Kia has revealed a new mid-range, value-orientated special edition of its Picanto city car called the Shadow. Priced from £13,845, the new variant is designed to provide extra standard equipment and “ultra-low” insurance and running costs, without dramatically increasing the purchase price.
Based on the mid-range ‘2’ version of the Picanto, the Shadow comes with alloy wheels, Bluetooth phone connectivity and driver’s seat height adjustment, as well as manual air conditioning, electric windows and steering wheel-mounted audio controls. It also features remote central locking, USB connectivity and automatic headlight control.
That’s all included in the ‘2’ specification, but Kia has added some extra goodies to give the Shadow increased appeal. For example, the 2’s standard 14-inch alloy wheels have been replaced with 15-inch rims, while Kia has swapped the 2’s four-speaker audio system with a six-speaker system.
Inside, Kia has added an eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system with the Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration technology, plus a reversing camera. Black leather upholstery with grey contrast stitching replaces the standard fabric, adding a little more luxury.
And there are plenty of standard safety features, including a collision avoidance system that automatically stops the car if the driver fails to respond to a hazard. That works alongside other features including electronic stability control (ESC) and vehicle stability management (VSM) technology.
All that is powered by Kia’s 1-litre DPi petrol engine, which is paired with a five-speed manual gearbox and produces 66 bhp. That equates to a leisurely 0-60 mph time of 14.1 seconds and a top speed of 99 mph. Perhaps more importantly, though, the engine returns almost 60 mpg in mid-range ‘2’ guise, with 110 g/km CO2 emissions. Those figures may rise slightly due to the larger alloy wheels, but they’ll remain in roughly the same ballpark.
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All those features are included in the £13,845 starting price, which makes the Shadow just £895 more expensive than the equivalent 2 model. Every example will come with Astro Grey metallic paintwork and privacy glass.
The order books are now open, with Kia’s UK dealer network already accepting customer orders. Those who put their name down for the Shadow will have to wait a few weeks, though, because the first deliveries are not scheduled until “early” 2022.
Gallery: Kia Picanto Shadow