Kia's UK boss has committed to selling the Picanto city car “for as long as we are allowed to”, hailing its role as an entry point in the brand's wide-reaching line-up.

“I think that ability to have a car as small as Picanto and as big as an EV9, with a range of four different powertrains [petrol, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric] gives us a product for everyone,” Paul Philpott told Autocar.

“Consumers like to see breadth in product ranges. People tend to run more than one car, and if they’ve got a Sorento as their [main] car, then they may have a Picanto or a Stonic as a second car, and so on.” 

Philpott added that “we will sell the Picanto for as long as we are allowed to sell ICE models”, suggesting it will remain in dealers until at least 2030, when sales of new pure-ICE cars in the UK will be outlawed. 

The importance placed on the Picanto by Philpott suggests that it may live for even longer. Hybrids will be allowed to remain on sale until 2035 and, as previously reported by Autocar, Kia is considering development of an electric ‘EV1’ adjacent to the Picanto.

The Korean brand’s commitment to its smallest model defies an industry trend of the past few years, several major manufacturers having left the city car segment.

Citroën and Peugeot axed the C1 and 108 siblings in 2022 and 2021 respectively, the Renault Twingo was pulled from the UK and Fiat axed the Panda and petrol 500 late last year. Suzuki, famed for manufacturing small and affordable cars, stopped selling the Ignis last year.

Citroën CEO Thierry Koskas told Autocar in October 2023 that the French brand had no plans to return to the segment, citing buyer preferences.

He said: “At the end of the day, the price difference between the A- and B-segments was not so big. With a B-segment car, you had the benefit of a much more versatile car, more cargo space [and seating for] five people. The benefit of the extra €1000 you paid was quite high. So for the time being, it isn't a priority.”

Philpott, however, said that offering a city car is a “real advantage”, because “we, alongside our sister brand [Hyundai] and one other Asian brand [Toyota] are probably the only manufacturers now producing city cars in any volume,” Philpott added.

“We upgraded Picanto in the middle of last year and we’ve got much better supply for this year – and I think there absolutely is a marketplace for small city cars,” he said.