Capitalising on a solid foundation

Just as impressive as its oddly-named successor, the Ceed will guarantee you a safe and sensible ride, says Julie Marshall

When the latest generation of Kia’s popular C-segment cee’d hatchback was launched it ditched its lower case c and the annoying apostrophe and became Ceed - a much more sensible idea.

Silly name aside, since launch in 2006 more than 1.3million have been built and presumably sold and Kia as a whole is riding high with more than86,000carssoldintheUK so far in 2019 - making the Korean manufacturer eighth in the list.

Ceed looks good without being flashy. It’s smart with clean lines and a nicely put together front end with a ‘tiger-nose’ grille. Compared to the outgoing model it is lower, wider and looks far more sporty.

The interior is made up of premium materials with stitching detail on the dash which is a nice touch and adds a touch of class. The horizontally laid-out dashboard gives animpressionofspaceandthe dials and switches are tactile and easy to use while driving.

There’s plenty of adjustment for the steering wheel and the seats, and the headroom is roomy for tall drivers and those, like me who like to sit up as high as possible for a good view of the road. The seats are supportive and comfortable even over long journeys.

The headroom is also pretty decent in the back and you can just about fit three adults in at a pinch. The extra little window in the back makes the interior light and bright.

The boot has a low lip for easy loading and an adjustable-height floor. A space-saver spare wheel is stashed under the floor and the rear seats can be folded down almost flat fromwithinthebootwithlittle effort required.

Entry-level Grade 2 gets cruise control with speed limiter, air conditioning, allround electric windows and automatic headlight control. Features that are not usually found until you get higher up the pecking order.

There’snosat-navintheentry-level model but all get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto which, in my opinion, gives more up to date information anyway.

All models get a reversing camera and all but the entry model also has reversing sensors.

Ceed rides well and soaks up bumps. It’s also reasonably quiet even when powered by the sparky little three-cylinder one-litre petrol engine. You need to rev it to get anywhere fast but It produces 118bhp and, in theory, will return around 50mph although we hovered around the 39-41mpg mark most of the time. Ceed is also available with a 1.4-litre 138bhp petrol and a 1,6-litre diesel which makes for 17 variants based on seven trim levels. Allarefive-door,front-wheel drive hatchbacks.

Manual transmission is available across the range but the seven-speed auto dual-clutch transmission is only available with the two most powerful engines.

The Ceed gets loads of safety kit including six airbags, high beam assist, driver attention warning and lane-keeping assist. The car nudges you back over the line if you stray and can actually prove distracting when you first encounter it.

In all, Ceed is a great family carthathaswideappealacross all age ranges - and let’s not forget that fantastic seven-year 100,000-mile warranty, still one of the best there is.