The next-generation 2017 Kia Picanto was launched in Australia this week, with the city car promising improved connectivity, ride and handling, packaging and safety.

SPEAKING AT THE local launch of the second-generation Kia Picanto, Kia Australia’s chief operating officer, Damien Meredith said: “The current Picanto was a toe in the water for us in a segment which was, to be honest, struggling. We believed there was life in the segment for the right car and the fact that what was an ageing model is now the most popular in the segment proved that to be true.

“The new model has improvements across a huge range of specifications and while we are not expecting massive growth in the segment, we believe there is still life and there is still a sound reason to be a part of it.”

The outgoing Picanto arrived in Australia right at the end of its lifecycle and has been selling strongly (it was only available with an automatic transmission), with 55% of the micro car segment in Australia. The new model goes on-sale in one specification only, S, but, for the first time, will be available with both an automatic (continuing with the current car’s four-speed unit) and a five-speed manual.

Equipment levels have been hiked for the new Picanto, which borrows styling cues from the recently launched Rio, and offers an eight-inch touchscreen infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity (with Hey Siri and Okay Google voice control), cruise control, dusk-sensing head lights, driver’s one-touch up and down window, reversing camera with dynamic parking guidelines, brake-based torque vectoring (a segment first) and much more.

The new Picanto carries over the old car’s 1.25-litre four-cylinder engine coupled to a four-speed automatic at $15,690 drive away and a five-speed manual at $14,190 (+ORC).