At the recent New York International Auto Show, Kia’s newly styled, second-generation Cerato Koup was unveiled for the first time. Known as the Kia Forte in North America, the range encompasses a four-door sedan, a five-door hatch and the two-door, which Kia refer to as the ‘Koup’ as in ‘coupé’. Of the three siblings, it’s the handsome Cerato Koup that always garners the most attention.
Lower, longer and wider than the original Kia Koup, the new model moves away from the current Koup’s Blade runner looks and instead, moves towards a more grown up appearance. The swept-back headlamps with LED positioning lights give it a striking front end, while the angled shoulder line allows for a shallower glasshouse and sportier profile. We have to say that in the pictures, the new Pro_Cee’d GT looks slightly sportier.
Despite this, the Cerato line up can now boast the same GDI (direct injection) 149 kW and 265 Nm, turbocharged 1.6-litre 4-cylinder engine that’s found in the range-topping Pro_Cee’d GT. In the U.S. anyway, the Cerato Koup range will be anchored with a 2.0-litre naturally-aspirated 4-cylinder that produces 130 kW and 208 Nm of torque.
Best of all, we have it on good authority that when this Cerato Koup does arrive in South Africa, it will have the turbocharged 1.6-litre engine as well. The Cerato Koup also gets what Kia likes to call a sport-tuned suspension. This is composed of a MacPherson struts at the front and a plain old torsion beam at the back. Just how they consider that to be a sporty combination, we’re not totally sure. Why they didn’t go for the Cerato hatchback’s multi-link setup is also a mystery.
Nevertheless, in the U.S. there is a 6-speed automatic gearbox with steering wheel mounted paddle shifters, but only the sportier turbo offering will be available with a three-pedal 6-speed manual transmission. 16-inch alloy wheels, a rear camera and Bluetooth connectivity are standard, with higher models getting the 18-inch alloys, chrome exhaust tips, LED tail lamps and carbon fibre-style accents inside and out.
