Kia Picanto review - MPG, CO2 and Running Costs

Whichever way you look at it, the Kia Picanto is one of the most affordable cars money can buy. That goes for everything from list price, to fuel and other consumables – even the brightly coloured option packs offer decent value.

Under the latest WLTP test regime, the 1.0-litre Picanto emits 121g/km of CO2, up from 101g/km under the NEDC test. It also returns a claimed 53.3mpg, compared to 64.2mpg under the NEDC test cycle. However, these poorer figures aren't really cause for concern, it's just that the official fuel economy test is tougher, and more realistically represents what you can expect to get from a Picanto in real-life driving

There are a number of changes you can make to the car’s spec to help improve these figures, too. Go for the four-seat version rather than the five-seat car and you’ll improve emissions and boost fuel economy.

The 1.2 emits 128g/km in its most basic 2 trim, although this figure rises to 131g/km for the GT-Line S. Official fuel economy is between 48-50mpg, depending on which equipment grade you go for. Add the auto gearbox to this engine, and the best that you can expect is 43.5mpg and emissions of 148-152g/km.

The 1.0 T-GDi is a reasonable performer, with claimed economy of around 50mpg, again depending on the chosen trim level. Emissions of 128-129g/km make no difference to road tax now that it's set at a flat rate.

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Insurance groups

Insurance groups for the Kia Picanto range from 4 to 7 for X-Line versions, and then jump to Group 10 for the GT-Line models. That means it'll be just as popular as the old car with young drivers. However, some Skoda Citigo models fall into group 2, which should mean a saving when taking out a premium.

Depreciation

Like its predecessor, the Picanto continues to be a so-so performer for residual values, although low list prices mean the money you’ll lose is comparatively small compared to cars in the class above.

So, while most previous-generation Kia Picantos retained between 32 and 36 percent of their value after three years or 36,000 miles, the fact that even the priciest GT-Line models came in at around £15,000 means you’ll likely lose less on a Picanto than you would on an equivalent Rio, for example.

A Volkswagen Up! performs better here, with almost all models retaining 38-40 percent of their value.