Kia Carens vs rivals: Price, specifications comparison

We pit the newly launched Kia Carens against its three-row rivals, on paper.

Published On Feb 18, 2022 08:00:00 AM

52,232 Views

Kia has launched the Carens in India, with prices starting at Rs 8.99 lakh and going up to Rs 16.99 lakh (introductory, ex-showroom, India). The new Carens is available with a choice of three engines, manual and automatic gearboxes, five variants and two seating layouts – 6- and 7-seater.

The Carens rivals other three-row models in the market like the Hyundai Alcazar, Maruti Suzuki XL6, Mahindra Marazzo, Toyota Innova Crysta and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga. Read on to see how it compares against these models in terms of price, dimensions, engines and gearboxes.

Kia Carens has the longest wheelbase
The Kia is the only one to offer a turbo-petrol option
Carens undercuts all its rivals in terms of price

Kia Carens vs rivals: price comparison

Carens vs rivals: price comparison
	Kia Carens	Hyundai Alcazar	Maruti XL6	Mahindra Marazzo	Toyota Innova Crysta	Maruti Ertiga
Petrol range	Rs 8.99 lakh-16.99 lakh	Rs 16.34 lakh-20.00 lakh	Rs 10.14 lakh-12.02 lakh	NA	Rs 16.89 lakh-23.47 lakh	Rs 8.12 lakh-10.85 lakh
Diesel range	Rs 10.99 lakh-16.99 lakh	Rs 16.75 lakh-20.15 lakh	NA	Rs 12.80 lakh-14.92 lakh	Rs 18.18 lakh-25.32 lakh	NA

Kia has priced the Carens very aggressively seeing as it manages to undercut all competitors here by a significant margin, except for the Ertiga. The disruptive pricing will not only attract buyers of MPVs like the XL6 and Ertiga, but perhaps also of more expensive three-row SUVs. The Kia comes across as being a real value-for-money package and with multiple engine-gearbox, variant and seating options, there’s a model on offer for every type of buyer. However, it’s worth remembering that the Carens’ prices are only introductory and they will be hiked at a later stage.

Coming to its rivals, the XL6 and Ertiga are the most affordable alternatives to the Kia, but both are restricted in their engine and variant choices and are smaller in dimension. The Alcazar also seems to be a bit overpriced in the company of the Kia, especially as both the diesels share the same engine and gearboxes. The Marazzo is reasonably priced, but again, is more expensive than the Carens and is a diesel-only model. The Innova Crysta, meanwhile, is priced a few segments above the Carens, as its petrol range’s starting price itself is only Rs 10,000 lesser than the Kia’s top-spec petrol.

Kia Carens vs rivals: dimensions

Carens vs rivals: dimensions
	Kia Carens	Hyundai Alcazar	Maruti XL6	Mahindra Marazzo	Toyota Innova Crysta	Maruti Ertiga
Length	4540mm	4500mm	4445mm	4585mm	4735mm	4395mm
Width	1800mm	1790mm	1775mm	1866mm	1830mm	1735mm
Height	1700mm	1675mm	1700mm	1774mm	1795mm	1690mm
Wheelbase	2780mm	2760mm	2740mm	2760mm	2750mm	2740mm
Ground clearance	195mm	200mm	180mm	150mm	167mm	180mm
Tyre size	205/65 R16	215/55 R18	185/65 R15	215/60 R17	215/55 R17	185/65 R15

In terms of dimensions, the Kia Carens measures 4,540mm in length, 1,800mm in width, 1,700mm in height (without roof rails) and has a wheelbase of 2,780mm.

Compared to its rivals, the Kia has the longest wheelbase, but is more or less on par in terms of other dimensions. The Innova Crysta is the longest and tallest overall here, while the Mahindra Marazzo is the widest of the lot. Hyundai’s Alcazar has the highest ground clearance and the largest tyres here. Maruti’s XL6 and Ertiga, meanwhile, are the smallest overall in this comparison. Both MPVs have the same wheelbase, ground clearance and tyre size but, they differ in terms of overall length, width and height.

Kia Carens vs rivals: petrol powertrains

Carens petrol vs rivals
	Kia Carens	Hyundai Alcazar	Maruti XL6	Toyota Innova Crysta	Maruti Ertiga
Type	4 cyls, Naturally Aspirated /4 cyls, Turbo	4 cyls, Naturally Aspirated	4 cyls, Naturally Aspirated	4 cyls, Naturally Aspirated	4 cyls, Naturally Aspirated
Displacement	1497cc/1353cc	1999cc	1462cc	2694cc	1462cc
Power	115hp/140hp	159hp	105hp	166hp	105hp
Torque	144Nm/242Nm	191Nm	138Nm	245Nm	138Nm
Gearbox	6-speed MT/ 7-speed DCT (Turbo only)	6-speed MT/6-speed AT	5-speed MT/4-speed AT	5-speed MT/6-speed AT	5-speed MT/4-speed AT

All models in this comparison, barring the Marazzo, come with petrol engines. The Carens comes with two petrol options, both of which have been borrowed from the Seltos SUV. First is the 115hp, 144Nm, 1.5-litre naturally aspirated unit that’s paired to a 6-speed manual gearbox only. The Carens has the distinction of being the only one to offer a turbo-petrol option here – the 140hp, 1.4-litre direct-injection unit. The Carens’ turbo-petrol can be had with either a 6-speed manual or a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox. Kia claims that the petrol Carens returns up to 16.5kpl, but didn’t specify for which engine-gearbox combination.

As for the rivals, the Innova Crysta has the largest displacement engine, which is also the most powerful and torquey (166hp, 245Nm). The Toyota’s petrol engine can be had with either a 5-speed manual or a 6-speed torque converter automatic. The Alcazar is not far behind the Innova Crysta, with its 159hp, 191Nm, 2.0-litre unit. Gearbox options for the Alcazar petrol include a 6-speed MT and a 6-speed torque converter AT.

The Maruti Suzuki XL6 and Ertiga share the same engine, which means that they both have the smallest naturally aspirated engine here with the least output. However, the Maruti Suzuki models are the only ones here that come with a mild-hybrid set-up with an integrated starter generator and a lithium-ion battery, which is said to aid performance and efficiency. It’s also worth noting that the Ertiga is the only model here that can be had with a factory-fit CNG option.

Kia Carens vs rivals: diesel powertrains

Carens diesel vs rivals
	Kia Carens	Hyundai Alcazar	Mahindra Marazzo	Toyota Innova Crysta
Type	4 cyls, Turbo	4 cyls, Turbo	4 cyls, Turbo	4 cyls, Turbo
Displacement	1493cc	1493cc	1497cc	2393cc
Power	115hp	115hp	121hp	150hp
Torque	250Nm	250Nm	300Nm	360Nm
Gearbox	6-speed MT/6-speed AT	6-speed MT/6-speed AT	6-speed MT	5-speed MT/6-speed AT

All competitors here, except for the Maruti Suzuki XL6 and Ertiga, come with a diesel engine. The Kia Carens and the Hyundai Alcazar come with the same 1.5-litre diesel unit that also does duty in the Seltos and Creta. This unit has the smallest displacement here and the least output – 115hp and 250Nm. Gearbox options for both Korean models include a 6-speed manual and 6-speed torque converter auto. The diesel Carens is claimed to return up to 21.3kpl.

Mahindra’s Marazzo does have more displacement, power and torque than the Kia and Hyundai, but can only be had with a 6-speed manual gearbox.

The Toyota Innova Crysta, meanwhile, has the largest diesel engine in this comparison, at 2.4 litres, and it has the highest output as well, at 150hp and 360Nm. However, unlike the others, the Toyota can only be had with a 5-speed manual, although a 6-speed torque converter is also part of the range.

So that’s how the new Kia Carens fares against the competition, on paper. However, only a full road test comparison will determine how it stacks up in the real world. Stay tuned for that.

Would you choose the new Kia Carens over its rivals? Let us know in the comments section.

All prices are ex-showroom, Delhi

Kia Carens prices are ex-showroom, pan-India

Also see:

Kia Carens review, test drive

Kia Carens video review

Kia Carens image gallery