Kia Cerato

Kia does not build many cars like the Kia Cerato: a 5-door hatchback / 4-door sedan/saloon with Petrol engine, built from 2003 in the decade of stability control, dual-clutch gearboxes and the first serious hybrids.

Where it came from

The Kia Cerato (also known as the Kia Forte in North America, K3 in South Korea or the Forte K3 or Shuma in China) is a compact car produced by the South Korean manufacturer Kia since 2003. In 2008, the Cerato nameplate was replaced by the Forte nameplate in the North American market and the K3 nameplate in South Korea. However, the "Cerato" name remains in use in markets such as Australasia, Middle East and Latin America.

It is available in five-door hatchback, two-door coupe and four-door sedan variants. It is not available in Europe, where the similar sized Kia Ceed is offered (except for Russia and Ukraine, where the Ceed and the Cerato are both available). In some markets, such as North America, the Cerato is marketed as the Kia Forte replacing the Spectra nameplate of previous generations. In Colombia and Singapore, the name Cerato Forte was used for the second generation, while Naza Automotive Manufacturing of Malaysia has assembled the vehicle since 2009, selling it there under the name Naza Forte.

Under the skin

Under the skin sits Petrol engine; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. The gearbox is a 5-speed manual / 4-speed automatic. The layout matters: the engine drives the front wheels, the packaging choice that gives a small car a big cabin. The wheelbase is 2610 mm. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.

In context

Where it sits in Kia's history is not in doubt: the Kia Sephia came before it; the Kia K4 Sedan (America) followed it; it was built at Hwaseong. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Bentley Continental GT, the Mazda Mazda3, the Mazda RX-8. Nearby in the Kia catalogue sit the Kia K5 (Optima) and the Kia Magentis.