Category: Small Family 
Price Range: No data available
Good value, long warranty, robust interior, punchy diesel and smooth petrol engines, sensible kit levels.
Uninspiring handling, unsupportive seats, diesel engine is noisy when pushed.
Sensible, good value-for-money hatchback with no major flaws.
The Cee'd has been with us for two years now and already it's looking a little tired. So, without delay, Kia has decided to give it a wash and brush-up - just to keep the competition on their toes.
It's a sensible move: the Cee'd is older than the Hyundai i30, the updated Ford Focus and the forthcoming Vauxhall Astra - and in such a crowded market, where people are looking to downsize from large family four-doors, it's important to keep up with the Jones's in the B-Segment.
In 2008 Kia sold around 10,000 Cee'ds and it plans to sell in similar numbers with this updated model. A tired, two-year-old design could easily be overlooked and this refresh should do the trick in Kia's bid to keep Cee'd sales steady.
So what's new? Well, the front end gets a new bonnet, grille, headlamps and light clusters. At the rear less work's been done - only light clusters get a revamp. It's not radical but viewed from the front, it does look smarter and more up-to-date.
Inside there's new switchgear, revised steering column stalks and the materials on the centre console have been upgraded. The layout has been changed to make the stereo more integrated, and there's new material on the seats.
In truth there's little change. It's just a bit smarter looking.
Under the bonnet, the revisions have been a bit more dramatic. The 2009 Cee'd uses the same chassis but, in a bid to deliver a softer ride, Kia has changed the dampers the springs and the suspension geometry. The steering has also been reworked to deliver a quicker response.
Kia has also introduced its EcoDynamics range which introduces it ISG stop/start technology and other fuel-saving technologies such as low-rolling resistance tyres. A six-speed manual transmission replaces the five-speed box in Eco model.
The range includes revised 89bhp 1.4-litre petrol and a 124bhp 1.6-litre petrol. There's also a 1.6-litre diesel with 89bhp and 113bhp power outputs: the 1.6-litre 89bhp diesel is under the bonnet of the EcoDynamics model.
Thankfully, the trim levels are laughably simple - the Cee'd comes in 1, 2 or 3 - and prices range from £11,895 to £17,495.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Kia Cee'd
wrote on 29 09 2007
wrote on 13 09 2007