The Kia Grand Carnival made its way to the Naza Kia
Red Cube showroom in Petaling Jaya. Two variants will be available to Malaysians – the
2.2D and 2.2D GS – with the former being priced at RM 153,888 while the
range-topper retails for RM 181,888. All prices mentioned here are on-the-road
with insurance, and come inclusive of a five-year/unlimited mileage
manufacturer’s warranty and Naza Kia’s ‘Value 5’ scheme.
Powering the Grand Carnival is a 2.2 litre CRDi
turbodiesel four-cylinder engine, providing 200 PS at 3,800 rpm and 440 Nm of
torque at 1,750 to 2,750 rpm. The mill is fitted on both the 2.2D, as well as
the 2.2D GS, and is paired with a six-speed automatic transmission.
On the exterior, all variants of the Grand Carnival
are fitted with projector halogen headlamps (with LED DRLs), front and rear fog
lamps, LED-type rear combination lamps, electric-folding side mirrors (with LED
indicators) and a shark fin antenna.
Both also come with 18-inch alloy wheels (with
235/60 section tyres), which differ from the chromed, 19-inch units that were
seen on the display car at MIECC. However, the 2.2D GS is differentiated from
the base spec thanks to a front grille that features high-gloss black and white
chrome accents, plus it comes with a roof rack.
Other items that are specific to the 2.2D GS include
power sliding doors, keyless operation (entry with push start) and a smart
power tailgate. These items are not found on the 2.2D, which instead gets a
manually-operated sliding door and a standard key fob.
Proceeding inside, you’ll find leather seats instead
of fabric ones in the base variant, along with a triple-zone automatic climate
control with cluster ioniser (manual adjustment on the 2.2D).
Beyond that, both cars have the same interior kit
list, where there is a 3.5-inch Supervision TFT-mono OLED instrument cluster,
4.3-inch TFT colour touchscreen entertainment system, rearview camera and six
speakers.
Additionally, the front seats are manually adjusted,
with lumbar support being available on the driver side. Second-row seats are
foldable in a 40:20:40 split, and can be slid forwards for easier access to the
third row. On that mention, the rearmost seats can be folded flat in a 50:50
split to accommodate larger cargo. All three seat rows have their own set of
ceiling-mounted air-con vents.
Safety-wise, six airbags (dual front, side and
curtain), front and rear parking sensors, Electronic Stability Control, ABS and
Hill Assist Control are standard on both variants. Also fitted are Isofix child
seat mounts, with two located at the second row (outer seats) and one more at the
third row (driver’s side).