Kia Shows Off Updated Carnival For South Korea With Hybrid Power
South Korea gets an updated Carnival. Is North America next?
We love the Kia Carnival. It’s a comfortable, spacious, stylish family hauler that really only has one weakness – mediocre fuel economy. Well, Kia has just unveiled a facelifted version of the van in Korea, now complete with Hybrid power. Will these updates come our way?
About a month ago, Kia showed off the exterior of the new Carnival. Appearing to follow the same styling trends of the recently updated Kia Seltos and the EVs it showed off at last month’s Kia Day, the new Carnival has the T-shaped front headlights and grille that we’ve seen before on other models. The rear lights are also T-shaped, the license plate holder has been moved downward, and as a whole the rear fascia looks a lot simpler and more elegant than the current van.
Inside, the Carnival may look similar to the old one, but there are a lot more changes than first appear. The gauge cluster and infotainment screens are different, and the center console has fewer buttons. The traditional gearstick has been replaced with a rotary dial. It all looks a little slimmer, lighter, and more elegant.
At least for the Korean market, the Kia Carnival gets one of its biggest changes – a hybrid powertrain. Sourced from the Kia Sorento, the Carnival has the same 1.6-liter turbocharged engine with an electric motor. The power output hasn’t been released, but we’d expect it to get the same 227 horsepower output as the Sorento. Maybe Kia will craft a Pacifica PHEV fighter with the Sorento PHEV’s mechanicals?
It’s not clear if and when this updated Carnival will make its way to North America. We’ve only relatively recently got the Carnival, introduced in 2021 as a 2022 model, it’s only been on sale for a couple of years. However, in other parts of the world, the Carnival has been on sale since 2020, so it’s ready for an update. For example, the Korean-market Kia Sorento was updated for 2024, but our model will stay the same. At least, for this year.
Stay tuned, Kia may have news about an updated Carnival very soon.
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Kevin has been obsessed with cars ever since he could talk. He even learned to read partially by learning and reading the makes and models on the back of cars, only fueling his obsession. Today, he is an automotive journalist and member of the Automotive Press Association. He is well-versed in electrification, hybrid cars, and vehicle maintenance.
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