Noah Romsdal Hallundbæk Sørensen
Kia’s cheapest petrol car is living on borrowed time: find out which new electric model will replace it, and what it will cost.
The Kia Picanto is currently Europe’s most affordable new car in its class, starting at just 17,590 euros in Germany.
But the days of the popular city car are numbered.
British legislation is forcing Kia to phase out the petrol model by the end of 2029, and a new electric car is already on its way to take its place.
According to Electrek
Regulations Set the Deadline
The United Kingdom’s so-called ZEV mandate requires that all new cars must feature some form of hybrid technology by 2030, and from 2035 all new passenger cars must be fully electric.
This puts Kia in a difficult position with the Picanto, which is the only purely petrol-powered city car still sold on the British market.
The problem is not just about future requirements.
Already this year, 33 percent of Kia’s total UK sales must consist of fully electric vehicles, and the Picanto is pulling that share down.
Kia UK’s managing director Paul Philpott spelled it out clearly to Autocar: “We cannot sell the Picanto as a petrol car beyond the end of 2029.”
A Hybrid Is Not an Option
One might assume the solution is straightforward: simply produce a hybrid or electric version of the Picanto.
However, according to Kia’s executive vice president Ted Lee, that is technically impossible.
The car is simply too compact to integrate electric motors, batteries and the rest of the drivetrain.
Kia therefore has no plans for a next generation of the Picanto at all, whether as a hybrid or an electric vehicle.
The brand will instead keep the current petrol model on sale for as long as possible and then let it quietly disappear.
A New Electric Car Ready Before 2030
Rather than saving the Picanto, Kia is betting on an entirely new B-segment electric car expected to reach the market before 2030.
The model, known internally as the EV1, is anticipated to start at around 20,000 euros, placing it well below the EV2 that Kia launched in April at a starting price of 26,600 euros in Germany.
This means the switch from petrol to electric will likely cost customers an extra 2,000 to 3,000 euros at the point of purchase compared to today’s Picanto.
Kia itself describes the EV1 as its most affordable electric car ever, but the entry price is still higher than what the Picanto costs today.
