Bought a 2025 Kia Picanto Sport

I posted recently that my car was written off about 3 years ago, and I have got around by public transport, sometimes Uber, since then. It has been OK, but the itch to go camping is still there, so decided need to scratch the itch...

The thinking at date of the write-off was, hey I'm in my 70's, the camping days are over. Now 76 and still quite healthy, so going for it again. Besides, best to be out there doing stuff, instead of just pottering around the house.

A couple of weeks ago, bought a 2025 Kia Picanto Sport 1.2 litre petrol manual. One of these:

https://www.kia.com/au/cars/picanto/features.html

I bought a 2025 demo car, so got it at a reasonable price. New car warranty of course. But it was a saga to find a car with manual transmission. Maybe I'm a bit of a Luddite, but all the new cars are automatic.

Here in Australia, we are flooded with Chinese cars, for example the Chery Tiggo4, that is only about AU$1,500 above the Kia Picanto:

https://cherymotor.com.au/models/tiggo-4

...I mention that one, because the specs are amazing compared to the Picanto.

There is another one, a MG car, that is about AU$1,000 cheaper than the Picanto. Recently advertised for AU$20,990 drive-away.

So, yeah, the Chinese cars are squeezing the Japanese, Korean and European cars, perhaps ending up putting them out of the market.

My previous car was a Hyundai Getz, very basic, mechanical speed and rpm dials, no touch screen. So, an experience with the electronics in the new car. As I drove it home, got annoyed when it beeped at me and tugged on the steering wheel when I ventured over a lane marker -- that's Lane Departure Warning (LDW), gotta figure out how to turn that off!

Comparing specs Picanto and Tiggo4, I notice the Picanto claims as low as 5.0 litres/100km, whereas the Tiggo4 7.3 litres/100km. There is something to be said for a simple small naturally-aspirated engine with manual transmission. The Picanto is happy with standard unleaded (91 RON), whereas some of the others want premium unleaded (95 RON).

The very cheap MG that I mentioned, is the  MG3 Vibe:

https://mgmotor.com.au/pages/mg3-petrol/#mg-hit-the-road

...ok with 91 RON. Fuel consumption as low as 6.0 - 6.7 litres/100km.

As a final note, why haven't I gone for an EV? A little bit more expensive, though prices are coming down, and with sodium-ion batteries likely late 2026 price should be attractive (as well as very safe and suitable for high Outback temperatures). But, the infrastructure for charging in rural Australia is not yet adequate.       

Tags: nomad