In recent times, the sales growth of the SUV has encouraged automotive companies to create all types of SUV to cover different segments of the automotive market. One of the markets that SUV tries to conquer is the MPV market, where we see the arrival of 7 seater SUV. This is because most vehicle buyers considered SUVs to be nicer to drive and more versatile than a MPV.
In order to combat the previous argument, Kia Malaysia recently launched the all new Kia Carnival in Malaysia. The all new Carnival may be sold as a MPV, but Kia has managed to combine the appeal of a SUV in terms of design and drivability with the practicality of a MPV. Let’s take a closer look and see if the Carnival has the ability to win back some sales from the 7 seater SUV market. 
With a length of 5m and a width of almost 2m, the Carnival is a huge vehicle that will definitely stand out in traffic. From the front, the new Carnival comes with a long hood, which makes it look like a SUV. As for headlights, the Carnival comes with full LED headlights that blend with the front grille. In Malaysia, we may get the signature LED daytime running lights at the front, but we’re missing the futuristic looking LED tail lights at the rear. We only get halogen type tail lights which is somewhat disappointing. 
Moving to the side, Kia has given the Carnival a unique textured aluminum piece on both C-pillars. This is to give the Carnival certain levels of characteristic at the side of the MPV. Since the Carnival comes with powered sliding rear doors and tailgate, Kia has programmed the key to open or close all 3 doors at one go by pressing and holding the lock and unlock button on the key fob. Additionally, the tailgate has a proximity sensor to detect the car key when it’s under it. Once the key moves away from under the tailgate, it will automatically close down. 
In order to brighten up the interior, Kia Malaysia has opted for a 2 tone interior rather than a pure black interior. The main colors for the interior are black and saddle brown, which makes the interior look classy without looking too dull. At the center of the dashboard, the Carnival gets a 12.3″ infotainment screen that features Android Auto and Apple Carplay, and of course, a very high quality 360 degree camera setup. Apart from the touch screen, Kia has also given the Carnival capacitive touch buttons to help navigate the infotainment screen. 
Around the cabin, it may seem like the Carnival comes with quite a number of speakers. In actual fact, we only get 6 speakers in Malaysia, which means there is plenty of room for owners to add on more speakers if they wish to. The Carnival may only have 6 speakers, but there are up to 7 USB charging slots around the cabin to let most occupants to juice up their devices on the go. 
While the infotainment screen size is large, the screen inside the weirdly placed analogue instrument cluster is rather small. I consider it weirdly placed because the panel where the instrument cluster is located, is clearly designed for a digital instrument cluster, making the analogue one look like an afterthought. 
In order to cool down such a large vehicle, the Carnival comes with a triple zone climate control system. Rear occupants also get their own climate control and AC vents mounted on the roof, which helps the cold air flow to the rear more effectively. Below the climate controls at the front, the Carnival also gets a fancy looking rotary gear shifter. I personally like this gear shifter over the button one found on its sister brand. Around the gear shifter, there are plenty of empty buttons that I hope will be filled up when the local assembled variant arrives. 
Since the Carnival is sold as an 11 seater MPV in Malaysia, the Carnival is fitted with up to 4 rows of seats. For the driver seat, the seating position is spot on, and the seats are supportive and comfortable to sit over long distances. Both front seats are electrically operated with up to 8 ways of adjustment to achieve absolute comfort, and the driver seat gets additional lumbar support adjustment. To allow rear passengers to adjust the front seat when not in use, Kia has given the front passenger seat the boss switch function to achieve that. 
Starting from the 2nd row seats, I noticed that the 2nd row seats are the most comfortable place to be, especially since it has the best amount of legroom and headroom in the vehicle. As I move rearwards, the legroom space shrinks accordingly, until the point where it’s not really that comfortable to spend long hours in the 4th row seats. Another uncomfortable point about the 4th row seats is that adults may have to sit in a squatting posture in order to fit in it. To allow passengers to move to the rear, both 2nd and 3rd row seats are equipped with foldable center chairs to create a walkway for occupants to move to the rear. 
The Carnival may be marketed as an 11 seater MPV, I think most Malaysian families would prefer to use it as an 8-seater MPV with a large luggage compartment. This is because once the 4th row has been stowed away, it creates an empty space for all 8 occupants to fit their luggages in the boot, and all the rear occupants get a comfortable amount of legroom in both 2nd and 3rd row of seats. 
Looking at the engine specification, it may look like the 2.2L turbo diesel engine is a carried forward engine from the previous generation Carnival. But in actual fact, the 2.2L turbo diesel engine has been updated with Smartstream technology to improve throttle response, and fuel economy. This means that the engine has the ability to produce 199bhp at 3,800rpm, and an impressive 440Nm of torque from 1,750rpm. However, the 8-speed automatic transmission is carried over from the previous generation Kia Carnival. 
On the move, the diesel clatter from the engine is barely audible when sitting inside the MPV, unless the engine is being rev passed the 3,000rpm mark. Even so, it is far from sounding like a commercial vehicle. From standstill, the MPV feels like it required some time to react to throttle input due to the size of it, once on the go, the Carnival felt immediate which makes even overtaking on uphill an easy task. This is thanks to the strong low end torque that the Smartstream diesel engine has, and it achieves all these while still being a frugal engine.
With the 8-speed automatic transmission, the transmission helps the engine to constantly operate within its peak torque band. In terms of gear change, the transmission is smooth and always in the right gear at the right moment. On the other hand, I think having paddle shifters in the Carnival is a little excessive as most drivers would not drive the Carnival like a sports car. During my time with the MPV, I managed to get an impressive 9.3L/100km of fuel consumption figure considering the size of the vehicle.
Considering that the Carnival is a MPV, it would be quite outrageous when I say that the Carnival is very capable in handling itself through corners. In actual fact, the Carnival felt planted and the body roll is kept to a minimum when tackling the twisty bits. Thanks to the width of the vehicle plus a rigid chassis, even the soft suspension barely affects the stability of the MPV. Since the suspension is considered soft, it absorbs most of the undulation created by the bumps and road imperfections, and makes the Carnival feel like it’s riding on a layer of cushion. 
In order to help the driver in maneuvering this large vehicle, the Carnival comes with a rather light steering wheel. On twisty roads, the steering wheel does have some weight in it to provide the driver with confidence to drive fast in the corners. In terms of brakes, the brakes are sufficient for day to day use. But if any Carnival owners would like to take their family for a trip to Genting Highlands, they must be aware that the brakes on the Carnival might get heated up much quicker than usual due to its braking performance.
For the current Kia Carnival, it is fitted with basic driver assistance systems. Hopefully when the locally assembled model Kia Carnival arrives, it will feature an even more advanced driver assistance system to make the Carnival even safer. For the safety systems, the Carnival is equipped with 7 airbags, Anti-lock Brake System (ABS), Brake Assist (BA), Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD), Traction Control System (TCS), Multi Collision Braking (MCB), Hill Start Assist Control (HAC), and Rear Occupant Alert (ROA). As for the advanced safety systems, it is equipped with Blind Spot Collision Warning (BCW) and Rear Cross Traffic Collision Avoidance Assist (RCCA).
In conclusion, the all new Kia Carnival is a very capable MPV, and I do think it drives as good as a SUV. Priced at RM196,340.80, I think the Carnival is an easy MPV to recommend to those who are looking for a people carrier. If you want to get the Carnival at this price point, you better be quick, once the locally assembled variant hits the market, expect the price to go up, as it will come as a 7-seater MPV with more luxurious features available.
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