Driving Kia’s Picanto micro car this week – micro car sales softened last year with the Mitsubishi Mirage the best seller but this year the Kia Picanto has taken the lead in a micro car market that’s up 25 per cent in the first two months. The Picanto arrived here last April, late in the models life cycle, already been on the market overseas for five years. Available in just one five-hatch – the 1.25 litre four-speed automatic Si at 14,990 drive-away. Styled in Germany and built in Korea – a combination that’s produced a cheeky small car with good interior room, nice finishes inside and a good level of specification – importantly, a five-star ANCAP crash safety rating, power steering, power windows and mirrors, air-con, tilt adjust steering, Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, USB and iPod connectivity, keyless entry and remote central locking. It also gets handy rear parking sensors, hill start assist and electronic stability control. The Kia Picanto has a young and old slant -20 per cent of sales are to retirees and frankly with traffic the way it is today in Sydney this is a car I could really live with as my last new car purchase. On this point, it has a great seating position, good specification as I said and a sharp 14,990 drive-away sticker plus Kia’s 7-year / unlimited kilometre warranty this is very affordable motoring. The automatic is only a four-speed and best suited perhaps to around town driving. I’m David Berthon

2016 Kia Picanto rear 3/4.

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