Kia ProCeed Long-Term Test: Report 3

The Kia ProCeed’s shooting brake design is one of its standout features, but does this style come at the expense of practicality?

The previous generation of ProCeed was a three-door hatchback, so the switch to a shooting brake has certainly made the model much more versatile. Yet, the ProCeed occupies an unusual position within the Ceed range. After all, Kia also offers the Ceed Sportswagon, a conventional estate, which seems like the obvious choice for people wanting a roomier option.

If luggage space is your main concern, then the ProCeed does lag behind the Ceed Sportswagon by 31 litres with the rear seats up (594 litres plays 625 litres). This deficit grows to 149 litres with the rear seats folded down (1545 litres compared to 1694 litres). However, in my experience the ProCeed still offers a sufficient level of practicality for most purposes. It comfortably swallowed several days’ worth of camping gear and there is plenty of underfloor storage, possibly even too much; having fewer compartments might have actually resulted in there being more usable space.

As far as practicality is concerned, another drawback of the ProCeed is limited rear visibility caused by the sloping roofline, but this seems like a small price to pay for the aesthetic benefits. Having said that, I was glad of the Sportswagon’s boxier shape and more accessible load bay when moving out of university accommodation recently, proving that the ProCeed’s stylish design does come with sacrifices. Despite this, it’s far from being a case of form over function. In fact, I think the ProCeed gets the balance just right.

Kia ProCeed ‘GT-Line’ 1.4 T-GDi 6 speed manual

Power 138bhp @ 6000rpm

Torque 178lb ft @ 1500-3200rpm

Kerb weight 1378kg

0-60mph 8.8 seconds

Top speed 130mph

MPG (claimed) 45.6

CO2 142g/km

Basic price £23,840

Price as tested £24,410