New Kia Ceed spied with futuristic look as launch approaches

The family hatchback is not dead. Not according to Kia anyway, as the Korean brand looks to be preparing a brand new generation of its Kia Ceed hatch for the UK and Europe. The new Ceed will replace the current generation car, which has only been on sale since the beginning 2018, but so fast is the evolution of Kia’s design language and tech that this new and far more striking generation can’t come soon enough. 

The new Kia Ceed will retain its basic front-wheel drive layout, but will probably grow in size as it’ll no longer set to be a EU-specific model.

Having a presence in such a wide spread of markets around the world, Kia and its sister company Hyundai have long been in the habit of designing different cars for different countries, rather than single global models. This strategy had applied to the current Ceed, which was developed specifically for the European market but all that will change with this new generation car. As Kia looks to globalise more of its models, the new UK Kia Ceed will be a version of the C-segment K4 hatchback that’s just been revealed for South Korea and the USA. 

As a result, we already have a very good idea of what to expect when the new Ceed is revealed later this year, potentially with a few changes here and there. The overall body looks to be longer and lower than before, featuring lots of Kia’s modern design signatures such as slim, vertical headlights, a thin upper grille and clever use of black trim. 

While there is a flap for a door handle on the rear door, we can clearly see a hidden unit mounted just by the C-pillar, a technique used by lots of manufacturers to make cars look sportier. The overall shape also looks much wider and more aggressive than today’s Ceed, framed at the rear by thin LED lights that loop their way around from the middle of the tailgate to the far edges of the tail. 

The cabin will also be a direct carry-over from the K4 hatch, so that should see the use of a much more modern dual-screen setup perched on top of a thin and minimalist dashboard. Not yet confirmed for Europe is the funky asymmetric colour scheme available on the K4 saloon in Kia’s native Korean market, which actually sees the driver and passenger’s doors finished in different colours. 

The range of engines will probably include a selection of small petrol motors, most with some form of mild-hybrid assistance. It’s not known whether a plug-in hybrid is on the cards, but a Golf-rivalling diesel is not likely due to limited demand in markets outside of Europe. Given that the car’s already been unveiled for overseas markets, we suspect we won’t have to wait long to see the new European Kia Ceed model in full. 

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