Kia Picanto 1.0 MT LS (2025) Review

Introduction

Look - if you walked into a Kia dealership in late 2025 expecting the Picanto 1.0 LS to be the absolute bottom-rung new car in South Africa, you’d come out slightly poorer and a bit more clued up. It’s not the cheapest sticker price. But it is, in my book, the cheapest new car that’s actually worth your money, and there’s a difference. As tested here, this stripped-back Picanto is built to fight in the sub-R250k trenches, and right now, that’s the most critical battleground in the local market. This Kia Picanto review is part of our “Cheapest New Car in SA Tested” series - and the verdict is more complicated than the price tag lets on.

Key takeaway: The Picanto 1.0 LS isn’t South Africa’s cheapest new car, but when you factor in warranty, build quality, and resale, it’s the most credible budget hatch on the lot.

Design & Exterior

The facelift finally gave it some attitude

The Picanto's facelift, which landed here late in 2023 and carries through to this 2025 LS, borrows the EV9’s daytime running light signature and bolts it onto a car that costs a quarter as much. Surprisingly, it works. The new nose has confidence the old one lacked, with those horizontal LED-style bars (halogens on LS, but we’ll get there) and a wider grille that makes the car look planted, not cutesy.

What you lose with the LS spec

Drop down to the 1.0 MT LS, and the cost-cutting is obvious if you know where to look:

• 14-inch steelies with plastic trims, no alloys in sight
• Halogen running lights instead of LEDs
• Body-coloured handles and mirrors are only available on some colours
• No roof rails, no rear tint

But none of it is embarrassing. I parked next to a base Suzuki Swift, and honestly? The Picanto looks more grown-up. It’s still a five-door, which feels like a small victory in a segment that used to punish rear passengers with three-door layouts.

Cabin & Practicality

Hard plastics, but honest

No pretending inside the LS. Polyurethane steering wheel, same for the gear lever, and a dashboard that’s mostly hard, dark plastics, broken up by a single cloth insert for the passenger. Manual aircon, sure. Manual mirrors? Actually, they’re electric - a genuinely nice surprise at this price. The 8-inch infotainment runs both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and you get physical dials for the climate. After a week of press cars with touch-everything cabins, turning a real knob to drop the fan speed felt like a minor act of rebellion.

Kia Picanto boot space and rear room

Measured boot space is 255 litres - real-world useful. Three big shopping bags and a soft cooler, or a weekend’s luggage, plus a camera bag if you pack smart. The rear bench here doesn’t split 60:40 as the LX does, and that’s the most annoying omission. Two adults will survive behind two adults on short trips; ISOFIX anchors are fitted out back. Kia Picanto ground clearance registers at 141 mm, which is just enough for township speed bumps, but don’t expect it to shrug off gravel with grace.

On the Road

The 1.0 three-pot at Highveld altitude

The 1.0-litre three-cylinder makes 49 kW, paired to a five-speed manual. At the coast, it’s fine. Up on the Highveld - say, driving Sandton to Polokwane up the N1 on a 28-degree day - you feel that altitude shaves about 17% off the power before you even add a passenger. Overtaking a delivery bakkie meant third gear, foot flat, and a bit of faith. Around town, which is where most Picantos will live, none of that actually matters.

Ride, steering, and the highway

Those 14-inch steels with their chunky tyres actually ride better than the alloy LX on patched tar and corrugated bits. Steering’s light, quick off-centre, and there’s a willingness to dart into gaps that I genuinely enjoyed on the road. At 120 km/h, the engine sits at about 3,400 rpm in fifth - you’ll hear it. Refinement takes a knock. Kia Picanto fuel consumption averaged 5.7 L/100 km over a 480 km mixed run, versus Kia’s claimed 5.1 L/100 km. That’s honest, especially given the amount of time spent climbing out of the basin.

Data & Comparison

What the LS costs and what you get

Kia Picanto 1.0 MT LS price South Africa: R229 995 at launch, with Kia’s Deal Assist chopping R7 000 off for early adopters. So you’re looking at an effective entry of R222 995. Included is a 5-year/unlimited km warranty and a 2-year/30 000 km service plan (the original brochure said 1-year/15 000 km, but that’s since been fixed).

Five-year ownership: the real cost

Plan on about R230 000 over five years for fuel, insurance, tyres, and services outside the 2-year plan - roughly segment average. And here’s where Korean assembly matters: used Picantos tend to hold value better than Indian-built rivals. Search interest for hatchbacks sat at 41.1 in November 2025 - well behind SUVs and double cabs, but that’s exactly why the LS needed to exist: pricing pressure in a shrinking pool.

Key stats at a glance

• Real-world fuel: 5.7 L/100 km
• Boot: 255 litres
• Ground clearance: 141 mm
• Effective price: R222 995 (with Deal Assist)
• Rough price gap to Vitz: R51 000

Editorial Focus

Is this really SA’s cheapest new car?

No. Let’s be upfront before anyone walks into a deal. The Toyota Vitz at R180 600 and the Suzuki S-Presso at R178 900 are both about R51 000 less than the Picanto LS. The Suzuki Celerio and Renault Kwid are cheaper too. Of the dozen or so real sub-R250k new cars in South Africa for 2025, the Picanto LS sits at the more expensive end. So, our “Cheapest New Car in SA Tested” headline? It needs context.

Why I’d pay the extra R50k

Because the Picanto LS gives you things that the actual cheapest cars simply don’t. That 5-year unlimited-kilometre warranty. Korean assembly, not Indian. A facelifted look that won’t embarrass you in 2028. Six airbags? Nope - only two. ESC? You’ll need to step up to EX for that, and I wish it were here. But compared to Vitz and S-Presso, the Picanto feels properly engineered, not just a price tag on wheels. It’s what the Picanto should have been from the start at this end - a base spec that doesn’t feel like a penalty box. The extra R50k buys you peace of mind at trade-in, and that matters if you’re paying R4 500 a month for five years.

Verdict

The Kia Picanto 1.0 LS isn't the cheapest new car you can buy in South Africa. Not even close. But if you're spending your own money and plan on living with the thing beyond the showroom floor, it's arguably the smartest budget hatch on sale today.

Yes, you'll pay around R50 000 more than a Vitz, S-Presso or Kwid. In return, you get a car that feels better built, looks more modern, comes with an excellent warranty, and should hold its value far better when it's time to move on. It's not fast, it's not fancy, and the missing ESC at this price remains a sore point. But unlike many entry-level cars, the Picanto never feels like a compromise too far.

If your budget can stretch, this is the cheap car we'd recommend to friends and family. Not because it's the cheapest, but because it's the one most likely to make sense five years from now.