New Kia Rio Pulse special edition comes with one year's free insurance
Additional tech, styling and equipment fitted to special edition Kia Rio Pulse
A new special edition Kia Rio has landed in the form of the Rio Pulse – a new sporty looking take on the Korean firm’s supermini.
It slots into the line-up between mid-spec grade 2 cars and range topping grade 3 models. On sale now and priced from £14,595, those who buy one before 30 September get a year’s free insurance bundled in too.
The Rio Pulse is singled out against regular versions of the car by eye-catching red exterior highlights. The roof is painted red, as are the vents at the front, the mirror caps and the side skirt trims. Two main contrasting paint colour options are available – white or black.
As standard it rides on a set of 17-inch alloy wheels, while the rear window and rear passenger windows are tinted too.
The red-highlights theme continues in the cabin – the Rio Pulse features black and red faux leather upholstery, with faux red leather door inserts. Meanwhile, the dashboard fascia is finished with red metallic paint.
In terms of tech and equipment, a five-inch colour touchscreen infotainment system is included as standard, and is bundled with a DAB radio, Bluetooth connectivity and USB points – more of which are found in the rear. A reversing camera is linked up to the screen, and the driver benefits from the addition of a 3.5-inch display embedded within the instrument panel. A six-speaker audio setup is also included.
Under the bonnet, the Rio Pulse gets a 1.25-litre four-cylinder petrol engine developing 83bhp and 121Nm of torque. It sends drive to the front-wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox, enabling 0-60mph in 12.5 seconds and a top speed of 107mph. In terms of fuel economy, Kia claims 58.8mpg with CO2 emissions of 109g/km.
Is the Kia Rio your supermini pick, or does something else take your fancy? Let us know in the comments!
