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Kia Rio Hatchback (2017-2023) boot space, practicality and safety

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Practicality rating: 3.5 out of 53.5

Written by James Dennison Updated: 14 November 2019

  • Good levels of room on offer in the front and back
  • Luggage capacity compares well against most rivals
  • Plenty of storage space within the cabin

The Rio’s boot and interior space are both commendable, with enough room for two normal-sized adults to fit into the back. However, their overall levels of comfort depend largely on how tall those in the front are, so bare this in mind when you’re sizing up the Rio. Three young children will fit in the back seats without any problems, although note that there are only two Isofix points.

Bootspace is competitive, and although it can’t match cars such as the Honda Jazz, the 325-litre luggage capacity is more than adequate. The space itself is a good, useful shape and can be increased by folding the – standard 60:40 split – rear seats down. Unfortunately, the seats don’t fold completely flat, making loading long items tricky.

2019 Kia Rio GT-Line rear seats

There’s plenty of storage space in and around the cabin with a good sized glovebox and four cupholders in the front. Annoyingly, though, the handbrake is placed too close to the central cupholders meaning it’s easy to end up pawing at the lid of your coffee instead of activating the handbrake.

2019 Kia Rio GT-Line boot space

How safe is the Rio?

  • Only three stars from Euro NCAP crash test…
  • Only rises to five with optional safety equipment
  • But you only need second model up to get it all

When tested in 2011, the third-generation Rio was awarded the maximum five-star rating and performed particularly well in adult and child protection, two areas this generation of model also performs well in. However, in standard form Euro NCAP only awarded this 2017 car three stars, ramping up to five for Rios equipped with automatic emergency braking (AEB) that Kia calls Forward Collision Avoidance Assist and Forward Collision Warning, and lane-departure technology.

That’s the limit of driver assistance tech available in the Rio, unlike the adaptive cruise control systems you can find on the Volkswagen Polo, for instance.

Euro NCAP rating

Overall NCAP safety rating 3 out of 5
Year tested: 2017
What is Euro NCAP?
Adult Occupant: 85%
Child Occupant: 84%
Vulnerable Road User: 62%
Safety Assist: 25%

Equipment and options

Each trim level will have different equipment offerings.
Basic equipment (18)
  • 3x3 point rear seat belts
  • ABS
  • Air conditioning
  • Alarm
  • Audio remote
  • Driver`s airbag
  • Electric mirrors
  • Folding rear seats
  • Front electric windows
  • Heated mirrors
  • Height adjustable drivers seat
  • Isofix child seat anchor points
  • PAS
  • Passenger`s airbag
  • Remote locking
  • Side airbags
  • Steering wheel rake adjustment
  • Steering wheel reach adjustment
Standard Equipment
Optional Equipment
1 Standard Equipment (3)
  • Body coloured bumpers
  • Cloth seat trim
  • Steel wheels
1 Optional Equipment (3)
  • Front fog lights
  • Rear electric windows
  • Traction control
2 Standard Equipment (7)
  • Body coloured bumpers
  • Cloth seat trim
  • Cruise control
  • Front fog lights
  • Parking sensors
  • Rear electric windows
  • Traction control
2 Optional Equipment
  • n/a
3 Standard Equipment (8)
  • Body coloured bumpers
  • Cruise control
  • Front fog lights
  • Heated seats
  • Parking sensors
  • Rear electric windows
  • Sat Nav
  • Traction control
3 Optional Equipment
  • n/a
First Edition Standard Equipment (8)
  • Body coloured bumpers
  • Cruise control
  • Front fog lights
  • Heated seats
  • Parking sensors
  • Rear electric windows
  • Sat Nav
  • Traction control
First Edition Optional Equipment (1)
  • Cloth seat trim
GT-Line Standard Equipment (3)
  • Cruise control
  • Rear electric windows
  • Traction control
GT-Line Optional Equipment
  • n/a
GT-Line S Standard Equipment (6)
  • Cruise control
  • Heated seats
  • Parking sensors
  • Rear electric windows
  • Sat Nav
  • Traction control
GT-Line S Optional Equipment (2)
  • Body coloured bumpers
  • Partial leather seat trim
Pulse Standard Equipment (4)
  • Body coloured bumpers
  • Metallic Paint
  • Parking sensors
  • Rear electric windows
Pulse Optional Equipment (4)
  • Cloth seat trim
  • Front fog lights
  • Steel wheels
  • Traction control

Dimensions

Length 4065mm - 4070mm
Width 1993mm
Height 1450mm - 1455mm
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