The king of doors: why does a minivan need a crossover mask

Kia returns the half-forgotten Carnival model to the Russian market, but the novelty now combines the features of a minivan and a crossover. Does the new cross-van have any chances in the Russian market, because the segment of large monocabs has become unpopular. Izvestia understood the rules of seating and how to open the door.

Ship on wheels

According to one of the versions, the word “carnival” comes from сarrus navalis – “vehicle-ship”. Painted boats on wheels were an attribute of ancient pagan festivals and may have moved along the narrow streets of ancient Phanagoria along with crowds of masked people. So far, archaeologists have managed to find only one ship – a rowing ship that once sank in the city harbor.

The segment of minivans in Russia has also gone to the bottom – only Toyota Alphard and the “Chinese” GAC GN8, which is nominally present on the market, remain afloat. Of the multi-seat and roomy, only passenger versions of commercial vans remained, such as the Hyundai H-1, Opel Zafira and VW Multivan.

The Kia Carnival left the market altogether a decade ago and is now returning. However, “gray” dealers are already carrying “Carnivals” from Korea. So there is demand?

The new Carnival is not the flagship of Kia’s lineup, but certainly the largest at 5155mm in length. As befits a holiday carriage, it is richly decorated – a lot of chrome, a massive grille, fancy headlights, bright body colors. As befits a participant in an ancient carnival, he wears a mask and pretends not to be who he really is.

The new Carnival is positioned as a crossvan, a kind of crossover and minivan crossover, and this is exactly the case when wishful thinking. An unpainted plastic body kit and a ground clearance of 182 mm add practicality to the car, but only front-wheel drive. However, this is one of the ways to survive – even if you are a minivan, just put on a crossover mask and join the general madness.

Getting to know the trunk

Carnival action, as Bakhtin wrote, turns everything upside down. So I started my acquaintance with the new cross-van with the trunk – very large and deep, despite the fact that the third row of seats was unfolded. The bag with a whistle flew down into a deep trench – there is no traditional underground with a spare tire. Finding a spare tire is a more difficult task than searching for an ancient treasure. In fact, it is fixed under the car on the right and lowered with a special key. A package is provided for a punctured wheel so that it does not stain the interior.

Further, the passenger compartment is huge, in Korea they managed to put 11 people in the Carnival. For the Russian market, they offer a 7- or 8-seater option. To keep an eye on passengers and communicate with them, the driver has a video surveillance system and a speakerphone.

The interior transformation possibilities seem to be endless. Now the outermost seats of the second row are turned against the course, the central one is folded and turned into a table. The result is a spacious, cozy living room with curtains on all windows, a separate climate unit and a bunch of sockets – they seem to be everywhere.

But only the front seats are equipped with heated – payment for the possibility of transformation. The cushions of the second and third row sofas are rather low, especially for tall passengers. The ceiling on the “gallery” is also low, if the Carnival is equipped with a sunroof.

The central section in width will suit only a child. However, it is just perfect for installing a child seat, according to Kia. The child is always within reach: to move the chair to the front row, just reach out and grasp the bracket. Or, on the contrary, you can turn the chair against the direction of travel and push it into the gallery – the rails run through the entire salon.

Rearrangement of furniture”

I tried to rearrange the “furniture” alone – the chairs are heavy, besides, it just won’t work – the extreme right is put to the left, the left – to the right. You need to accurately aim at the mounts – then the docking will occur and a green light will appear on the sidewall.

The third row easily hides in the underground and emerges from it – just pull the suitcase handle. The result is a huge trunk with a very low loading height and a flat floor. And if you pull out the second row, you get a van with a body of 1.2 × 2.4 m. It is unlikely that someone in their right mind will put euro pallets inside, but bicycles or large household appliances will fit in the “Carnival” with a margin.

A seven-seater Carnival is more expensive than an 8-seater. Here, in the second row, there are separate “captain’s” chairs with a bunch of electrical adjustments, heating and ventilation. Landing in them is much more comfortable, the pillow is located higher. Alternatively, you can recline the backrest, extend the footrest and take a nap, just like in business jet.

Doors wide open

Ease of use of the machine has been made absolute – sliding doors can be opened in many ways: from the inside, from the outside, remotely using the buttons on the key: individually each and or all three, including the luggage compartment. You come up with the key to the car from behind – the tailgate rises automatically, you step back – it starts. Moreover, when closing, it will give a double beep so as not to pinch someone. Convenient if you have several bags in your hands.

Carnival will not let the passenger go out under a passing car – with the help of parking radars, the crossvan monitors movement nearby – and in case of danger it will warn with a signal and will not allow the door to be opened. And so that the passenger does not accidentally step into a puddle, a special lamp illuminates the surface of the earth. Before leaving the car, the driver will be reminded to check the back row – there may be forgotten passengers, animals, a collection of amphorae or a couple of boxes with treasure.

Small bus

From the driver’s seat, the crossvan seems even more formidable than the rear. A wide chair with unexpressed lateral support, large buttons on the panel, an airfield-sized armrest – everything is made for a big man. But as soon as you go, the car decreases in an amazing way and easily maneuvers along the narrow streets of Anapa, past closely parked cars. In difficult cases, the all-round vision system comes to the rescue. And if I, leaving in reverse, still did not notice the approaching car, the car is able to brake on its own.

On the road, Carnival least of all resembles a bus – the handling is light, the diesel (199 hp) does not annoy with rumble and vibrations and easily accelerates a car weighing more than two tons. The voice recognition system, which does not understand my commands, referring to the noise in the cabin, is disingenuous – the cabin is quiet, including due to the windshield with additional noise isolation.

The Carnival is more comfortable on the move than the sibling Kia Sorento, but the suspension settings are still tight for the sake of handling. This is especially felt in the third row – if the asphalt is bad, the passengers are shaken. However, such settings, combined with a relatively high ground clearance, will allow you to travel around Russia without any problems.

The petrol version is completely driver’s – the V6 engine (249 hp) sounds sporty and accelerates the car from zero to “hundred” in just 8.5 seconds. Let the suspension notice more little things here, but driving on serpentines is a pleasure. The downside is consumption: the gasoline Carnival spends, according to the on-board computer, 14 liters per 100 km, while the diesel – only 8 liters. Whether a family minivan needs such settings is a question, but neither the driver nor passengers will be bored.

Carnival budget

Previously, a crossover was a car at the junction of several genres, like the Mercedes-Benz R-Class. Carnival just combines the features of an SUV, a van and a minivan, but it is especially good as a minivan.

Another advantage of the novelty is the price tag, which starts at 2.6 million. The base has a conventional air conditioner, fabric-trimmed seats, 17-inch wheels. At the same time, such a “Carnival” quite confidently compete with “merchants” like Opel Zavira, Peugeot Traveler, Citroen Space Tourer and Hyundai H-1. Against their background, the cross van looks more interesting and rides in a car.

However, there is already a heated windshield and a rear-view camera. The electric drive of sliding doors, climate control for the rear rows and the interior trim with artificial leather begin already at the mark of 3 million. As well as the opportunity to order a gasoline engine (from 3 million 150 thousand rubles). The most expensive Premium + option with captain’s seats, depending on the engine, will cost 3 million 490 thousand (diesel) – 3 million 580 thousand rubles (gasoline). And here “Carnival” has no competitors. For a similar amount, you can only find the “Chinese” GAC GN8 (2.7-3.5 million). The rest of the business shuttles are more expensive: the price tag for the VW Multivan is just starting at 3.6 million, and the Toyota Alphard costs at least 5.7 million rubles.