Kia Carens Interior

As the Carens sits low, ingress and egress is stress free even for senior citizens. You don’t have to climb in. Get inside and the first thing that will strike you is the quality of the interior. Build feels solid and fit and finish is excellent. Kia offers two tone interiors on the Carens and the navy blue shade on the dashboard is quite a standout. The 10.25 inch touch screen that sits in the centre of the dashboard, has crisp graphics and is a joy to use. There is a digital instrument cluster that changes colour according to the drive modes but I kind found it a little loud and flashy. There are lots of storage spaces around including ventilated cupholders in the centre and a pop out cupholder on the dash for the front passenger. There are roof mounted AC vents and that is the reason you get a standard size sunroof instead of a panoramic unit. The middle row passengers also get manual sun blinds and a foldable tray table on the left, along with a an air purifier on the right.

The front seats offer good support and are easy to find a suitable driving position. They get the ventilated function which a boon in our climate. The middle row gets the option of a bench or captain seats. Cushioning is excellent and you can recline as well as adjust the seat base to your liking. The large windows give the cabin a very airy feel as well.

Now let’s talk about the all important third row.  The left side middle row seat features a one touch electric tumble function making it easy to access the third row. What’s really good is the third row seat comfort. Two medium sized adults can sit without complaining and you don’t sit in the knee up position. The back rest of the third row can be adjusted as well.  The third row also gets cup holders and a Type C USB charger.

The extensive feature list of the Carens includes ventilated front seats, 64 colour ambient lighting, auto climate control, Bose sound system and connected car tech on the range topping versions. However it misses out on a panoramic sunroof, electric front seats and a 360 degree camera.

With all three rows up, the Carens offers 216 litres of boot space. Drop the third row seats down and that goes up to 645 litres. Once the second row tumbles down. It increases to a house moving 1164 litres.