The Kia Carnival facelift has been launched in South
Korea, which benefits from a range of visual and equipment enhancements. In its
native market, the big MPV is available in seven-, nine- and eleven-seat
configurations.
Design-wise, the Carnival gains a revised grille
that is joined by new LED headlamps and “ice cube” style LED fog lamps. Lesser
variants are equipped with halogen projector headlamps (with LED DRLs) and fog
lamps instead.
At the back, there are new graphics of the LED
taillight clusters, and depending on the number of seats, two different bumper
designs. Eleven-seat versions will get a skid guard-esque look, while seven-
and nine-seat models get a diffuser-like element with a more prominent
reflector/rear fog lamp setup.
Power sliding rear doors continue to be available
here, which can now be opened with a push of a button on the handle. Moving
inside, the foot-operated parking brake has been replaced with an electronic
one, there’s now an 8-inch touchscreen UVO 3.0 infotainment system and wireless
smartphone charging.
Other available equipment includes an eight-speaker
Krell premium sound system, surround view monitor and a 220-volt power port.
The Kia Drive Wise safety and driver assistance system suite now has an
adaptive cruise control function along with high beam assist, lane departure
warning and front collision avoidance assistance.
Under the bonnet, the Korean-spec Carnival can be
fitted with either a 2.2 litre turbodiesel engine with (202 hp and 441 Nm of
torque) or a 3.3 litre GDI petrol with 280 hp and 336 Nm. A new eight-speed
automatic transmission is now used instead of the previous six-speed unit.
