Kia Carens 2013-2019 review | Low-cost seven-seater motoring

What is the Kia Carens?

The third-generation Kia Carens is a seven-seat people carrier that competes with the likes of the Ford Grand C-Max, the Vauxhall Zafira Tourer, the Renault Grand Scenic, and the Volkswagen Touran.

It was sold in the UK between 2013 and 2019, and came with Kia’s market-leading seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty. That was leaps and bounds ahead of the industry-standard three-year, 60,000-mile warranty offered by most competitors. This, coupled with Kia’s good reliability, made the Carens an appealing choice for those seeking stress-free ownership. It was also much better looking than the bland and boxy second-generation Carens, courtesy of a sleeker exterior.

While most examples available on the second-hand market have now outlived their original manufacturer warranty, the Carens remains a popular family MPV, thanks in large part to its strong reputation for reliability, as well as an excellent blend of comfort and versatility. The fact that it tends to cost less than the equivalent Volkswagen Touran or Toyota Verso is the icing on the cake.

How practical is it?

The Kia’s immensely versatile interior is its trump card. There are three individual middle-row seats, with built-in belts, and the outer seats tilt and slide to improve space and access to the rear. Behind those are two individually folding third-row seats, but they’re more for occasional use than anything else, because the space around them is on the tight side.

The outer second-row seats have Isofix child seat fixings, and there’s a multitude of storage points dotted around the cabin, including a standard-fit cooled glove box, and large door pockets and cup holders. Fold down the two rearmost seats and you have a hefty 492-litre boot.

One neat touch is that the roll-up luggage cover can be stored in its own compartment beneath the boot floor, which means it doesn’t have to be stashed away in a corner of the garden shed to serve as a cobweb magnet, never to be seen again. So if you’re inspecting a Carens that doesn’t appear to have its luggage cover, do check under the boot floor before coming to any conclusions.

The cabin is durable, if a little drab, and isn’t finished to quite the same fine degree as that of a Volkswagen. That’s more than made up for by the sheer ease of use, comfort, and flexibility, which will be of more importance to many buyers.

What's it like to drive?

This is where the Carens trails its rivals. It was designed to be more compelling than its predecessor, with suspension and steering tuned to deliver a more engaging and composed driving experience. It’s certainly comfortable and easy to drive, with light and precise controls, but it isn’t as capable or as polished as the Volkswagen Touran or the Ford Grand C-Max.

The entry-level engine is a 1.6-litre petrol called the Gamma GDi. It produces 133bhp and can generates a 0-60mph time of 10.9 seconds. In day-to-day driving it’s fine, but it can feel a little short on power at motorway speeds when the Carens is fully loaded.

The other option is a 1.7-litre CRDi diesel, in 114bhp or 134bhp outputs, and we reckon the latter is the best engine to spec your Carens with. Where the 114bhp model takes a leisurely 12.6 seconds to hit 62mph, the 134bhp model manages the same sprint in 10 seconds dead – and it comes with a useful dollop of mid-range torque that you’ll find very helpful when slugging up a hill with the boot full and the whole family on board.

The downside is that the diesel models can sound quite coarse, especially when they’re worked hard; diesel versions of rivals like the Volkswagen Touran and Ford Grand C-Max are much smoother.

Most examples of the Carens that were sold had a six-speed manual gearbox, but Kia offered a six-speed automatic version, too. Originally, this was only available bolted up to the more powerful diesel engine, and you could only have it in mid-range 2 or top-spec 4 form.

When the Carens was facelifted in 2016, it had a few very minor tweaks to the engine range. Firstly, the diesel version of the entry-level 1 was dropped, leaving only the petrol model on sale. Secondly, the more powerful diesel was endowed with a 5bhp power boost.

Finally, the earlier, rather dated automatic gearbox design was replaced with Kia’s newer, snappier seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, which made gearchanges faster and smoother. The older automatic gearbox isn’t bad, but it feels quite sluggish by comparison.

Technology, equipment & infotainment

Three trim levels were available when the Carens was launched. The entry-level 1 had LED daytime running lights, electric heated mirrors, air-conditioning, electric windows, cruise control and a six-speaker stereo with Bluetooth connectivity. The mid-level Carens 2 included 16-inch alloy wheels, tinted rear glass, chrome trim, automatic lights, electric folding mirrors, and dual-zone climate control.

The top-grade Carens 3 featured 17-inch wheels, a touchscreen infotainment system, a panoramic sun roof, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, second-row sun blinds and a reversing camera, among other improvements. A high-specification SR7 model was also briefly offered, while a 4 grade was introduced not long after the car was launched, which added luxuries including front- and rear parking sensors.

This, essentially, was the shape of the Carens range throughout its life, though in late 2016, a facelifted version was introduced, with mildly updated looks. Of greater note was the fact that equipment levels were shuffled across the range. The 1 now came with alloy wheels, while 2 models now had the touchscreen infotainment system (now with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto) as well as dual-zone climate control.

The 3 was actually less well equipped, as it lost the panoramic sunroof to the 4 grade, which also got a new parallel park assist system, in addition to a larger touchscreen and an upgraded JBL sound system.

No matter which model you choose, you’ll find the Carens is easy to get on with from within. Switchgear is clearly laid out in a way that’s about as intuitive as can be, and the touchscreen, while now looking rather dated, is at least pretty swift and easy to use. The only minor downside is that the steering wheel houses lots of buttons in higher-spec versions. Other than that, though, the Carens is simplicity itself.

Kia Carens running costs

Fuel bills shouldn’t prove too arduous with a Carens, though compared with some of its more modern rivals, the basic petrol model can get quite thirsty – expect to see around 35mpg on average in the real world, which is less than you’d get from a Ford Grand C-Max 1.0-litre.

By contrast, the entry-level diesel is capable of 45-50mpg on average, and more on a run. But we reckon it’s worth living with the 3-4mpg penalty you’ll incur by choosing the more powerful diesel model, simply because of the huge improvement in driving flexibility it offers.

Later, facelifted models are slightly more efficient. However, if you’re after a diesel Carens, you’ll need to weigh that improvement in efficiency with the higher tax rates that these versions incur, because the switch away from CO2-based tax rates meant most diesel models – the Carens included – ended up costing more to tax thereafter.

Conversely, petrol models registered after that date will actually set you back slightly less than those registered beforehand, as their higher emissions meant the new tax regime actually benefited them.

One thing you won’t have to worry about is the cost of changing the Carens’s timing belt – because it doesn’t have one. Instead, all Carens engines are fitted with a steel timing chain, which is designed to last the life of the car, and therefore doesn’t need changing with any regularity.

Kia does also offer a selection of service plans, for which the Carens is eligible. These allow you to pay for two or three years’ servicing in one go, at a slightly reduced rate, and therefore protect yourself from the cost of servicing rising with inflation. Prices vary, but you can get a quote online by entering the registration of the car you’re intending to buy.

Kia Carens reliability

You have little to worry about on the reliability front with used Kias, because the brand has a reputation for making reliable cars. It often fares very well when it comes to customer satisfaction, too, and while the Carens didn’t feature in the latest What Car? Reliability Study, the mechanically similar Venga came second out of the seven MPVs to be included, with an impressive 97.5% score.

What’s more, Kia came 8th out of the 30 carmakers that featured – a really strong result that placed it ahead of most of its mainstream rivals.

It’s still worth carefully inspecting any used Carens, though, because these cars are often used and abused by families, and sometimes neglected too. So examples whose service histories tell a story of careful maintenance, with interiors that are in good condition, are to be prized.

Keep an eye out for diesel examples that have been used primarily for short trips around town, because that can exacerbate wear and cause problems for the emissions control systems, known as the diesel particulate filter.