Kia's latest little baby is the new Venga, a practical, fun and comfortable 5-door hatch with few frills, but oodles of likeability.
So what does this really mean to Mum and Dad then?
At first glance, the Venga looks like a small hatchback. It's only when you get a little closer, poke your nose up against the windows and see just how much room is available for both passengers and luggage that you realise that it is actually a very cleverly designed car. Acres of boot space and rear seats that adjust backwards and forwards make for tremendous versatility, the likes of which I've never seen in a car of this size before. With the rear seats folded down, the load carrying space is vast. Even in normal configuration the boot is significantly more spacious than many of its competitors.
As well as its practical merits the Venga is a lovely car to drive too. It is quiet, rides the bumps really well and has good well-balanced gear ratios which make for a smooth and effortless drive from local streets to motorway cruising. It isn't what I would class as 'nippy' though, even within its class, but the way in which it delivers its power - in a balanced and progressive way - makes the whole drive so confident and relaxed, the urge for great speed never seems to be present. It is just one of those easy-going drives that demotes any hint of road-rage to the PlayStation. You seem to get out of the Venga feeling more relaxed than when you got in!
Economy features highly in the Kia Venga's design philosophy and therange has some of the most efficient and low-emission engines around. Once up to speed on the good old M4 it just purred along effortlessly and I could have sworn at one point that the fuel gauge was stuck. Local running seemed to have a much bigger impact on the juice-use though. The diesel has much more impressive economy figures than the petrol, but even the petrol version was impressive when it came to getting lots of miles from not so many litres.
It is quite hard for me to sum up my thoughts on the Venga other than that it made me smile for all the right reasons. Nothing about it made me jump up and down with excitement, but nothing disappointed me either, so they must have done something right. The impressive seven-year warranty that the Venga now shares with much of the Kia range is a fantastic incentive to buy what is essentially a stylish, very practical and economical family car.
Model Driven:
Kia Venga MY 10 1.4 Petrol 2 Manual
Price OTR £12,695
Nigel Crawford
May 2010 | 
The Ford Kuga
