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While Kia is hardly being shy and retiring in the naming of its
latest small car – ‘Venga’ is Spanish for ‘come on’ – the company is holding back from calling the Venga an MPV. Which is strange, because to our eyes the Venga’s extended head room and adjustable rear seats mark it out as exactly that.

Kia says it is instead a B-segment (think Ford Fiesta size) hatchback but with stretched proportions for increased interior space, and as such
is targeted at downsizing families.

...Read the full article

Ignore price and I would suggest that this car's closest competitor is the Golf Plus. The Golf is very similar size (slighly longer but shorter wheelbase) and has quite similar power and performance (ie equally slow). And it's equally bland in the styling department. I think that if I was in the market for a Golf Plus and wasn't too bothered about a prestige nameplate, I'd be taking a close look at this Kia... Incidentally I liked the line about "road tax racketing". Not sure if it was a deliberate mistake or not, but it is so apt.

The Golf Plus is not a competitor. Its a large car based on the Golf, which is a C-Segment family hatch. This Kia is smaller in and out (ignore the wheelbase length), and based on a Hyundia i20, a B-Segment supermini. The two simply don't compare.

There is also the small fact the Golf Plus is considereably technologically advanced and a few years ahead of this Kia, and has much bigger engines (105/140 TDI and 80/ 122 TSI) as well as sophiscated 6-speed manual transmissions and 6/7-speed DSG transmissions.

They do not compare in a single way. This Kia is firmly in the supemini MPV class. Its key rivals are the Jazz, Note, Meriva, Modus, Fusion and perhaps the Mercedes A-Class at a push. If VW came out with a 'Polo Plus' MPV it would no doubt be another rival for this Kia, but the Golf Plus simply is not. The Golf Plus' rivals are 5-seat C-Segment MPVs like the Scenic, C4 Picasso, C-Max, Altea and again at a push the Mercedes B-Class.

The point I was trying to make (perhaps not very well), is that the traditional size classifications are becoming blurred. So much so, that models like this 4-metre plus Kia, the Meriva and Nissan Note are as big the current Golf. All of these "B-segment" cars have a longer wheelbase than the Golf, and the wheelbase is the single most important dimension in determining a car's size. Just ask the engineers. True the Golf is a little longer than the Kia, but this is because it has longer overhangs, and with it a slightly bigger boot. I agree that the Top model Golfs are indeed sophisticated vehicles, but I'm afraid that the 1.4 base model, with its lowly 80 horsepower has a remarkably similar specification to its Korean competitor. There, I've said it: to me they are competitors in all but price - and I would not want either of them!

LP in Brighton:

The point I was trying to make (perhaps not very well), is that the traditional size classifications are becoming blurred.

 

Completely agree. Just because the motoring press put models into nice neat boxes and only compare them with other models within said boxes doesn't mean they are the only rivals. The Golf Plus IS a rival to the Venga, after all it is a high roofed hatchback aimed at familys and the retired. Whether its extra sophistication would be worth the extra cost to a particular buyer would be part of their personal decision making process.

 

I still disagree. Car manufacturers make cars to fit into different classes. The Venga and Golf Plus do not fit into the same class, they have completely different prices and ranges and appeal to different people, I know what I'm talking about. The motoring press don't decide what class to place a car into, the manufacturer does. I can promise you this is the only page on the entire internet that people are suggesting the GolfPlus and Venga are rivals, as its total crap. Sorry to be rude but people who try to force their opinion on others but don't have a clue what they are talking about really annoy me.

J400uk:

his Kia is firmly in the supemini MPV class. Its key rivals are the Jazz, Note, Meriva, Modus, Fusion and perhaps the Mercedes A-Class at a push.

Interesting you say that, the A-class is not much more than this (£13,995 OTR), although it is Merc's worst model for many a year. New Meriva would be the greatest competitor I'd say.

I have just made a shortlist of possible cars to replace an ageing Mazda Premacy. At around £12,000 (which is what I want pay) the list includes a new Kia Venga and a two year old Golf Plus.

I agreee that as a NEW car you can not put them in the same bracket, but in terms of function and price they can be directly comparable.