Test drive Kia Stonic: a crossover with personality at a good price

We tested the Kia Stonic with the 1.0 T-GDi 120 CV engine and it won us over with its practicality, good equipment, driving dynamics and price.

The Kia Stonic is one of those compact cars that have grown taller to become the vehicle class in fashion, the city SUVs. The South Korean crossover comes as standard with extensive equipment and is available from 15,600 euros. At Top 10 Motor, we have tested a unit with 1.0 T-GDi 120 CV petrol engine of power. These are our impressions of one of the most popular city SUVs on the market.

The Kia Stonic from the outside: customisable design

The Kia Stonic is based on the Kia Rio, but its design has taken on a completely different nuance. The front, the sides and the rear have taken on a more muscular look, a feature very common among crossovers.

The car can also be purchased with up to four roof colours: black, red, orange and lime green. Thanks to this contrast between bodywork and roof, the Kia Stonic offers a younger and more eye-catching appearance than other city crossovers such as the Ford EcoSport, to give one example.

Interior: ergonomics, sufficient space and reasonable quality

The Kia Stonic does not stand out for outstanding finish quality in the cabin, but nor is it one of the worst. In fact, it sits in line with the segment average in this respect. On the door panels, the dashboard and the centre console we find quite a few hard plastics, but the perceived quality of the interior is not spartan for a crossover at this price level. Nor does it come off badly when compared with its rivals, many of which are priced above the Stonic at list price. Hard-to-the-touch materials are usually common in this segment, but what matters is that the fit and finish are good, and the Stonic does not fail in this area. In addition, the look of the cabin (dashboard, switchgear, infotainment system), as well as the layout of some elements (air vents), is quite well resolved.

The cabin offers an attractive design, with the option of some parts finished in a different shade from the rest of the cabin elements. Depending on the version chosen, we can specify some parts of the dashboard and centre console in orange or lime green, two shades that would contrast with the black and grey of the rest of the interior elements.

Great practicality thanks to the storage spaces

The Kia Stonic offers plenty of storage spaces inside to store all kinds of gadgets, from two-litre bottles in the door pockets to half-litre drinks in the centre console, not forgetting the handy space that remains free under the armrest lid or the “glasses holder” found in the roof. In addition, the centre console is two-level, which also provides a very useful space for storing various objects.

Driving position: more like a compact than a crossover

One aspect that stands out in this car is the driving position. Unlike most crossovers, the Kia Stonic does not offer an elevated position. In fact, the layout is not very different from that of any compact car, such as a Kia Ceed, to name one from the same brand. This may disappoint you if you are looking for a crossover with a high driving position, but this does not detract from the visibility from the driver’s seat of the Kia Stonic, which is as good as that of any other crossover.

Rear seats and boot of the Stonic: slightly below average

Space in the rear seats is somewhat limited. The headroom and knee room are a little tight for anyone over 1.80 metres tall. The seats offer acceptable comfort; in addition, the floor is practically flat, which makes it easier to move from one seat to another. It is important to bear in mind that the Kia Stonic is not a car where practicality takes priority, as for example in a Renault Captur or an Seat Arona in the rear seats, but it is still more habitable than the Kia Rio, the model on which it is based.

The boot of the Kia Stonic offers a capacity of 352 litres, which places it slightly below the segment average: among them, the Seat Arona (400 litres), Renault Captur (377 litres), Nissan Juke (354 litres) or the Peugeot 2008 (338 litres). That said, the boot offers a false floor where we can store a little more luggage. In addition, the rear seats fold down almost to 180º, which provides a very useful loading space when carrying long and bulky items.

Good standard equipment

One of the aspects that most enhances this city SUV is its extensive standard equipment. In its most basic version, the car includes the following elements:

• Cruise control
• Parking sensors
• LED rear lights
• Navigation system with rear camera
• Integration of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (to use Android compatibility you would need a USB cable, something that does not happen on other models)

It is important to bear in mind that for 650 euros more, you can opt for a comprehensive driver assistance package called Advanced Driving Pack, which we recommend considering, as it includes the following systems:

• Autonomous Emergency Braking System
• Lane Keeping Assist
• Driver Fatigue Detection System
• Hill Start Assist

Infotainment system: correct graphics and ease of use

The Kia Stonic comes as standard with an infotainment system that incorporates a seven-inch touchscreen, an element that does not stand out for high-quality graphics, but does for its ease of use. The system is very intuitive and allows the screen to be split to display two things simultaneously, such as the navigation and music.

Next to the infotainment system we find a USB port to connect a phone, or two if we want to charge a second phone, for which we can use the cigarette lighter socket located alongside.

As for the audio equipment, the system is correct. It is not the most powerful on the market, but the audio quality is quite acceptable. The only problem is that the brand does not offer an optional system that improves on the standard one, so if you are a lover of good sound, you will have to turn to other aftermarket systems to satisfy your needs.

Driving dynamics: more like a compact than an SUV

The Kia Stonic pleasantly surprised us with its good driving dynamics. This crossover behaves very well on the road and offers sensations very similar to those of a compact car (Seat Leon, Ford Focus…), vehicles with a lower centre of gravity and therefore more stable when cornering. In fact, the Kia Stonic conveys a certain sportiness at the wheel, something you would not expect a priori, and which is partly due to the fact that it is one of the lowest city crossovers in the segment (1.52 metres tall); the Renault Captur is four centimetres taller, for example.

The suspension tuning is firmer than in other crossovers, which favours great body composure in bends and slightly compromises its comfort when going over some pronounced potholes; nothing to worry about in any case, as you gain more cornering stability than you lose in ride comfort.

The steering, gear shift, brakes, clutch… everything has a light and communicative feel that makes it quite pleasant to drive.

1.0 T-GDi engine: great balance between consumption and performance

The Kia Stonic is available with three engines. A low-consumption 1.6 diesel unit, but somewhat coarse in operation, a 1.4 petrol engine that consumes a bit more than we would like, and a 1.0 petrol 120 CV unit that we recommend for its good balance between performance and consumption. At least until the 100 CV variant arrives, which we have tested in other models in the group, and which a priori also seems sufficient to move a vehicle like the Stonic with ease.

The 1.0 T-GDi engine, with which we lived for a week, delighted us with its great flexibility (it has strength from very low revs across the whole range) and its great refinement. It is a three-cylinder engine which, although it suffers from some lack of refinement at low revs (a common trait of three-cylinder engines), behaves with great smoothness as the revs rise. In addition, the 120 CV of this engine are very well used and allow the Kia Stonic to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in about 10 seconds.

Over a week of varied use on all types of roads and city journeys, we recorded a consumption of seven l/100 km with this engine, but practising eco driving it is quite feasible to reduce that figure to six litres. If, on the other hand, we try to get the maximum performance from the engine, consumption could rise to eight litres… and even approach double-digit figures if you make use of the 120 CV and drive in a let’s say “decisive” manner.

In summary

The Kia Stonic is not as practical a car as an Seat Arona or a Renault Captur, where interior space or boot capacity take priority. But it has great standard equipment, offers an attractive design, is available with a very efficient petrol engine and is fun to drive. Furthermore, with discounts, it is one of the most affordable SUVs or crossovers in its category, and offers seven years of warranty. If you are thinking of buying a crossover with personality at a good price, which can even serve as an alternative to a compact for use that is not limited to urban driving (provided that boot and interior space are sufficient for you), the Kia Stonic with this petrol engine is a highly recommended option.

Technical specifications of this car

CrossoverKIA Stonic7 versions · from 24,210 €