The Kia K4 Sportswagon has been revealed as a rival for the Skoda Octavia Estate, bridging the gap between family hatchbacks and larger D-segment saloons.
At 4.695m long, it's marginally shorter than the Octavia but a useful 265mm longer than the K4 hatchback. That extension comes entirely at the rear end; both versions of the K4 sharing a 2.72m wheelbase.
The extra length gives the estate 166 litres more boot space than the hatchback, at 604 litres.
In addition, the estate gets a powered tailgate, whereas the hatchback makes do with a manual bootlid.
Inside, the two versions of the K4 are identical, with two 12.3in displays for the instrumentation and infotainment, plus wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.
UK specifications have yet to be confirmed, but the estate is likely to offer the same two turbocharged petrol engines as the hatchback: a mild-hybrid 1.0-litre three-cylinder putting out 113bhp and a 1.6-litre four-pot with either 147bhp or 177bhp.
Both engines are offered with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, while a six-speed manual is limited to the 1.0-litre triple in entry-level Pure trim.
As previously reported by Autocar, a full-hybrid powertrain will join the K4 line-up later this year.
Pricing has also yet to be announced but, given the hatchback starts at £26,045, the estate is expected to start at around £27,000. For reference, the Octavia Estate is priced from £29,470, while the Peugeot 308 SW starts at £28,695.
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They better get their pricing right with this one.
Theres a trend that whenever a manufacturer moves over to touchscreens, piano black and replaces traditional gear levers with switches, the public and mototing journalists alike cry it's a step backward and lets go back to the good old days.
I'm looking at the interior pics of this new design which harks back to those good old days and thinking to myself - good luck trying to flog that one Kia. It looks like something my father would reject for being too old, and he's in his 90's.
It's a tough game trying to satisfy us public.
A car for everybody it seems, the image doesn't do it justice,it looks like an old fashioned estate,and why and I wondered this for a while, why to power outputs for the same engine capacity?,what's the need for this?
Two power outputs (despite having the same engine) is usually to get around tax breaks for fleets or company car ownership. Insurance groupings is another reason. It's quite common.
And yes, it's very common, has been for years.