Pro_cee'd in style

FIVE into three don't go, so for the pro_cee'd – that's the three-door version of the cee'd five-door hatch and station wagon – Kia went back to the drawing board.

The front wings are the same as the five-door, but precious little else is.

The roofline is lower, the screen shallower, the car longer and the doors almost a foot longer.

Oh, and the waistline rises more steeply towards the rear where the lights and bumper are redesigned and the tailgate smaller.

Was the effort worth it?

Just look at the pictures – course it was.

Some see more than a hint of awesome A3, others a sizeable dollop of dashing Astra.

But Kia insists that that profile 'makes pro_cee'd truly distinctive'.

It looks beautifully crafted, too.

While Kia still prides itself on offering more for the money than mainstream rivals, it is clearly now out of the budget bin as anyone who has driven a Sorento 4x4 will know.

To underline the point, Kia Guernsey at Forest Road chose a top-of-the-range pro_cee'd 2.0 Sport as demonstrator.

All pro_cee'ds are well specified – you can't get one without air conditioning – and Sport comes with a full leather interior that gives off a smell of quality that hits you when you open the door.

Access to the rear seat is easy thanks to those long doors opening to 70 degrees and headroom is surprisingly good, considering the low roofline.

Legroom is adequate and the boot good for the class, while increasing the loadbay is a simple matter of dropping the seatback, headrests in situ.

Forget Kia's big Magentis saloon, at the wheel the impression this time is of driving a European rather than an Oriental car.

Hardly surprising – like the cee'd, it is produced at the new factory in Zilina, Slovakia.

The European feel continues with grab handles and a smoker's compartment that are beautifully damped and the information displays and instruments are clear, restrained, tasteful.

The test car featured the most powerful engine in the cee'd range, a 138bhp 2.0-litre turbodiesel.

It makes the car more a warm hatch than a hot one, but like so many diesels, at medium revs it pulls like a train, making overtaking a doddle should you ever get the chance.

Local drivers will tend to use the top two of the gearbox's six ratios only rarely, but that superleggy top delivers close to 40mph per 1,000rpm so motorway cruising should be extremely relaxed.

The three alloy pedals have a nice feel in operation but although the electrically assisted power steering has been remapped to add 'feel', purists will not find it the most communicative system in the business.

Sport models have stiffer dampers than normal and the ride is firm, but not punishing.

Proper Michelins give bags of grip and the whole thing feels very well planted on the road.

That rising waistline restricts the rear three-quarter view, although the electrically adjusted mirrors are well up to filling in the gaps.

So the pro_cee'd should avoid minor bumps as well as it copes with major ones.

The cee'd scored a full five stars in the Euro NCap crash tests and there is no reason to think this car will fare any worse.

And the warranty package is superb.

When cee'd was launched a year ago, the warranty was bumper to bumper for five years plus an additional two years' cover for the power-train.

Now everything from tailpipe to headlight is covered for the full seven years.

And that longer warranty has been applied retrospectively to all who have purchased a vehicle since launch.

Kia has recently signed up Peter Schreyer, who designed the original

TT coupe, but did so, it says, after having been accused of A3 plagiarism, when pro_cee'd was already well advanced.

Wherever the input came from, it's a desirable car and the man from Audi's input can only lead onward and upward.

But pro_cee'd?

Why did they let someone from Daewoo choose the name?

Test car:

Engine: 1,991cc four-cylinder 16-valve second-generation common- rail diesel with variable geometry turbo

Max. power 103kW/138bhp @ 4,000rpm

Max. torque: 305Nm/225lb/ft @ 1,800-2,500 rpm

0-60mph: 9.8 seconds

Top speed: 127mph

Combined mpg: 50.4

CO2 emissions: 149g/km

Length: 4,260mm (14ft)

Width: 1,790mm (5ft. 10.5in) (mirrors folded)

Luggage capacity: 340 litres

Turning radius: 5.4 metres

Fuel tank: 53 litres

Warranties: Seven-year 100,000 mile 'bumper to bumper' manufacturer warranty transferable to subsequent owners

Seven-year manufacturer paint warranty

Ten-year anti-rust

One-year UK and European roadside assistance

Pro_cee'ding differently:

Other engines: 1.6 petrol manual: 0-60 10.5 seconds; top speed 119mph; combined mpg 44.1; CO2 emissions 152g/km

1.6 petrol auto: 0-60 10.9 seconds; top speed 116mph; combined mpg 40.4; CO2 emissions 165g/km

1.6 diesel 89 manual: 0-60 13.2 seconds; top speed 107mph; combined mpg 60.1; CO2 emissions 125g/km

1.6 diesel 113 manual: 0-60 11.1 seconds; top speed 117mph; combined mpg 60.1; CO2 emissions 125g/km