By Otsile Kadiege

For the past couple of years Kia has been expanding their SUV offering both locally and abroad. However, during mid-2021 the Korean automaker took a rather interesting decision to introduce a compact sedan called Pegas to their ever-growing line-up of SUVs. The Kia Pegas is aimed at consumers in their late twenties with small families.

Exterior design

Unlike Kia’s SUVs, the Pegas isn’t that stylish a car from the outside, however some noteworthy highlights include its tiger-nose grille, 14-inch steel wheels, chrome door handles and Marcato Red paint which makes our chart-topping EX grade test car standout.

Interior

Inside, the Pegas EX is decently packaged. It features a 7-inch touchscreen with a no-frills, easy to use infotainment system featuring Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, a USB port, an auxiliary slot and a 12V socket. It also features a sporty leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel, comfortable two-tone faux leather seats with driver’s seat cushion tilt and an impressively sized boot space (475-litres) which can easily fit a couple of medium-sized suitcases.

The drive

The highlight for us is the way the Pegas drives. Its 1.4-litre engine is surprisingly punchy and yet impressively fuel-efficient. We averaged a combined fuel consumption of 5.3l/100 km. The 5-speed manual transmission is buttery smooth, ride quality is commendable and cruise control makes travelling long distances a lot easier.

The Kia Pegas is competitively priced from R225,995 and competes with the likes of Honda Amaze, Suzuki Dzire, Ford Figo sedan and Polo Vivo sedan.