Kia Picanto GT turbo future in doubt

The Kia Picanto GT – the sporty turbocharged version of the smallest Kia on sale in Australia – may be axed when the updated model arrives in local showrooms later this year.

The Picanto GT was introduced in 2019 with a more powerful 74kW 1.0-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine not available on other model grades, matched with a five-speed manual transmission.

But the lack of an automatic has seen it account for just five per cent of Picanto sales – and declining popularity in Europe means it may be on the chopping block when Kia's updated Picanto arrives later this year.

MORE: 2022 Kia Picanto GT review

"The 1.0-litre turbo [engine] is not looking great at the moment. Globally it's on the cards of being scrapped. Europe is looking at exiting the 1.0-litre turbo," Kia Australia general manager of product planning Roland Rivero told Drive.

"Right now it's about 5 per cent of our [sales] mix. The crux of our mix is still GT-Line, and I think as long as we've got a GT-Line variant in the mix, Picanto will continue to do extremely well."

Leaked photos in Europe have shown a Picanto GT-Line will remain available overseas in the facelifted range – due in Australia between October and December 2023 – which adopts styling inspired by the large EV9 electric SUV.

MORE: 2024 Kia Picanto facelift photos leaked

Mr Rivero confirmed the 1.25-litre four-cylinder engine in cheaper models today will carry over – still with a choice of five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmissions – with no changes.

Data provided by Kia Australia shows the GT has accounted for between 5.5 and 8.0 per cent of Picanto sales since it joined the range in 2019, and the company has sold 1571 examples over the past four years.

Its price has risen from $17,990 to $22,890 drive-away – or 27 per cent – in that time, due in part to a first facelift for the Picanto range in 2020, and multiple price hikes attributed to rising production costs.