2017 Kia Rio Hatchback: Bigger and Better-Looking

Kia will use the Paris auto show to unveil the handsome, all-new fourth-generation Rio. The slightly lower and wider new Rio has a square-jawed look that was a global effort, Kia says, with designers in Germany and California working in cooperation with their counterparts at the company’s headquarters in South Korea. Since the French won’t receive the Rio sedan, Kia is showing off only the versatile Rio hatchback in Paris. We’ll have to wait to see how these slick new looks translate to a three-box shape.

Regardless, all Rio derivatives are expected to ride on the same 101.6-inch wheelbase, marking an additional 0.4 inch between the front and rear wheels. For the hatch, overall length grows by 0.6 inch to 160 overall. Thanks to its longer wheelbase and more upright cabin design, we expect the new Rio to sport a modest bump to most, if not all, calculated interior dimensions.

Occupants will be treated to an interior that builds upon the design themes seen in the larger Kia Optima and Cadenza. The Rio’s dash now angles toward the driver and includes a “floating” infotainment system that protrudes slightly. In Europe, at least, Kia also will offer the Rio with a “Red Pack” with red-colored faux-leather seats.

Kia also isn’t sharing details about the Rio’s powertrain yet. Although Europeans likely will be able to choose among a handful of mills, U.S.-spec Rios probably will be limited to a single small four-cylinder engine that may add a few horsepower and miles per gallon; the current car has 138 horsepower and EPA ratings of 27 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway. (We’d also dig a turbocharged, performance-oriented Rio fitted with Kia’s 1.6T engine, but there’s no indication such a model is in the works.) A manual transmission probably will be standard, although an optional automatic likely will be the more efficient choice.

European production starts at the end of the year, but Kia has yet to announce any time frame for the rest of the world. Given that the 2016 Rio introduced a handful of mid-cycle changes to Kia’s subcompact sedan and hatchback, we don’t expect to see the all-new Rio in the States until sometime in 2017, perhaps as a 2018 model.