Locally-assembled 2022 Kia Carnival to launch soon, CBU units sold out

KUALA LUMPUR: Yes, that’s true. Kia Malaysia’s official distributor, Dinamikjaya Motors are out of the recently launched 2022 Kia Carnival. These units were fully imported from Korea and were snapped within the first month of launch in January 2022.

Sources close to the matter have now revealed that Kia Malaysia is now planning to launch a locally-assembled Carnival in Malaysia in mid-2022.

The ongoing CBU Kia Carnival is offered in 11-seat configuration and retails for RM 196,340. Now, prospective buyers are also interested in the 8-seater variant, however, it’s difficult to say whether or not the soon to arrive CKD Carnival will be offered the required configuration.

 

It is to be noted that if Kia Malaysia brings on-board a 7- or 8-seater variant of the Carnival, it will definitely cost higher than the ongoing 11-seater. Why? Well, that’s because as per Malaysia’s tax regulation an 11-seater vehicle is a minibus, which is a commercial vehicle that has a low tax rate compared to a 7- or 8-seater MPV.

A clear example of the above scenario can be seen in the form of Hyundai Staria, the 7-seater is twice as costly as the 11-seater Carnival. Even though both the cars are imported from Korea and are powered by the same 2.2-litre turbocharged diesel engine.

Coming back to the locally assembled Kia Carnival, it will be the first car manufactured by Kia Malaysia. The MPV would be manufactured at the Inokom facility in Kulim under the joint venture between Kia Motors and Bermaz Auto.

Also Read: Kia Carnival 2.2 Smartstream: Family vehicle review