Kia has gone punctuation mad. First, it dropped the apostrophe for its Ceed hatchback and now for its sportier sister model, it鈥檚 not only dropped the rogue piece of punctuation but also the even more irritating underscore. 鈥檇 becomes simply ProCeed and the Korean firm has performed a complete control-alt-delete on the car, as out goes the three-door body shape and in comes a swoopy five-door hatch design. The ProCeed鈥檚 interesting mix of estate car and coupe body styles is an answer to the trend of people rejecting three-door hatchbacks. Here Kia is following Mercedes鈥?lead by offering a sleek CLA Shooting Brake in tandem with its more conventional A-Class, knowing that Shooting Brake customers are prepared to spend more cash on a more stylish model. In our eyes it looks pretty good, with a clear nod to the CLA, although at the rear there鈥檚 a hint of Porsche Panamera if you squint hard. There are even a few interesting design details, such as the Porsche-like four 鈥榠ce cube鈥?LED daytime running lights and metal-effect shark鈥檚 blade on the rear quarter glass carried over from the dramatic 2017 Proceed Concept.
It鈥檚 just a shame then that the concept car鈥檚 large wheels haven鈥檛 transitioned over, because our car鈥檚 18-inch alloys look a little lost within the body - but that鈥檚 the only real gripe. When it arrives in January the ProCeed is expected to come in three flavours of GT-Line, GT-Line S and GT - and our exclusive first drive was in a pre-production version of the range-topping model. Kia鈥檚 upmarket desires are clear on the inside because the ProCeed, just like the Ceed hatch, is well put together, with swathes of plush plastics, while the GT adds red stitching and bolstered sports seats. But while kneeroom is good, headroom in the back is pretty tight - if you鈥檙e over six feet tall you鈥檙e really going to struggle - and the visibility out of the back isn鈥檛 great, either. That said, the boot is well shaped and offers useful underfloor storage, luggage rails and seats that nearly fold down completely flat.
The ProCeed sits 5mm lower than the Ceed hatch and estate, and features independent suspension all round, while the GT gets stiffer springs and softer anti-roll bars. The steering is particularly good in its response but just falls short of delivering enough feel, while the engine feels stronger and punchier than its 201bhp and 265Nm suggest. But the 1.6 turbo is let down by the automatic box; it might be a seven-speed dual-clutch, but the upshifts aren鈥檛 crisp enough for a sporting model and downshifts are too slow. This is mated to a throttle modulation that鈥檚 a bit tardy to pick up, too. How the ProCeed drives on the road sums up the car, really. It鈥檚 a stylish, nicely made and slightly quirky car that handles and goes well but is slightly held back by its gearbox and throttle response. It鈥檚 a nice balance between a warm hatch and a GT wrapped up in one of Kia鈥檚 sexiest bodies.
Those German automakers love to go at each other..! Mercedes-Benz has unwrapped its new C-Class Coupe, a direct shot at longtime rival BMW and their 3 series coupe. While I鈥檓 at it, don鈥檛 forget Audi鈥檚 A5, Cadillac鈥檚 new CTS coupe or Infinity鈥檚 two-door G37. Initial specifications released by Mercedes show a pair of engine choices available to the North American market. The entry level C250 Coupe will be powered by MB鈥檚 new 1.8 liter turbocharged four cylinder engine. Horsepower should come in at 201 along with 229 lb-ft of torque, good to get the car to 60 mph in 7.1 seconds according to Mercedes. A step up in the model line will secure the C350 Coupe and their current 3.5 liter V6 with 302 bhp and 273 lb-ft. I don鈥檛 believe a manual transmission option will be available as both cars are slated for a 7-speed automatic as standard equipment. A hot-rod AMG version should make an appearance as well, but Mercedes is being tight-lipped as to any details on this ultra-performance version. A quick review of officially released photos indicates a nearly identical front portion to the just updated C-Class sedan. From the A-pillar back, one notes the changes with the longer door and differing roofline. I do have one major gripe鈥?Take a look at a Honda Accord coupe and notice the upward kink in the window between the B and C pillars. The Mercedes Coupe looks almost identical and frankly it doesn鈥檛 sit well to my eye, although an in-person viewing may sway my negative opinion. My guess is the designers were trying to differentiate from the larger E-Class coupe. The C-Class Coupe is due in showrooms in September. Model pricing and further specifications should arrive shortly as Mercedes finalizes their entry into the coupe wars..!
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