To exceed at anything demands effort be expended, with excellence in mind. Kia’s play on words infers a typical ‘X’ standing for ‘crossover’, which is currently the fastest growing segment of the new car scene. Despite the insinuation, supported by a 44mm ride height increase over the regular Ceed and the application of black wheel arch surrounds and underbody ‘skids’, the brilliance of XCeed is that I posit it as being closer to a spiritual five-door successor to the original Ford Capri.
In typical Kia form, the core trims are ‘2’ and ‘3’ and I shall cover the ‘First Edition’ in a subsequent report. With a pre-discount starter model (1.0 ‘2’; the silver car) priced at £20,795, there is no fear of driving an ill-equipped base version and a comprehensive specification will keep customer expectations on a high. Kia is extraordinarily clever at producing cars that people desire and the spritely, 118bhp 1.0-litre petrol engine, driving through a delicious 6-speed manual gearbox, delivers a 0-60mph dash in 10.9s, a top speed of 115mph, a readily achievable 45.6mpg and CO2 emissions posted at 124g/km (£170 road tax).
While the 1.0-litre is sure to be immensely popular, moving up to trim grade ‘3’ (the red car), which is also available for both 1.0-litre and 1.4-litre petrol engines, gave me the chance to appreciate Kia’s on-going support for diesel. I applaud Kia for not buckling to the present diesel antipathy, as its refined 1.6-litre CRDi unit with 6-speed manual gearbox is a true delight to experience both bottom-end punchiness and broadly similar performance figures to the 1.0-litre, albeit with a 118mph top whack, fuel economy potential of an official 52.3mpg (I attained 59mpg and feel that the mid-60s will be possible) and CO2 emissions of 109g/km (£170 road tax).
The step-up from ‘2’ to ‘3’ is noticeable, with 18.0-inch diameter alloy wheels (an increase of 2.0-inches), leatherette/cloth upholstery, automatic air-con, privacy glazing and sat-nav, working through a 10.25-inch touchscreen, and more besides. It is enough to justify the £4,550 price increase over the entry-level 1.0-litre. The mildly annoying but, fortunately, switchable steering assist (featured on both versions) is part of a comprehensive array of driver safety programs inherent to the XCeed, with the ‘3’ level gaining from more technology including pedestrian and cyclist detection for its collision avoidance system.
The entire XCeed family benefits from 20% enhanced damper and spring rates, which provide a significantly sportier ride quality than Ceed. If anything, the diesel, thanks to slightly heavier nose weight, is more dynamically improved and its electrically assisted power steering feels more connected. Yet, grip levels for both variants are exceptionally high and ‘roll-free’ cornering agility gives huge confidence to a press-on driver. With plenty of cabin space adjustability and a decent boot, the XCeed goes a long way towards exceeding Ceed expectations, which is surely what Kia always intended for its newcomer.
