Kia have announced that from Jan 1st until 31st of March 2006, the Kia Picanto will qualify for 1 yrs FREE insurance.

This is an improvement on the previous offer of insurance for £1. Prices have gone up however with the range now starting from £5695 on the road for the entry level 1.0 S. This increase effects the whole of the range except the SE + which remains the same at £7595.

The biggest Picanto price hike is on the 1.1 LX which see’s it jump £400 to £6995 on the road. However it’s not all bad news as dealers have taken advantage of the old prices by consigning current stock to themselves before the end of year deadline. These cars won’t last forever of course, so if you want to take advantage of the old prices, you’re better off buying early.

It’s not just the Picanto range that have seen increases in price. Kia have effectively increased prices across the rest of the range as their volume growth effects their overall operating costs. Kia have sold over 160,000 cars in the UK to date and this looks set to grow strongly as more product changes are introduced and quality improves.