2019 Kia Cerato Hatch

So are you getting the same vibe that Kia are creating some pretty cool cars at reasonable prices?  Recently released for 2019 is the Kia Cerato Hatch that looks pricier than the $25k price tag would suggest.  All the necessary bells and whistles are present inside what is a pretty snazzy hatchback, and there are various model trims to choose between.  Maybe I’m showing my age a bit, but a lot of the modern stuff we buy can have a bit of a cheap feel about it.  Kia’s new Cerato Hatch definitely looks like it should wear well and it has a beautiful modern manner to its design, and interior and exterior style will be pleasing for most people’s tastes.

What’s the new Cerato Hatch up against?  It goes head-to-head with the likes of the Toyota Corolla and the Mazda 3, and these are both very well thought out cars with great engineering.  It’s pleasing to see that, yes, the Cerato has nice exterior lines but it also has an upmarket feel to the interior, be it simplistic and very functional.

The chunky little Kia Cerato Hatch is solid and strong, accommodating five occupants easily.  Occupant space is good, and for most people the leg, head and shoulder room will be good.  The back seats have a fold down arm rest in the middle of the seat backing which also has cupholders.  Three kids in the back are very comfortable, and fitting child seats is easy.  Three big blokes in the back might feel a little squashed up, but just two in the rear would have good levels of room.

Base models have a nice cloth trim that looks good, with the Sport models having cloth with accented stitching.  Definitely good for a few hours behind the wheel, the seats are supportive in the right places with good support.  Even with a low drive away price you can still get things like a leather steering wheel and a good size touchscreen with all the apps you really want.  Short cut buttons are lined up underneath the display, and these are nice and easy to use, getting you quickly to the desired areas of the menu items very swiftly.

2019 Kia Cerato Hatch

A couple of cup holders are located at the front, and there is a compartment for keys, phones and other devices in front of the gear leaver.  Bottle holders in each door makes for good hydration practices, while a deep centre console bin and sizeable glovebox will swallow plenty of paraphernalia for long journeys.  Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come standard.  Voice control works well for receiving and sending text messages.  A USB point can be used to plug your phone into the infotainment system, whereupon the apps on your phone will appear on the centre dash touchscreen display so that they can then be controlled via touch or voice.

Out on the road the new Kia Cerato Hatch rides nicely with easy, accurate steering and plenty of surety through the corners.  The 2.0-litre petrol motor is free revving and has enough oomph to keep up with motorway traffic, with some in reserve should you require more.  This motor is used extensively throughout the model range and can be linked with a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic.  The DOHC, MPI motor puts out as much as 112 kW and has a healthy 192 Nm which comes on nice and strong above 3500 rpm.  Fuel efficiency isn’t its strongest point but it will return around 7.5 litres/100 km for most everyday driving.  A Ford Focus or Toyota Corolla equivalent will easily get a better fuel efficiency result, however.

For those of you who would like a little more get-up-and-go, then the Kia Cerato Hatch GT will be the model for you.  This is the one that boasts the punchy 1.6 Turbo petrol engine with 150 kW of power at 6000 rpm and 265 Nm of torque from between 1500 – 4500 rpm.  You can really get lively with this engine, and the chassis and brakes cope really well with the extra grunt.  A DCT gearbox works in tandem with the 1.6 Turbo motor to provide quick acceleration across the board.

One of the nice features about a modern car is that air-conditioning is pretty much a given in any new car.  The 2019 Kia Cerato Hatch does have this feature even in base models, and though there are no vents for back seat passengers the air circulates throughout the cabin efficiently with a nice flow of fresh air (cooled or hot) as passenger’s needs arise.

Luggage space is excellent and you’ll easily be able to fit suitcases or a pram inside the luggage bay behind the rear seats.  Fold the rear seats forward and carrying capacity grows big.  With the rear seats in place there is 473 litres to fill.  For a small car the new Cerato Hatch offers great space.

Driving around town is a pleasant experience, as the Cerato soaks up the bumps well.  But it’s also easy to manoeuvre around town with its smaller dimensions.  It might not be a popular, bulky SUV, but it has ways of wooing the heart with its other endearing features.  It comes with a reversing camera which is a really great safety feature.  And speaking of safety, the 2019 Kia Cerato Hatch boasts five stars.  Front, front side, and curtain airbags that extend through to the back row are standard on all models.  Auto emergency braking is also an excellent safety feature on-board all Cerato Hatchbacks.  Higher end models get things like pedestrian and cyclist detection, blind spot monitoring and cross traffic alert though low end models can have this with the safety pack option ($1500).  Two Isofix points for kids car seats are standard on all the models.

This brand new Cerato Hatch has a nice looking exterior with smooth, efficient lines, and nice detailing.  Sport models get twin exhaust outlets, a spoiler and a nice set of mags.  You do have a head-turning design in much the same way as the new Corolla also can pull heads.  For the price, however, the new Kia Cerato Hatch looks great and is seriously good value for money.

2019 KIa Cerato Hatch

The 2019 Kia Cerato Hatch models include the:

• Kia Cerato Hatch S
• Kia Cerato Hatch Sport
• Kia Cerato Hatch GT

For any more information on the new Kia Cerato Hatch or, for that matter, any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181.  If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of Kia dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours.  Private Fleet – car buying made easy!