In their quest for greener, cheaper to run city cars, most manufacturers have gone the tiny turbo diesel route, a move that always gives extra appeal in Europe. Kia is one of those manufacturers, and they actually have one of the smallest of the production diesels, a 1.1-liter unit that they share with sister-brand Hyundai.
However, now they’re expanding the range of alternative fuels supported by the Picanto by one, with the Bi-Fuel model that can run on either gasoline or LPG. The unit that has been modified to burn this liquefied petroleum gas is the familiar Kappa 1.0-liter engine, which makes 65 hp and 90 Nm of torque.
It is known that when you run an engine that was originally intended to run on gasoline, on some other fuel, like LPG or CNG, it’s usually not as efficient (burns more of the stuff), but this is usually offset by the lower price of the non-mainstream fuels and the appeal remains.
For this model, the Picanto Bi-Fuel, Kia claims it averages 5.8 l/100km or (48.7 mpg UK / 40.5 mpg US), and that it beats the other gasoline-powered variants in the range when it comes to running costs.
Finally, the manufacturer says it be available as both a three- or five-door, with sales expected to begin later this year, “in certain mainland Europe markets.”
By Andrei Nedelea
PHOTO GALLERY
