Kia have unleashed a beast in the UK. It sits at top of the range for the Kia Cee’d and has the unfortunate name of the pro_cee’d GT. But what a car it is, with a diminutive 1.6 engine it produces 201 bhp from Kia’s first turbo charged petrol engine. Despite those impressive numbers it is only being pitched as a sports hatch rather than a hot hatch. We think it perhaps rests at the boundary of the two as this is one feisty motor. Let’s put it this way, how many 1.6 motors can you name that can achieve a top speed of 143mph? And do the 0-60 sprint in just over 7 seconds? Not many.
The pro ceed GT has leather Recaro seats, dual exhaust pipes and LED lights front and back and 18″ alloy wheels, the target audience is clear and the sporting intent is clearly evident. The engine is a direct injection type and a turbo charged version of Kia’s Gamma engine, the turbo is exhaust driven and this turbo raises power by an incredible 51%. But what really gives the car it’s feeling of punchy acceleration is the torque which is an impressive 265Nm available from just 1750rpm, in fact 80% of max torque comes in at a lowly 1500rpm! This gives in gear acceleration that allows confident overtaking e.g. in 4th gear if you hit the pedal to the metal you move from 37mph to 60mph in around 5 seconds.
The suspension has been re-tuned and the steering is direct, the overall impression is of a very agile car that is light on its feet and can do what you want from it effortlessly.