The 2023 Kia Carnival is a seven-seater minivan. It is now in its fourth generation, and it has two different variants for the Philippine market.
These include the Carnival SX AT, and the Carnival EX AT. Its prices range from Php 2,640,000 to Php 3,088,000.
Under the hood of the all-new Carnival is a 2.2-liter turbodiesel mill that can generate up to 200 horsepower and 440 Nm of torque. Both variants are front-wheel-drive, and both use an eight-speed automatic gearbox.
Size-wise, the new Carnival is 5,115mm long, 1,985mm wide, and 1,740mm in height. It also has a wheelbase length of 3,060mm.
Locally, the 2023 Kia Carnival rivals the Honda Odyssey, Hyundai Grand Starex, and GAC GN8, among others.
Launch
The Kia Carnival’s first-gen model was initially introduced as the Kia Sedona back in 2001. Later on, it reached other markets around the world as the Kia Carnival, Kia Grand Carnival, Hyundai Entourage, and as the Sedona.
For the Philippine market in 2022, it is now known as the Kia Carnival. It replaced the old third-gen model, and it comes in two different variants.
Kia Carnival Exterior
On the outside, the new Carnival 2023 offers a sophisticated-looking design with SUV-like qualities. It sports the new Kia logo, classy-looking C-Pillars, and a pair of sharp-looking headlamps. For the EX, it rides on a set of 18-inch wheels. The SX meanwhile, gets a larger 19-inch set.
Kia Carnival Interior
At most, the 2023 Kia Carnival Philippines can comfortably seat up to seven occupants. It features captain second row seats with leg rests, a wide bench-type third row seat, and plenty of cargo space. The front seats for the driver also come with electronic adjustment. All the seats are then clad leather or leatherette.
Access to the vehicle is also made easy with power sliding doors, and a power tailgate. Other features found inside the new Carnival is a sunroof, a 3-zone automatic climate control system, among others.
The driver is then provided with cruise control, a push-to-start button, and a digital gauge cluster.
Technology & Safety Features
Safety-wise, the Carnival Philippines gets a total of six airbags, a rear camera, anti-lock braking with electronic brake-force distribution, front and rear parking sensors, stability control, ISOFIX anchors, hill-start assist, among others.
Those standard safety features are then supported by blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, forward collision avoidance and lane keep assist.
Entertainment is handled by an eight-inch headunit with Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The said headunit is linked to a six-piece speaker system. The top-spec SX trim also comes with a wireless smartphone charger.
Platform & Chassis
The all-new 2023 Kia Carnival rides on the N3 platform which it shares with the Kia Sorento. For suspensions, it uses a MacPherson strut for the front, and a multi-link type for the rear. Braking is then handled by disc brakes for all four wheels. It also uses an electronic parking brake.
Kia Carnival Engine & Drivetrain
Under the hood of the new 2023 Carnival is a 2.2-liter turbodiesel engine capable of producing up to 200 horsepower and 440 Nm of torque. Power is then sent to the model’s front wheels through an eight-speed automatic gearbox.