power windows, ERA-GLONASS technology, heated front seats, heated and electrically adjustable side mirrors, "music" with six columns and other modern "gadgets".
A sedan in the "top" version will cost from 1,359,900 rubles, and its privileges include: dual-zone climate control, front and rear parking sensors, fog lights, leather interior trim, cruise control, heated steering wheel and rear sofa, media center with 8-inch touchscreen, rear-view camera, 17-inch alloy rollers, keyless entry function, LED headlights, blind spot monitoring, power driver's seat and much more.
