- Doors and Seats
5 doors, 7 seats
- Engine
2.5i, 6 cyl.
- Engine Power
132kW, 220Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (91) 9L/100KM
- Manufacturer
FWD
- Transmission
Manual
- Warranty
3 Yr, 100000 KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
Used car review: Kia Carnival
Honda's recent push to make its Odyssey model rather bolder and swisher looking is really the exception that proves the rule: that people movers are just not sexy. They don't handle or perform as well as a conventional station wagon (generally speaking), nor do they have the butch image of a four-wheel-drive with an extra row of seats.
No, they're definitely a means to an end and, for many families - big families, that is - that also means they can represent a grudge purchase.
(Nothing explains why some people movers are cramped for elbow and leg room, or why some car companies insists on adding a range of luxury equipment which inevitably pushes the price higher and higher.)
But the continued demand for a people mover that is cheap and voluminous is exactly why Kia's Carnival, launched here in 1999, was such a good package. True, it was flawed in some dynamic and safety areas, but as a means of carting around a family of six, or even seven, without having to spend $50,000 for the privilege, the Carnival was a dead-set winner.
And now, as a second-hand proposition, the Carnival is available in decent numbers at a price that can only be matched by Toyota Tarago and Chrysler Voyager once they're a few years older and have covered many more kilometres. In fact, while the cheapest previous-generation Taragos with a 2000 build-plate are still fetching low-$30,000 prices, a Carnival from the same year, with the same kilometres, will be less than $20,000. Yes, the Toyota is a better vehicle, but $10,000 better? Not likely.
That big, boxy exterior means the Carnival doesn't really have any tight spots inside. The seating plan has two occupants in the front, two in the rear with a middle row of three seats. The rear seats are best left to smaller folk and getting three adults across the centre row can also be a tight fit, but at least access to the third row of seats is better than average with a sliding door that allows wide access.
Like all people movers, however, when all the seats are occupied, there's not a whole lot of luggage space left. If luggage space is important, look for a post-2001 example. In that model, both the second and third rows can be folded flat to turn the Carnival into a big van.
The Carnival was fairly conventional mechanically, with front-wheel-drive and power coming from a 2.5-litre V6. Transmission choices consisted of a four-speed automatic or five-speed manual.
Performance has never been anything special and when fully laden, a Carnival works hard to stay with traffic, especially at freeway speeds, at which point, the automatic gearbox will start to shuffle around for a gear it's happy with, and that can start to get annoying. The engine also works better at high revs, which isn't exactly suited to the style of vehicle.
But, as we said, nobody bought a Carnival for driving thrills, so simply being able to keep up was all that was really required.
Watch out for pre-2002 cars with signs of oil in the coolant, or vice-versa. An erratic idle or poor running should also prompt you to look more closely, as all these are symptoms of a blown head-gasket, not unknown in the earlier versions. We've also heard of steering rack problems and tyre wear patterns that indicate poor wheel alignment.
A lack of standard safety equipment was most alarming. The base-model Carnival LS got a driver's airbag, while more upmarket versions got dual front airbags, but none of the Carnival variants got anti-lock brakes (ABS) as standard, which can be a very hard option to find on a used example. Given that the Carnival is a family vehicle, the lack of ABS is bordering on unacceptable.
But find a Kia Carnival with ABS, learn to live with its performance shortcomings, and you might just find that the big interior and general useability will endear it to you, long after you've stopped thinking about how desperately unsexy it is.
What to pay
At about $20,000 for a 2000 base model, the Carnival is a lot of car for your money. That was its mantra when brand new, and nothing much has changed. It's possible to spend up to the low $30,000s for a low-kilometre, 2003-build example, but really, why would you?
The competition
Toyota's Tarago is perhaps the closest thing to a Carnival, although the Toyota's engine-under-the-floor layout has some long-term servicing implications. Also, a Tarago for the same price would be at least five years and 100,000 kilometres older than a Kia. The Chrysler Voyager is also a contender, but even more expensive, while Mazda's MPV would also be worth a look. Honda's Odyssey is smaller and won't fit some families.
Prices and details correct at publication.