Kia Australia‘s Carnival range will be diesel-only for now, as the company pauses orders on all V6 petrol models to clear a backlog of orders.
“Supply of the 3.5-litre V6 Carnival continues to be a problem,” said Roland Rivero, product planning boss at Kia Australia.
“It’s the powertrain of choice for North America, therefore they consume the lion’s share of production. We’ve only just recently removed the [Carnival Special Edition V6] from the website to curtail orders, and shortly other trim variants will follow.”
Kia introduced the Special Edition model to the Carnival line-up earlier this year, and it sat between the SLi and Platinum variants.
“The SE was introduced in an effort to offset semi-conductor shortage issues (namely for the One-Touch, Safety Power Windows), affecting both SLi and Platinum variants,” said Mr Rivero.
“Dealers were able to convert some backorders into the SE. From [the facelift] onwards, we’ll need to monitor the supply situation and act accordingly. For now, no SE at [facelift] launch.”
A facelifted Carnival is expected to arrive here during the first half of 2024, and will herald the return of the petrol V6.
It will feature Kia’s next-generation infotainment system, supporting wireless smartphone mirroring and over-the-air (OTA) software updates.
“Our rollout of the sixth-generation Connected Car Navigation Cockpit (ccNc) will commence with the EV9 later this year, followed by the updated Sorento and Carnival,” said Mr Rivero.
In addition to the infotainment upgrades, the new Carnival should pick up features from the global catalogue that Australian models have missed out on since this current generation’s release.
To the end of July 2023, the Kia Carnival has a 77 per cent share of the overall people mover market in Australia. Kia has sold a total of 6709 units thus far this year, more than all of its rivals combined.
Its corporate cousin, the Hyundai Staria, is sitting in a very distant second place with 772 sales.
Pricing
2023 Kia Carnival pricing:
- 2023 Kia Carnival S Diesel: $49,480
- 2023 Kia Carnival Si Diesel: $54,980
- 2023 Kia Carnival SLi Diesel: $59,780
- 2023 Kia Carnival Special Edition Diesel: $63,190
- 2023 Kia Carnival Platinum Diesel: $67,580
All prices exclude on-road costs.
Drivetrains
The 2023 Kia Carnival is powered by a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine producing 148kW of power and 440Nm of torque.
A naturally aspirated 3.5-litre V6 engine, producing 216kW of power and 355Nm of torque, has been available during this generation’s run. However, Kia is pausing orders for this engine.
Both variants are front-wheel drive and use an eight-speed automatic transmission.
Efficiency
The 2023 Kia Carnival uses 9.6L/100km on the combined cycle with the V6 petrol and 6.5L/100km with the diesel.
The petrol engine requires only 91RON regular unleaded fuel, while both engines have a 72L fuel tank.
Dimensions
The 2023 Kia Carnival measures 5155mm long, 1995mm wide and 1775mm tall including the roof rails. It has a 3090mm wheelbase.
Luggage space, following VDA measurements, is 627L with all seats up. Fold the third row and it expands to 2785L. Underneath the floor is a space-saver spare.
All models have a 2000kg braked towing capacity, or 750kg unbraked.
Servicing and Warranty
All Kia models are backed by a seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty with seven years of capped-price servicing.
The first seven services for the turbo-diesel engine are capped at $356, $616, $430, $805, $400, $784, and $425, respectively.
Petrol models’ servicing prices are $329, $604, $402 $785, $371, $754, and $393 over seven years.
Safety
The Kia Carnival has a five-star ANCAP rating based on testing completed in 2021.
It scored 90 per cent for adult occupant protection, 88 per cent for child occupant protection, 68 per cent for vulnerable road user protection, and 82 per cent for safety assist.
Standard safety features include:
- 7 airbags incl. driver’s knee
- Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB)
- Pedestrian, Cyclist detection
- Junction assist
- Blind-spot assist
- Driver attention monitoring
- Lane departure warning
- Lane Following Assist (lane centring)
- Lane-keep assist
- Rear cross-traffic alert
- Safe Exit Warning
- Rear parking sensors
The Carnival Si gains front parking sensors, while the Carnival SLi adds:
- 360-degree camera
- Rear cross-traffic assist
- Safe Exit Assist
The Carnival Special Edition and Platinum also feature a sensor-based rear occupant alert.
Standard Equipment
-
S -
The Carnival S comes standard with the following equipment:
- 17-inch alloy wheels
- LED headlights
- LED daytime running lights
- Auto headlights, high beam
- 8 seats
- 4.2-inch supervision cluster
- 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- Wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
- 6-speaker sound system
- Air conditioning
- Tilt and telescopic steering wheel adjustment
- 3 x USB ports front console
- 2 x USB ports second row
- 2 x 12V power outlet
- 4 x bottle holders
- 9 x cup holders
- 4 x phone holders
- 3rd row air vents
- Folding key
- Sliding and reclining second row of seats
- 60:40 split hold flat 3rd row seats
- Reversible 2nd row centre seat
The Carnival Si adds:
- 18-inch alloy wheels
- LED tail lights
- 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- Satellite navigation
- Wired Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
- Leather-wrapped steering wheel, shifter
- Dual-zone climate control
The Carnival SLi adds:
- 360-degree camera
- Keyless entry and start
- Premium seats
- Power sliding doors
- Hands-free power tailgate
- 10-way power driver’s seat with two-way lumbar
- Auto-dimming electrochromic rear-view mirror
- LED front fog lights
- Rear privacy glass
- 2 x USB ports third row
- 2nd and 3rd row sunshades
- Heated front and rear seats
Carnival Special Edition highlights include:
- 19-inch black alloy wheels
- Platinum grille trim
- Chrome bumper
- Chrome door garnish
- Chrome skid plates
- Dual sunroofs
- LED interior lighting
- Front, rear heated seats
- Wireless phone charging
- Ambient lighting
- Manual rear sunshade blinds
Over the SLi, the Carnival Platinum adds:
- Bose 12-speaker sound system
- 12-way power driver’s seat with four-way lumbar
- 8-way power front passenger seat with memory seats
- Matte chrome exterior trim
- Paddle shifters
- Heated steering wheel
- Heated and ventilated front seats
- Heated rear seats
- Ambient lighting
- LED interior lighting
- Wireless phone charging
- Shift-by-wire transmission dial
Colours
Kia Australia offers seven colour options for the 2023 Kia Carnival range.
- Ceramic Grey
- Astra Blue
- Flare Red
- Panthera Metal
- Snow White Pearl
- Deep Chroma Blue
- Aurora Black Pearl
Deep Chroma Blue and Aurora Black Pearl are only available on SLi, Special Edition and Platinum models.
All paint options carry a $695 premium, except for Ceramic Grey which is free of charge.
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