Kia has released a set of design sketches that preview the new Picanto. The sketches show a new front-end design similar to that of the new Rio, which is slated for an international launch in February 2017.

Kia’s rival to the Volkswagen Up and Ford Ka+ will be offered in five-door form only due to slow sales of the three-door version of the outgoing car. The new model will be revealed in full at the Geneva motor show in March, before sales commence in international markets.

The decision to drop the three-door Picanto, coupled with Kia’s launch of the Rio as a five-door only model, suggests a move away from small three-door cars for the brand. A Kia spokesman also pointed out that the Picanto was the first car in the city car segment to be offered as a five-door.

On the outside, intricate LED headlights incorporate the grille accents into their design, while red trim appears behind the grille in the lower air intakes and along the sides of the car on higher-end trims.

Inside, a simple interior also draws heavily from the Rio supermini, with a dominant central infotainment touchscreen flanked by piano-black gloss trim and mounted high atop a considerably less button-heavy dashboard. A raft of technology and safety features new to the Picanto will be featured.

Kia says the new Picanto will be made available with a greater range of personalisation options, as is evident from the colour accents on the exterior and interior.

Kia’s India plan

It’s no secret that Kia Motors, a part of the Hyundai Motor Group, has been exploring an entry into the Indian market for several years. In fact, it’s surprising that Kia has taken so long to enter such an important market that has long been ripe for the picking. Kia has the massive advantage of piggybacking on its sister brand, Hyundai, which is a hugely successful in India.

Kia is yet to identify a location for its first factory in India and it's only after this big hurdle is cleared that a formal announcement on its entry into India can be expected. For now, the only official statement Kia has made on its India project is “We at Kia Motors are continually evaluating potential locations for overseas manufacturing facilities, including India, to secure additional engines for future growth. However, as of now, no concrete plans have been finalised.”

Kia’s model line-up for India is far from decided, but we expect a ‘top-down’ strategy to be adopted. This means launching high-end products first and bringing mass-market models later, once the distribution network is established and the plant is humming smoothly. Kia will obviously try and mirror Hyundai’s model range and the next-gen Picanto could be one of the models that would come to our shores.