Kia India will enter the premium MPV space again with the new Carnival sometime in 2024. The third-gen Carnival was discontinued in India in June for being at the end of its product lifecycle.
- India to get facelifted fourth-gen Carnival
- Will be locally assembled via CKD kits
- Will be priced higher than the outgoing model
At the sidelines of the Seltos facelift launch, Kia India CEO Taejin Park confirmed to Autocar India that the facelifted model of the fourth-gen Carnival, which is yet to be revealed globally, will be brought here. "We don’t want old styles to come to the India market. We want the best, newest model to premiere here," he said.
The fourth-gen Carnival was showcased in India at Auto Expo 2023 as the Kia KA4, but it wasn't called the Carnival as the third-generation of the MPV was still on sale here at that time. The fourth-gen model (KA4) has been on sale overseas for around three years now, and is due for a mid-lifecycle styling update in the near future.
The facelift for the fourth-gen Carnival is being tested in Korea already, and sports major styling changes that will bring the MPV in line with the newer Kia models. Some of the styling cues seen on the Seltos facelift like the connected L-shaped tail lamps and Kia's signature Star Map lighting are all expected to make their way on the updated Carnival. This means India and other markets will be in sync with the product lifecycle this time.
The new Carnival that's headed to India will not only sport fresh design, but will also come with more features and tech. Kia is likely to bring the new MPV here via the CKD route, which will help keep prices in check; however, expect a significant markup in pricing over the third-gen Carnival, which was priced at around Rs 31 lakh (ex-showroom).
Similar to the outgoing Carnival, the new-gen model won't have a direct rival. However, it will see some competition from the likes of the Toyota Innova Hycross, and it will sit below the Toyota Vellfire, which will also see a full model change in India in the coming months.
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