Kia ProCeed: we test drive the first affordable shooting brake on the market

The new Kia ProCeed offers far more sportiness than compact family cars, both visually and from behind the wheel. Its practicality and technology equipment are its other two strong points. It is already on sale from €23,720.

The new Kia ProCeed arrives on the market to occupy a previously unexplored spot in the compact segment, without a doubt the category that has generated the most sales over the last twenty years for the car industry. We are talking about the first shooting brake launched by a mainstream brand, that is, the first of its kind offered at an affordable price; the Mercedes CLA was technically the first compact shooting brake, but it is available from €43,000, so it cannot be considered a direct rival. The Kia ProCeed starts at €23,720 and offers all the advantages of Kia: a 7-year or 150,000 km warranty.

What is a shooting brake?

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In the case of the Kia ProCeed we are talking about a car whose bodywork blends the practicality of a station wagon (family vehicle such as the Ford Focus Sport Brake or Seat Leon Station Wagon) with the sportiness of a compact (Kia Ceed, Seat Leon, Ford Focus). The Kia ProCeed has been built on three fundamental pillars: attractive design, good driving dynamics and extensive technology equipment. These are the car’s strong points and the aspects we appreciated most after testing it at its international presentation. We explain why the new Kia ProCeed is one of the most attractive cars you can buy right now.

Revolutionary design: a body without precedent among mainstream compacts

The new Kia ProCeed has the DNA of a coupé. The steep slope of its tailgate (rear roofline) gives it a silhouette closer to a three-box vehicle (sedan, saloon) than to a family estate, something no other mainstream compact on the market offers. Almost all compacts have an estate version in their range (Seat Leon ST, Ford Focus SW), but none except the Kia offers a shooting brake variant as appealing as this Kia ProCeed.

The visual appeal of this car is undeniable. In fact, the rear of the car reminds us of the new Porsche 911; the LED light bar running side to side across the tail and the shape of the lamps are really similar to those of the German supercar. A low-cost imitation? Impossible, the car was designed well before the Porsche 911 hit the market. Nor does it surprise us: Kia has considerably improved the aesthetic quality of its cars in recent years.

The Kia ProCeed is lower and longer than the five-door Ceed. Specifically, it is 43 mm shorter in height than the Ceed SW and its Station Wagon rivals. Add to its lower height the aggressive lines of the rear diffuser, the shape of the C-pillar, the iconic “tiger nose” grille of the Kia or the twin exhaust outlets, and we get a car much sportier than its estate-bodied rivals

(Station Wagon).

Two sporty variants: GT and GT Line

The car is available in two versions: GT and GT Line. The first offers the sportiest setup of this model, features a 1.6-litre petrol engine producing 204 CV and comes as standard with 18-inch alloy wheels. The GT Line version offers a slightly less dynamic setup and stands out for a slightly less sporty look

, though still attractive.

The practicality of a family car in a “sporty” package
The new Kia ProCeed measures 4,605 mm in length, 5 mm longer than the Ceed Tourer (Sportswagon). This gives it interior roominess similar to that of any mainstream family compact. It is true that its roofline is slightly lower than the Ceed Tourer’s (43 mm lower), but its ground clearance is also smaller (5 mm), so headroom in the seats is more than acceptable; I’m 1.83 m tall and when I sat down there was half a palm’s width left above my head. In fact the rear seats offer more space than the standard Ceed.

Things get even more interesting in the boot. The car offers a capacity of 594 litres, that is, 50% more than the five-door Ceed (395 litres). The boot is indeed the area where the car gains the most space over the compact; in fact, the ProCeed sits above the average in the compact family segment in terms of boot capacity, quite an achievement for a car with a lower roofline. Its loading height is also ideal (fairly low), which makes loading bulky items into the compartment easier.

Superior finish quality in the interior
The Kia ProCeed offers very high-quality finishes inside, especially considering you can get into this car from €23,000. It is hard to find a car in this price range with better materials and fit than the new Kia ProCeed. In places such as the dashboard, the centre console or the doors you will find leather-effect trim and metal mouldings.

The car has a very special and dynamic atmosphere. The sporty steering wheel with paddle shifters, the leather and Alcantara seats and the red stitching found in various areas of the cabin give this Kia ProCeed a very “sporty” style.

In the centre of the dashboard there is also a infotainment system with an 8-inch “floating” screen. This comes as standard on all ProCeed versions.

Sporty dynamics: nothing to envy from any sports compact

We had the opportunity to test the new Kia ProCeed GT with 204 CV at the Castellolí circuit (Barcelona) and were delighted with how it performs. The effort by Kia to improve the chassis of this new ProCeed over the previous generation is more than evident.

The previous ProCeed had suspension tuning that was too soft when tackling corners with some enthusiasm, combined with an excessively understeering character (loss of grip at the front wheels when turning). But as we mentioned at the start, Kia wanted this new ProCeed to be a vehicle with outstanding dynamic capabilities, and it has achieved this with flying colours.

The car tackles corners at high speed with truly impressive composure for a car measuring 4.6 metres long. We were able to take to the track both the Ceed GT (compact version) and the ProCeed GT (shooting brake), and we noticed no major differences between the two in terms of stability. The extra 30 kg the ProCeed weighs fade away as speed builds, and in fact, we had more fun in the ProCeed than in the Ceed, due to the playful character of the shooting brake’s rear end and its exclusive setup.

Although both cars share the same technical base (Ceed and ProCeed), the shooting brake receives certain chassis adjustments (dampers, anti-roll bars, steering parameters) that give it its own character within the Ceed range. I must say that the setup of this car struck me as more interesting, if I may say so, than that of the Ceed. It is a car that is slightly more passionate and visceral than the Ceed.

In short, we are looking at a car with driving dynamics much sportier than any mainstream family compact (Seat Leon ST, Ford Focus SW or Kia Ceed Tourer) and even better than many sports compacts (Renault Megane GT). The new Kia ProCeed offers more driving fun than its rivals, but can also cruise at a relaxed pace with great ride comfort.

The suspension is independent on both axles, which puts it ahead of other family compacts that offer semi-independent rear suspension as standard. Add to this a suspension setup up to 22% firmer than the standard Ceed, and we get a genuinely capable damping set-up in dynamic terms.

Efficient and high-performance engines

The new Kia ProCeed’s engine range consists of the following units depending on the version:

ProCeed GT Line:

• 1.0 l T-GDi: this three-cylinder petrol engine produces 120 CV of power and 172 Nm of torque. The car accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 11.3 seconds with this engine.
• 1.4 l T-GDi: this petrol engine produces 140 CV of power and 242 Nm of torque. The car accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 9.1 seconds with this unit.
• 1.6 CRDi: this diesel engine develops 136 CV of power and 280 Nm of torque. The car accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 10.4 seconds with this engine.

ProCeed GT:

• 1.6 l T-GDi: this is the top-of-the-range petrol engine, producing 204 CV of power and 265 Nm of torque. The car accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.5 seconds with this engine, which consumes around 7 litres per 100 km on average (according to our records combining urban and open-road routes).

All engines in the new Kia ProCeed come as standard with a 6-speed manual gearbox, and optionally with the 7-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

The dual-clutch gearbox incorporates Drive Mode Select, a feature that allows drivers to adapt the driving experience to their taste, with “Normal” and “Sport” driving modes. When the more dynamic mode is activated, the car changes the delivery of torque, the Launch Control response, the throttle response and the exhaust sound.

Cutting-edge technology

As we said at the start, the new Kia ProCeed stands out for its extensive technology equipment. In addition to the “floating” infotainment system with an 8-inch touchscreen mentioned earlier as standard, it also includes the well-known integration of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Optionally, you can order the powerful JBL Premium sound system with Clari-Fi sound restoration technology, a system we have tested and which sounds wonderful, both in terms of the system’s power and sound clarity when turning up the volume.

In terms of driver assistance, the new Kia ProCeed is without doubt a well-equipped car. These are the most notable systems included as standard:

• High Beam Assist (Dynamic High Beam Assist)
• Driver fatigue detection system (Driver Attention Warning)
• Lane Keeping Assist (Lane Keeping Assist)
• Forward Collision Warning with collision avoidance assist.
• Level 2 autonomous driving system (Adaptive Cruise Control)

Prices: the first shooting brake available from €23,000

The price difference between the new Kia ProCeed and its compact counterpart (Ceed) is between €3,000 and €3,500. These are the car’s prices with the brand’s current discounts applied (which involve financing the car through the brand and a number of additional conditions):

• ProCeed 1.0 T-GDi GT Line 120 CV: €23,720
• ProCeed 1.4 T-GDi GT Line 140 CV: €24,720
• ProCeed 1.4 T-GDi GT Line with DCT transmission 140 CV: €26,420
• ProCeed GT Line 1.6 CRDi 136 CV: €25,710
• ProCeed GT Line 1.6 CRDi 136 CV with DCT transmission: €27,410
• ProCeed GT 1.6 T-GDi 204 CV: €28,670
• ProCeed GT 1.6 T-GDi 204 CV with DCT transmission: €30,370