Kia Ceed


The Kia Ceed is a compact car produced by the South Korean manufacturer Kia Motors since 2006 exclusively for the European market. The Ceed was first unveiled in 28 September 2006 at the Paris Motor Show. The first generation was available with a choice of four engines, five trim levels and either manual or automatic transmission. In mid-2007, the station wagon version called the cee'd_sw was launched followed by the three-door pro_cee'd in early 2008. The second generation of the cee'd was presented at the Geneva Motor Show 2012. At the 2018 Geneva Motor Show, Kia presented the third generation Ceed. In September 2019, Kia also unveiled the XCeed, a crossover SUV based on the third generation Ceed.
It is the first Kia vehicle to be designed entirely in Europe and tailored to European customers. To mark the occasion, Kia took the initials of the European Economic Community, EEC or CEE in several languages and added ED for European Design. Realizing that "CEEED" had too many ‘E's, they replaced the last 'E' with an apostrophe, with 'Cee'd' being the end result. Since 2018, the Ceed name does not include an apostrophe. The initials now mean "Community of Europe, with European Design". The model has been manufactured at the Kia Motors Slovakia assembly plant in Žilina since December 2006. The Ceed replaced the Cerato which had little success in Europe, and is positioned between the Rio supermini and the Optima mid-size car.

First generation (ED; 2006)

The Cee'd was designed in Frankfurt, Germany, with Miklós Kovács leading the design team. while the concept car was designed by Pontus Fontaeus. The cee'd is developed on the same platform as the Hyundai i30.
There were three trim levels available: LX, EX, TX. The flagship TX trim was equipped with semi leather seats, Michelin 225/45 tires with 17 inch alloy wheels and rear parking sensors. All versions have six airbags as standard, active front headrests, height-adjustable headrests, pretensioners, ESP, electronic traction control, ABS, EBD, BA, and a reinforced structure of the cabin. Upon release on the market, the warranty is one of the most extensive and longest in Europe with seven years or 150,000 km for the powertrain and five years for the entire vehicle.
In September 2009, the facelifted model was unveiled at the 63rd Frankfurt Motor Show. While the five-door and the station wagon were given an updated front and rear design, including the Kia's new corporate grille called the Tiger Nose, technical revisions and minor changes in the interior, the three-door version exterior was not updated.

Body styles

Kia Pro_cee'd
The Pro_cee'd is the sports version of the Kia Cee'd, with a 3-door body and a new rear-end design. The concept car was showcased for first time at the Paris Motor Show in 2006. Apart from the 3-door hatchback body, the car is given a lower stance compared to the original 5-door Cee'd as it is 5 cm lower and 5 cm longer. The official pictures of the production version were released in July 2007.
Kia Cee'd Sportswagon
The Cee'd Sportswagon is the station wagon of the Cee'd. It is the only version that features the 2.0-litre CRDi engine. The claimed boot space is 534 dm³ with the rear seats unfolded and 1664 dm³ with the seats folded down.

Safety

The Kia Cee'd earned a Euro NCAP 5 star safety rating for adult occupants for the pre 2009 model. It is also fitted with six airbags as standard even in countries like Ukraine where safety options were usually stripped in comparison with other countries.
The Euro NCAP results also showed that the dashboard can become a threat to the driver and passenger's knees in the event of a front collision, despite having 6 airbags in the car and the Cee'd also scored the maximum available points for the side impact and pole tests.

Second generation (JD; 2012)

Making its worldwide premiere at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show is the all-new second-generation Cee'd which is claimed to be more sophisticated, efficient, refined, better equipped and with a more engaging driving experience than the first generation. The second-generation Cee'd is, however, significantly more expensive than the first generation and moves the Cee'd out of the "budget" market as noted by independent reviewers such as Honest John. The new Cee'd is expected to build on the success of the original model. With the new Cee'd, came Kia's first attempt of a hot hatch with the Pro Cee'd GT.
First shown in June 2015, a facelifted model of the Cee'd went on sale in September of the same year.

Pro_Cee'd GT and Cee'd GT

On July 1, 2013, Kia released the Pro_Cee'd GT; a 5-door Cee'd GT was released January 2014. The Pro_Cee'd GT is the company's first performance oriented car and the first European style "hot hatch" to come from a Korean manufacturer. The GT models are a sign of Kia's growing confidence in Europe, and act as a halo model for the rest of the range. It is also the first Kia sold in the UK with a turbo-charged petrol engine.
The Pro_Cee'd GT uses a variant of the Kia/Hyundai T-GDi Gamma Engine. The engine in the Pro_Cee'd GT is the same as that used in the American market Hyundai Veloster Turbo, but different gear ratios and more aggressive suspension have been used. The torque has also been increased to ; though, where the standard T-GDi engine has all of its torque available between 1750 and 4500 rpm, the engine as used in the Pro_Cee'd GT has been altered slightly, having its full torque available between 1750 and 4600 rpm. The engine propels the car from 0-60 mph in 7.4 seconds, 0.4 seconds faster than the Veloster Turbo with the same engine.
The suspension in the GT has been modified over the standard Pro_Cee'd, giving a far more agile and sporting ride. As too has the steering, being more responsive and engaging, though it also comes without Kia's "FlexSteer" system, meaning drivers will not be able to choose a different steering mode.
The styling of the car has been well received. The lines and body panels of the standard Pro_Cee'd have remained on the GT, but a body kit has been fitted to give the car a more muscular stance. The rear bumper now includes a splitter and twin exhausts, whilst the front introduces a large air intake with red pinstripe, a gloss black grille with silver GT badge and distinctive LED "Ice Cube" daytime running lights—side skirts are also fitted. The car runs on 18" Alloy Wheels over the standard car's 17" wheels. The interior gains red accents including an overstitched GT badge on the bottom of the steering wheel, as well as Leather and Suede Recaro sports racing bucket seats and TFT instrument dial, allowing the driver to switch between an analogue speedometer and digital readout with boost pressure and torque meters.
The car has also received praise for its impressive grip, handling and real world performance, along with its low asking price despite very high levels of standard equipment and excellent interior build quality and comfort. Its ability to remain comfortable and composed when driving in normal traffic despite its sporting pretences has also been praised—Top Gear UK stating that it is much easier to live with in day to day situations unlike its competitors, citing the Megane 265 as an example, calling it a "Steroidal Bugger to live with" in comparison to the far more forgiving ride of the Pro_Cee'd GT. The British television show Fifth Gear compared the Pro_Cee'd GT very favourably to the Megane 265, claiming that although it lacks the outright power of the Megane, it was "still quick" and its chassis balance and control were both matching the Renault in corners. The online review Series CarThrottle also gave the Pro_Cee'd GT a very high score; praising its looks and grip, complimenting how fun it was to drive on the limit and calling it "one of the best budget all-rounders money can buy".
The Pro_Cee'd GT, however, has met with some criticisms, mostly pertaining to its speed and fuel economy. Other C-Segment hot hatches, such as the Ford Focus ST and Volkswagen Golf GTI, use 2.0L petrol engines where the GT only uses a 1.6L unit, making the car a full second slower to 60 as compared to other rivals. The engine is also somewhat inefficient given its size—emitting 171g/km CO2 and only averaging 38.2mpg on the EU Combined Cycle. This is the same average fuel economy as the more powerful 2.0L engine present in the 2013 Ford Focus ST, meaning the GT may be expensive for some drivers to run if driven hard. However, the Pro_Cee'd GT starts at £19,995—making it £5,890 cheaper than a basic Golf GTi and £2,000 less than an equivalent spec Ford Focus ST 1, with the Tech model being £2,500 less than the equivalent Focus ST 2.

Third generation (CD; 2018)

The third-generation Ceed was announced in February 2018 and revealed ahead of the 2018 Geneva Motor Show. The estate version was announced in March and officially revealed at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show. The production of the hatchback started in May 2018 and the car became available in June. The production of the estate version started in summer 2018.

Dimensions

Engines

Sales

The Cee'd became Kia's best selling European model in the first few years following its launch, strongly outperforming sales of its predecessor, the Cerato—and the previous best selling model, the Picanto—with sales of between 90,000 and 150,000 units per year. Sales benefited from the innovative seven years' warranty—the first such warranty ever to be offered on any vehicle marketed in Europe.

Concepts

;Kia Pro_cee'd
At the 2007 Frankfurt Auto Show, Kia unveiled the Pro_Cee'd, The Show Car designed by Pontus Fontaeus, and began marketing the model in January 2008. The Pro_Cee'd is mechanically identical to the 5-door model but many body panels are new and do not carry over from the 5-door model. The first-generation Pro_Cee'd was often compared to the Audi A3 in terms of its appearance, Auto Express calling it a "bargain Audi A3".
In 2013, Kia released the second-generation Pro_Cee'd. Unlike the previous generation, this car shares no body panels with the 5-door model. The new Pro_Cee'd has been continually praised in reviews for its looks, with a more coupé-like appearance, more sporting stance, lower suspension and a smaller front grille. The car has, however, gained some criticism; it excels at comfort and refinement like the standard Cee'd, but its suspension and steering are not considered at all sporty, its setup favouring the aforementioned comfort.
In 2017 Kia released a concept for the third generation ProCeed. This time as a shooting break version of the Ceed.
;Kia Ex_cee'd
Kia's Ex_cee'd cabriolet concept car premiered at the 77th Salon de l'Automobile de Geneve in 2007 and was designed by Pontus Fontaeus. Based on the three-door Cee'd hatchback, the Ex_cee'd shares the same platform, but features different exterior panels and an electric folding fabric roof.
;Kia Eco_cee'd
Kia revealed a concept of its Pro_cee'd line, with improved aerodynamics and mild hybrid engine tuning to their diesel engine, under the name "Eco_cee'd". The concept models were fitted with ISG and regenerative braking.
;Hybrid version
Kia previewed a hybrid Cee'd concept at the 2008 Paris Auto Show, and operates an evaluation fleet of in Europe—with the hybrid models featuring an electric motor, powered by a high-voltage battery mounted behind the rear seats.

Media

On 27 June 2010, the Kia Cee'd was revealed as the new reasonably priced car for the "Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car" segment of the top-rated UK television programme Top Gear, where presenter Jeremy Clarkson incorrectly pronounces the name as "Cee-apostrophe-d" and describes it as "the only car with an apostrophe in its name." The version used had a kerb weight upwards of 1,263 kg, and was priced at . The car was eventually replaced in Series 20 by a Vauxhall Astra Tech Line. Top Gear dented several Cee'ds in a game of car rugby in 2013.

Motorsport

The Kia Cee'd has been homologated for TCR-specification series and is manufactured and supplied by Austrian company STARD. Kia will run a factory-supported team in the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship in 2017.
The Pro Cee'd serves as an official safety car in Poland's Kia Lotos Race, a racing organization created by Kia Motors Polska and Grupa Lotos.

Outside Europe

The Cee'd was being initially available only in the markets of Europe, Turkey, Israel and South Africa.
In Russia and Kazakhstan, the first two generations of Cee'd were sold alongside with the Kia Forte.
Kia began selling Cee'd models in Morocco since 2010. As of 2020, Kia still sells Cee'd models in Morocco, alongside the Kia Forte.
In 2014, the Pro_Cee'd GT was being sold in Israel, Australia and New Zealand. In 2015, Kia Australia announced that the Pro_Cee'd GT would no longer be offered in 2016, registering just 746 units over the two years on-sale.

Reception