Kia Magentis Road Test

Kia Magentis

The 2.0-litre petrol engine is mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox, while the diesel has a 6-speed manual transmission. As mentioned, the 4-speed automatic box only becomes available as an option with the LS trim.

The petrol engine, as tested, produces 144PS (142bhp) at 6,000rpm and over 188 Nm (139 lb ft) of torque at 4,250rpm. It will propel the car from 0-62mph in 10.2 seconds and on to a top speed of 129mph, while exhausting 184g/km of CO2.

The GS, with the automatic box takes a second longer to complete the sprint and has a top speed of 121mph. In this regard, the diesels are not very different except for the lower, 162g/km CO2 and in terms of fuel consumption, of course.

The manual petrol will give you somewhere in the region of 26.9mpg, 46.3mpg and 36.7mpg for the urban, extra-urban and combined, respectively. The same cycles for the diesel are, 34.9mpg, 56.5mpg and 47.1mpg.

The test car's performance was adequate. It is good enough and it isn't going to frighten the horses. The ride and handling are good but a little soft and on bends, there's a slight tendency to wallow and oversteer, despite having a stiffer body and new suspension system.

Standard safety features include ABS with EBD and LS models have Emergency Brake Assist (EBA) and an Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) with Traction Control. The new Magentis is fitted with six airbags and has a 4-star Euro NCAP rating for passenger protection.

All in all, I found the Kia Magentis to be very comfortable and easy to live with. It should prove popular with user-choosers and money-minded, fleet buyers. And I can also see mini-cab drivers wanting to form a queue outside Kia showrooms.

Kia Magentis