Kia Ceed review - Reliability & safety

The Ceed should be an easy purchase based on the remote chances of it going wrong and a pretty strong safety record. Reassuring performances in our Driver Power owner satisfaction survey and a seven-year warranty mean you’re unlikely to be left stranded, or reaching into your wallet unexpectedly.

Kia Ceed reliability

Unfortunately the Kia Ceed didn’t feature in our 2024 Driver Power list of the top 50 models on sale, but the Kia brand performs well overall. It came an impressive third place out of the top 32 brands as rated by owners – one place ahead of premium manufacturer Porsche. Reliability itself wasn’t anything to write home about, with around 24% of owners reporting an issue with their Kia in the first year, which is fairly average, however Kia’s impressive warranty goes a long way to making up for this.

Other things that Kia owners liked about their cars were value for money, their infotainment systems, low running costs, and practicality. Kia performed well in all categories, with only the cars’ powertrains and engines ranked outside the top 10 in 11th place. It’s safe to say Kia owners are a very happy bunch.

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Safety

Euro NCAP has crash-tested the third-generation Ceed, and it scores four stars as standard. Both its predecessors scored five stars on less stringent tests, and this new car offers the maximum five-star rating if you choose the optional safety pack.

For this new model, more safety kit has been added, with driving assistance technology including driver attention warnings, lane-keeping assistance, auto-dipping headlights and autonomous emergency braking fitted as standard.

The Ceed is also the first Kia to get lane-following assistance, which not only matches the speed of the vehicle ahead on the motorway, but also detects road markings to help you stay in the middle of the lane.