Kia has announced new trim levels and specifications for its five-door Picanto and Rio models in a move to simplify the model structures and increase their competitiveness.

The five-door Picanto now offers three trim levels – ‘1 Air’, ‘SE’ and ‘Sport’. ‘SE’ replaces the former ‘SR7’ and ‘2’ grades, with ‘Sport’ taking the place of the ‘3’ and ‘4’ grade. The entry-level ‘1’ model has been discontinued, but range pricing continues to start from £8,545, thereby including air conditioning as a free upgrade. This model also now benefits from Bluetooth, a leather-trimmed steering wheel and front seat belt height adjustment as no-cost additions.

The new mid-range ‘SE’ grade has all the equipment that was standard on the previous ‘SR7’, plus automatic air conditioning and Kia’s Intelligent Stop & Go (ISG) engine stop/start system with the manual gearbox. This grade is offered with a 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine and a manual gearbox from £10,395, or a 1.25-litre four-cylinder unit with automatic transmission from £11,395.

The new Picanto ‘Sport’ brings bespoke exterior and interior styling features plus standard equipment including satellite navigation, automatic air conditioning, cruise control and a speed limiter. ‘Sport’ models are powered by the 1.25-litre engine and are available with a manual gearbox and ISG from £11,995 or with automatic transmission from £12,595.

For the five-door Rio, the range consists of ‘1 Air’, ‘SE’, ‘3’ and ‘4’ grades. ‘SE’ takes the place of the previous ‘SR7’ and ‘2’ grades. As with the Picanto, the former entry-level grade ‘1’ has been discontinued but its starting price of £10,495 has been carried over for the ‘1 Air’ model, meaning that it too now includes air conditioning as a free upgrade.

The new ‘SE’ is available with a 1.25-litre petrol engine or a 1.1-litre diesel, priced from £12,995 and £14,295 respectively. The ‘SE’ features all the equipment which was standard on the former ‘SR7’ plus extra items including automatic air conditioning, front foglights, a supervision instrument cluster, a rain sensor, cruise control and speed limiter, electrically folding, adjustable and heated door mirrors with integrated indicators.

Grades ‘3’ and ‘4’ for the five-door Rio are unchanged.