Madness Sensor: The First Test Drive Of The All-terrain Kia XCeed

Video: Madness Sensor: The First Test Drive Of The All-terrain Kia XCeed

Ay, well done Frenchmen! How they made this car on time - the best indicator of client requests, and the state of the entire auto industry, simply cannot be imagined. You look at it, and everything is immediately laid out on the shelves. Bravo, Citroen

Calm down, the author has not yet completely lost his mind and has not mixed up the texts. Just the day before yesterday Citroen showed the new generation C4 and unwittingly explained to the whole world the meaning of KiXСeed existence. After all, these are cars about the same thing - about the near future, in which ordinary city hatchbacks will be of no interest to anyone. Everything will cross. It's just that the French are already boldly chopping from the shoulder, and the Koreans are carefully preparing the soil: they say, this is just one of the versions, no one forbids you to choose the traditional Ceed. Does not prohibit it yet.

Insanity sensor: KiXCeed's first off-road test drive

It makes no sense to arrange a polemic on this score: in the end, the main problem of cars is personally us. Because we buy crossovers. But the Russian positioning of XCeed also pushed me to linguistic parallels, because in English there is a word exceed - to exceed, to exaggerate, to go beyond the usual limits. And this, alas, is not about the capabilities of the car itself, but about its price.

At first glance, the layouts are logical: "X" starts with the same 1.5-1.6 million rubles, which ends with the usual Ceed. The cross-hatch is offered only with turbo engines and a robotic transmission, it does not have a barefoot configuration on stampings and without climate control, and the most sophisticated 200-horsepower version costs about two million. Much like the Panamer for the "poor" - the elegant Proceed GT with the same engine.

So far, everything is logical, right? But there is a small flaw in this system.

XCeed and Ceed intersect in the price lists with literally only one line: this is the top version of the Premium +. Equipment, engine, transmission - everything is identical. Only a hatchback costs 1,639,900 rubles, and a "crossover" - 1,929,900. Don't look for a typo, there is none: the difference really is almost three hundred thousand … And even in comparison with the similarly packed 140-horsepower Prosid in the GT Line version, you need to pay another 80 thousand more. But there was originally a niche design experiment - and here, it seems, is the messenger of the very car race that will soon enslave the world. And it would be something to overpay for!

Yes, the XCeed looks more interesting than the standard hatch. Apart from the front doors, it has an entirely own body with piled-up rear pillars, complicated lighting equipment, embossed bumpers and, of course, a belt made of unpainted plastic. In the advertising golden-lemon color, the car really looks great, but the burgundy one, like our copy, eats up some of the charm - and personally, in addition, it continues to seem to me that the previous generation of Sid is still more spectacular than all the current versions combined. A dynamic wedge-shaped silhouette, cunning slanting headlights - there was more life and emotions in that car!

But if we leave the design taste outside the brackets, what else will the generous X-buyer get? Yes, basically, nothing … Okay, I'll explain in more detail. The wheelbase of the cars is no different, but the XCeed is 85 millimeters longer due to the overhangs and, as a result, is 21 liters more spacious in the trunk. To justify the crossover status, the ground clearance is increased by 22 millimeters, and another 12 can be obtained by choosing the version on 18-inch wheels. Everything.

The ground clearance on 16-inch wheels is 172 millimeters, and on 18-inch wheels - 184. We have the first option, and the plastic crankcase - the lowest point of the car - hangs exactly where it is stated. But with the front bumper, you need to observe a certain accuracy: it is both low and not sloping, and a shiny lining, if anything, it will be a pity

The situation is better behind: curbs, in principle, you can not be afraid

The coupe-like profile is a trend that will only gain momentum in the coming years. Again, look at the new Citroen C4

LED lights subtly resemble either BMW or Lexus, but Koreans should not be blamed for plagiarism. And in general, what is plagiarism in the modern world?

For example, the tailpipes are fake, as they are. Have you spied on Audi and Mercedes or is it just a consequence of the general fashion?

Chubby, high-profile tires are just what you need for a cross-hatch. We still have too many roads that are not up to aesthetics

The cutout in the inner sections of the headlights is one of the XCeed chips. But the general expression of the look is similar to the usual Sid, and the proprietary four of LED navigation lights are preserved

Fog lights will be halogen even in the top configuration, although all other optics are LED by default

Unless the simplest version will have diode turn signals on the mirrors

Neither all-wheel drive, nor even an electronic off-road placebo in the manner of Peugeot is given here - except that the springs in the suspension became a few percent softer, and hydraulic travel stops appeared in the shock absorbers. Indeed, the Cross-Seed drove more comfortable and pit-resistant than usual, but in order to really feel the difference, you have to change from one car to another. I drove Side about a year ago, and at this distance the character still seems similar: the chassis is quite elastic and energy-intensive, but the XCeed passes large irregularities with tangible impacts, albeit without breakdowns. For example, Seltos, for example, has a slightly lighter gait as a whole.

But it's great that the engineers retained their gambling control: the cross-hatch turns more interestingly! A heavy steering wheel is rarely a topic, but here is just such a case: it is nice to feel how good feedback comes through a thick effort and how willingly the car responds to the driver's commands. And most importantly - the same surprisingly lively rear axle is still here! To cause a skid, it is not even necessary to release the gas: it is enough to swing the steering wheel more sharply into the bend, and voila - we slide!

There would be plenty of fun on the primers, but not destiny. I hold down the stabilization shutdown button for a long time, a message pops up on the dashboard that the electronics have gone for a smoke break and does not see anything - but this is a lie. As soon as the skid reaches any noticeable angle, the XCeed shamelessly pushes on the brakes and knocks off my arrogance, excitement, joy and faith in humanity. I decided to misbehave! These are not the times.

And the power unit does not support the initiative. More precisely, there are no special questions to the 1.4-liter supercharged "four": it tries, pulls, even sounds pleasant in some way. But the seven-speed "robot" with two clutches is usually lazy and requires you to wait a couple of seconds before your request for a sharp acceleration is satisfied - either from the spot or from the move. The sports program solves the second problem, only if you forget to turn it off, getting into a traffic jam or driving into the yard - get ready for sudden and sharp jerks. Not ubiquitous, but regular and annoying. And it is completely optional with a live variator Seltos.

He does not make you think about traction control at all, but simply does what you command him with your right foot. And the dynamics is the same: with a 150-horsepower aspirated front-wheel drive Seltos gaining a hundred in 9.6 seconds, losing the XCeed as much as a whole infinite ten. By the way, the larger and heavier "X" is slower than the usual Sid with the same turbo engine by 0.3 seconds.

Why am I attaching a budget crossover to a conversation about a representative of a full-fledged golf class? Well, look.

Let us assume that Seltos is not so interesting with active taxiing - more precisely, it is not interesting at all. But in everyday driving it is simpler and more convenient, in terms of noise insulation, both cars have parity (XCeed makes more noise with tires, Seltos - with a motor, but in general it is loud both there and there), and in addition, the crossover is more practical: it has a slightly larger trunk, noticeably more spacious than the second row and another one and a half to two centimeters more ground clearance. Yes, it doesn't offer an electric fifth door or a second climate zone, and the plastics in the cabin will be all over the place, while the XCeed is soft and pliable for the most part. But look at what the interior of our test car looks like in the potentially most massive version of the Prestige for 1 669 900 rubles - and estimate what you get for this money.

The austere yet functional interior is comfortable, well laid out and well put together. Front panel - a huge array of soft plastic, did not save on door cards

The seats are well profiled, the ranges of their adjustments and the steering wheel are plenty, if not to say, in abundance. But electric drives are allowed only for top versions for 1.9 million rubles and more

Flawless instrument scales are already a good Kia tradition. However, a small, not too neatly embedded monochrome display between the wells is all you get for 1.7 million rubles. Large color screen - again the prerogative of the top configuration

Like the usual Sid, there is a sport mode here, useful, first of all, transmissions: this way the robot keeps in good shape. But to additionally weight the already weighty steering wheel is unnecessary

In the basic version of the Luxe, almost everything is heated in the XCeed, and in the subsequent versions - everything in general, including the second row and the windshield. Dual-zone climate control with highly reflective displays is required for all versions, but the whole economy is controlled absolutely unmistakably

An old eight-inch multimedia is the main disappointment of the interior. It sticks out completely unaesthetic, the screen is faded, the graphics are unpretentious, the functionality is scanty - although the CarPlay and Android Auto protocols are present. In principle, the same is put on most ordinary Sids, except for the most expensive … Which costs the same as this "X". And it pampers with a large 10.23-inch screen, widgets, navigation and everything that your heart desires. XCeed with such a system will cost 1.9 million rubles

The second row is the same as in a regular hatch. The space is not more than enough, but it's good that the coupe-like profile did not eat up the space above the tops of the passengers

The volume of the trunk is 426 liters. It is correct, well finished and quite comfortable, and the seat backs fold into a flat floor. Amenities - an electric door, a pair of hooks for bags and a 12-volt socket

Classics: Not great, but not terrible either. What will Seltos give? Fundamentally more modern multimedia with navigation, an elegant display on the dashboard, a clearer picture from the rear view camera and Bose acoustics, for example. And a discount of 120 thousand rubles, for which hard plastic can definitely be forgiven. Or you can take the all-wheel drive version with the same equipment - and still save thirty. And most importantly, get a crossover, and not a half-measure stylized for it.

In general, it turns out somehow inconvenient. Again he scolded the generally nice and not bad car - even a pleasant one, one might say. Also embodying, albeit a perverted, but still a golf class, according to which it is now customary to sing for the dead, and to carry rare representatives of it in your arms. But what can you do if marketers are completely ode … Okay, I'll explain in more detail.

Too often lately, I've come across car hypocrisy. Lexus UX, SkodKaroq, now KiXCeed are ordinary hatchbacks posing as crossovers and only on this basis require a solid surcharge from the client. If the cross-Seed cost 50, even 100 thousand more than usual, I would now run through the streets and shout laudatory odes to him. But it is three hundred more expensive. And given the wealth of the model line, this cannot be interpreted otherwise than a marketing test for our madness.

Is the mass market ready to pay extra 20 percent of the price purely for the image? Will it ride? If it works, we will get the next generation exactly in this form and on such conditions. And, of course, no one can be blamed for this but ourselves.