Of all the places where the third-generation Cee’d would lose the camo, Kia chose that country to be Russia. Coming courtesy of a video uploaded to YouTube by kiaceedclub, we now know what the South Korean automaker has in the pipeline for its award-winning compact hatchback.
The second-generation Cee’d, codenamed JD, made its debut at the 2012 edition of the Geneva Motor Show. Based on this sighting of the all-new model, there’s no mistaking the 2018 Geneva Motor Show holds a similar surprise. And just like the current Cee’d, production for European markets will take place at the automaker’s factory in Zilina, Slovakia.
Screenshots captured from the spy video reveal the extent of the visual changes, with the Cee’d III boasting more muscular wheel flares, LED headlights and taillights, as well as the requisite tiger-nose grille up front. As the driver shooting the video passes the car, it’s also apparent that the wheelbase and overall length overshadow those of the second-gen Cee’d.
The Kia-badged counterpart of the Hyundai i30 is confirmed to spawn at least four body styles: five-door hatchback (pictured), five-door station wagon, Proceed Concept-inspired shooting brake, and a crossover utility vehicle-like variant believed to replicate the likes of Ford’s Fiesta Active.
The Cee’d shooting brake is probably the most heavily anticipated of the four body styles, for it replaces the three-door Pro_cee’d that’s been struggling to make a case for itself as far as sales figures are concerned. With the Hyundai i30 also bidding farewell to the three-door hatchback derivative, the writing was on the wall for the unloved Pro_cee’d as well.
Being closely related to the i30, don’t hold your breath for anything too different under the skin. To this effect, the Euro-spec Cee’d will be available with anything from a 1.0-liter Turbo GDi three-cylinder engine to the 1.6 CRDi four-cylinder turbo diesel.
In addition to the standard manual transmission, the options list will contain the 7-speed DCT of the i30. And with a bit of luck, the 8-speed wet-clutch DCT that’s coming to the i30 N hot hatchback could also make the cut.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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