Across its 20-year tenure in Australian showrooms, the Cerato attracted thousands of new customers into the Kia fold. With the introduction of the K4 nameplate, Kia Australia aligns with the global naming convention for Kia’s small passenger car.
Measuring longer, wider and lower than the outgoing Cerato, the K4 utilises a new platform and injects a sporty design, new technology and safety into the segment, while continuing to honour Kia’s pledge on affordability. This is the sedan version, with the Kia K4 hatch released in late 2025.
The K4 embraces Kia’s latest design language with a bold and sporty exterior façade, punctuated by a sleek, fastback style silhouette and a lower roofline and lower beltline than its predecessor. Employing vertical front headlamps and Daytime Running Light elements located at the outer edges to accentuate the car’s wide stance. Flush second-row door handles integrated into the car’s C-pillar underline the sleek side image, while black wheel arch cladding over, with 18-inch alloy wheels on the GT-Line, lending the K4 a sporty on-road stance. There are also a number of new colours available including this very striking Wave Blue. I really like the design of the new K4, but there wasn’t universal approval among my friends and interestingly it was men who didn’t like it.
Exclusive to the flagship K4 GT-Line is the 1.6L T-GDI, a 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol four-cylinder that drives the front wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission, with plastic steering wheel mounted paddle shifters for ‘manually’ changing gears. The engine produces 142kW and 264Nm and offers good acceleration when needed. The official combined fuel consumption is 6.7L/100km and for my week I used 7.5L/100km driving around in Normal mode, with the other drive modes being Eco and Sport.
The K4 is the recipient of an extensive ride and handling development program which tailors its driving characteristics to Australia’s unique road network and you can tell because it’s comfortable even on bumpy roads. The GT-Line combines the same McPherson Strut front suspension as other K4 models but brings added precision and agility with the installation of a multi-link suspension set-up at the rear.
Keyless push button entry is on both front doors and keyless start means the key fob can remain in your handbag at all times. GT-Line projects a sportier interior, with embossed GT-Line details on the artificial leather seats, two-tone seats, and textured console crash pad and much to my delight no gloss black plastic anywhere in sight. Added luxury is also assured with a wide, sliding-type sunroof and a heated steering wheel that are exclusive to the flagship grade.
The driver’s seat has power adjustment for recline, forward/back, seat height, two-way lumbar support and two memory positions, while the passenger seat has manual recline and forward/back adjustment only. Both front seats are heated and cooled, with both functions working well, just the cooling was a bit noisy when operating. In addition to the two cup holders in the centre console that can be pushed back to create a large space, the K4 also has good sized drink bottle storage in front door cubbies, but on a 45-degree angle.
Taking pride of place on the K4’s expansive dashboard is a trio of screens, comprising a 12.3-inch digital cluster, a dedicated 5-inch climate control display between them and a separate 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen display. Importantly, Kia designers wanted the K4 to be approachable and easy-to-use, which is why the small car continues with a bank of hard-wired buttons and switchgear below the aforementioned screens on the dashboard centre fascia for the dual zone climate control.
Wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless Android Auto are standard fare across the Kia K4 line-up, while the GT-Line takes things up a notch with fitment of a Qi wireless charging pad and ambient mood lighting as standard. There are two USB-C ports and one 12V socket at the front of the centre console adjacent to the wireless phone charger.
The wireless Android Auto worked well for me, with no drop outs during the week. The voice control also worked well for changing the radio station, making a phone call, and setting a destination on the sat nav with each command completed on the first attempt. The GT-Line has a Harman/Kardon Premium Sound System with eight Speakers (Front Door, Rear Door, Front Tweeters, External Amplifier & Centre Speaker). With media sources including AM radio, DAB/FM, Bluetooth, USB music, USB video, Sounds of Nature and smartphone.
The K4 incorporates Kia Connect, a connected car service which provides customer benefits in safety, security, convenience, connectivity, and LIVE services by using telematics systems to transfer real-time data, such as weather and traffic information. The K4 also offers Australian consumers with Over the Air software updates, which brings the latest maps, interfaces and software enhancements without customers having to visit a service centre.
The rear seats have a good amount of leg room, and headroom was adequate for me, but taller individuals would find it to be a bit tight and the seats lacked under thigh support. There are two ISOFix/three rear tether child seat restraint points, but only really enough room for two seats due the overall width available. The centre seat folds down as an arm rest with two rigid cup holders in it and there are good sized drink bottle storage cubbies in the rear doors, also on a 45-degree angle. The two central air vents have individual on/off and direction controls with two USB-C ports below the vents. The rear of the front seat headrests is moulded so that they can also be used as a hook for hanging items on them.
The power assisted boot lid has an external release button, lever in the cabin, and a button on the key fob and manual close. The boot size is good easily accounting for the weekly grocery shop, but it is sparsely featured, with just one light in there and space saver tyre under the boot floor. If more space is required the rear seats have a 40:60 split fold with the release in the boot, but the seats do not lie completely flat with the boot floor.
A five-star ANCAP (2025) safety rating applies to all sedan and hatch variants, excluding the Kia K4 S (without Safety Pack) sedan and hatch. The Adult Occupant Protection score is 85% and the Child Occupant Protection score is 80%. A separate four-star ANCAP (2025) safety rating is available for the Kia K4 S (without Safety Pack) sedan and hatch. All K4 variants receive dual frontal, side chest-protecting and side head-protecting airbags are standard. A centre airbag which provides added protection to front seat occupants in side impact crashes is also standard.
Across all grades, the Kia K4 features an increased focus on driver safety, with standard range fitment of Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist, Smart (adaptive) Cruise Control with Stop & Go functionality, Lane Keep Assist, Lane Follow Assist, Multi-Collision Braking, Blind-Spot Collision-Avoidance Assist, Driver Attention Warning, Intelligent Speed Limit Assist, Rear View camera with front and rear parking sensors and High Beam Assist. The K4 also has auto lights and the Sport+ and GT-Line add auto rains sensing wipers as well.
Furthermore, Sport, Sport+ and GT-Line versions of the K4 also incorporate Kia’s latest Highway Driving Assist (HAD 2), a technology that functions when driving on a freeway or motorway. HDA builds on adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability, combining with Lane Following Assist to keep K4 centred in the lane even when driving through a curve, whilst HDA 2 adds Lane Change Assist, allowing the K4 to autonomously change lanes when the required conditions are met.
ANCAP tests of the autonomous emergency braking (AEB) (Car-to-Car) system showed GOOD performance with collisions avoided or mitigated in all test scenarios, including all of the AEB Junction. AEB Crossing scenarios, where the test vehicle can autonomously brake to avoid crashes when crossing the path of another vehicle, showed a mix of GOOD and POOR performance, resulting in a MARGINAL overall score. AEB Head-On functionality is provided on all Kia K4 sedan variants and showed GOOD performance. ANCAP tests of lane support system functionality showed POOR performance in lane keep assist scenarios, and ADEQUATE performance in the more critical emergency lane keeping scenarios. Overall, the ANCAP Safety Assist score is 77%.
All new Kias come with a 7-Year Unlimited Kilometre Warranty and one year of complimentary Roadside Assist. Owners can renew their Roadside Assistance package yearly, for up to eight years, by simply returning their vehicle to an Authorised Kia Dealer for its annual scheduled service. For the K4, service intervals are once a year or 10,000km, whichever comes first, and the total service costs for the first seven services is at capped at $3,842.
Prices for the Kia MY25 K4 GT-Live start from $42,990 excluding on road costs and as tested with the Premium Paint ($600) this K4 GT-Line was $43,590 plus on-roads. You can Build & Price your new Kia K4 on-line in a couple of quick steps or visit your preferred Kia dealer for more information.
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| Pros | Cons |
| It’s a feature packed sedan | The looks are a bit polarising |
| Good ride quality | The lower ride makes it just that bit harder to get out off |
| Retains buttons for the climate controls | Cooled seats are noisy when operating |
Photographs by Driven Women Magazine.