There’s a widely — and sadly — held misconception that minivans aren’t “cool,” especially in comparison to the wildly popular sport utility vehicle.
Like the station wagons that preceded them, these boxes on wheels (which we’ll grant is essentially what they are) are perceived as being your mom‘s and dad’s car — indicators of family obligation and better suited to unexciting tasks like carting kids to soccer matches or making grocery runs.
As we’ve argued here before, that reasoning is shortsighted. Minivans aren’t the sexiest or slickest ride on the suburban cul de sac, but dang if they don’t make veritable mountains of sense in terms of transporting the large numbers of people and amounts of their stuff in roomy comfort.
Recognizing this baked-in aversion to the minivan form, the designers and corner-office occupants at Korean carmaker Kia took the wraps off the 2022 Carnival, a vehicle that looks for all the world like a full-size sport-ute until one spots the sliding rear doors. Our first experience driving the new vehicle left us convinced that it was a stroke of marketing and design genius.
Fast-forward three years, and the Carnival’s form remains largely unchanged. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity are at last available on 2025 models, and the Kia’s team of designers has nipped and tucked here and there to keep things fresh.
Notable change is afoot, however, in the form of a new hybrid-drive model. Its turbocharged 1.6-liter inline-four, mated to an electric motor and rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack, produces 242 horsepower and 271 foot-pounds of torque, which as it happens is close the 287 horses and 262 foot-pounds of twist generated by the gas-only version’s naturally aspirated 3.5-liter V-6.
A more pronounced difference between the two Carnivals arises when fuel efficiency is factored. The EPA estimates the Hybrid-drive model will extract an impressive 33 mpg in combined driving, a 50% improvement over the dino-juice-powered model’s 22 mpg estimate. Acceleration and towing capacity are lower for the Hybrid, though. Sixty mph requires nearly eight seconds to reach — roughly a second behind the V-6 — and towing is limited to 2,500 pounds when properly equipped (about 1,000 pounds shy of the gas-powered model’s rating).
Hybrid-powered Carnivals are offered in four trim levels — LXS, EX, SX and SX Prestige — all of which are equipped with front-wheel drive (all-wheel drive is not available, leaving the Toyota Sienna as the sole player in this particular hybrid-minivan segment) and a six-speed automatic with steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters.
Pricing starts at $40,800 for an LXS-trimmed Hybrid Carnival, which represents an upcharge of roughly $2,000 from a similarly trimmed gas model. The list of standard equipment includes a set of 17-inch alloy wheels, power-adjustable driver’s seat, USB ports for all three rows of seating, seating for seven, sliding and retractable second-row captain’s chairs, three-zone automatic climate control, heated front seating, power-sliding rear doors and more.
Basic Carnival models are equipped with a battery of safety-sensing tech, including lane-departure assist, blind-spot alert, forward-collision mitigation, safe-exit monitoring and rear parking sensors.
Equipment lists lengthen and prices climb as one ascends the trim levels. Our well-dressed-out SX Prestige-trimmed tester sported a 12-speaker Bose sound system, LED projector headlights, a heads-up display, leather upholstery, dark-tinted 19-inch alloys, second-row power-reclining lounge-style seats with heating and ventilatioin, dual powered sunroofs, ventilated front seats, a digital gauge cluster, and a full complement of safety-sensing equipment that includes satellite navigation, surround-view exterior camera monitoring, driver-attention warning and high-beam assist.
Our tester’s $52,600 base MSRP rose to $57,255 with the addition of the $2,500 Rear Seat Entertainment Package (dual front-seat mounted LED display screens with headphones and HDMI ports), $495 for special paint, $265 for carpeted floor mats and a $1,395 charge for delivery.
True to its minivan calling, the Carnival offers plenty of room in all three rows of seating. While competing models like the Chrysler Pacifica and Dodge Caravan slightly better it in terms of third-row legroom and cargo capacity (thanks to their stow-and-go seating systems), the Kia’s maximum 145.1 cubic feet of cargo volume should be generous enough for most families on the move.
Like the chiseled exterior, the cabin’s design sports a clean, uncluttered look, although some hard plastic components in the upper dash and center console diminished the premium vibe. Instrumentation and vehicle info is housed in a large digital cluster and infotainment screen. A smaller dual-purpose digital panel controlling the audio and climate systems is yet another cool design innovation from Kia.
Cruising is a largely comfortable and quiet affair, although rough pavement made for a choppy ride at times. The gas-electric hybrid system delivers power efficiently, with more than enough acceleration to handle the demands of the daily commute or interstate passing maneuver. That said, we noted a wait-for-it response to throttle tip-in that required a bit of planning when pulling out into traffic.
2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid SX Prestige
Vehicle type: Four-door, seven-passenger gas-electric hybrid FWD minivan.
Engine and transmission: 1.6-liter turbocharged inline-four mated to electric motor and rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack (242 horsepower and 271 foot-pounds total output), six-speed automatic with steering-wheel-mounted shifter paddles.
Base/as-tested prices: $52,600/$57,255.
EPA estimates: 34 mpg city, 31 mpg highway, 33 mpg combined.
The good: Hybrid drivetrain huffs up accelerative oomph comparable to thirstier V-6-powered, gas-only model; high-zoot styling both outside and in; cavernous interior with plenty of cargo space; posh Prestige-trim second-row accommodations; good towing capacity; cabin abounds with fun-to-play-with tech; well-organized cabin space with plenty of storage cubbies.
The bad: Stiff ride over lumpy road surfaces; hard plastic surfaces let down cabin’s sense of luxury; gets pricey in upper trim levels; AWD not available.
Bottom line: Kia’s decision to have a minivan masquerade as an SUV was a stroke of genius.
link