Check out the top differences between the soon-to-launch Kia Carens and one of its biggest indirect rivals, Hyundai Alcazar
Kia recently debuted the Carens MPV in India, as the brand’s fourth product for our market. The vehicle will be locally manufactured in India, and its launch is set for early 2021. Regular readers would know that the Carens is closely related to Hyundai Alcazar, as both are based on a common platform.
However, there are plenty of differences between Kia Carens and Hyundai Alcazar, which we’ve listed below.
1. Exterior styling
The design of Kia Carens is completely unique; it sports split LED headlamps, sporty alloy wheels, wraparound LED taillights (connected by a red stripe), and a thick D-pillar. As for Hyundai Alcazar, it is essentially a long-wheelbase version of the Creta, with a few minor changes – updated front grille, different alloy wheels, restyled taillights, etc.
2. Interior styling
The cabin of the Carens has a completely unique design as well, not shared with other Kia models. The dashboard has a flat front and goes quite deep, and the materials look extremely premium. The Alcazar, on the other hand, has the same cabin design as the Creta for the most part. Both vehicles are available in 6-seat and 7-seat configurations.
3. Different engine options
The Carens gets the same three engine options as Kia Seltos – a 1.5-litre NA petrol (115 PS/144 Nm), a 1.4-litre turbo-petrol (140 PS/242 Nm), and a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol (115 PS/250 Nm). A 6-speed manual transmission comes standard on all three, while automatic gearbox options include a 7-speed DCT on the 1.4L petrol engine and a 6-speed AT on the 1.5L diesel engine.
Hyundai Alcazar has two engine options on offer – a 2.0-litre NA petrol (159 PS/191 Nm) and a 1.5-litre turbo-diesel (115 PS/250 Nm) – both available with a choice between a 6-speed MT and a 6-speed AT. While the diesel engine is the same as the Kia MPV, the petrol engine of the Hyundai SUV is larger and has more power.
4. Different convenience features
The Carens gets a single-pane sunroof and electrically-tumbling second-row seats, while the Alcazar gets a panoramic sunroof and manual one-touch-tumble feature for the second row. Also, the instrument cluster of the Carens is a digitised cluster (similar to Hyundai i20), while the Alcazar gets a 10.25-inch TFT screen. Also, the Hyundai SUV has the option for a second wireless charger (6-seater only).
5. Safety features
Hyundai offers dual airbags as standard on the Alcazar, with six airbags available from Platinum trim onwards. Kia offers six airbags as standard across all variants of the Carens, but it misses out on a 360-degree camera. Common safety features on both vehicles include ABS, ESC, hill start assist, TPMS, and disc brakes on all wheels.