First Look Review: The 2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid raises its standards

Update (November 18, 2024): ‘MPG’ sub-section of ‘Specifications’ and ‘Price & Release Date’ updated.

The fourth-gen Kia Carnival has received a facelift, and with the mid-life update, the minivan’s range has seen the addition of a Hybrid variant. On February 8, 2024, the 2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid received the green signal for U.S. launch. I have seen the new hybrid minivan in person and explored its features, comfort, and space, to understand what’s new. Here are my first impressions:

Design

The 2025 Kia Carnival, including the first-ever Kia Carnival Hybrid, features considerable visual changes. The facelifted minivan gains vertical headlamps with large light guides that stretch inwards over a boxier radiator grille. I don’t find the inserts of the new upper grille attractive, but I think its wide footprint should give the hybrid minivan a good road presence.

The new grille and headlamps emphasize the minivan’s wide body and lend its front fascia a more dominating look, elevating its SUV-ishness. The XL-size, amber LED DRLs ensure that people recognize the new minivan even from a good distance. The twin-module fog lamps on each side of the lower grille also contribute to the elevated SUV-like appearance of the updated minivan.

On the sides, in line with Kia’s newfound interest in geometric designs, the new Carnival flaunts technical-looking alloy wheels, which the company plans to offer in 17- to 19-inch size options. The black wheels I saw on the hybrid minivan didn’t look particularly appealing. Kia says a 17-inch aero design is exclusively available on the hybrid variant, and I’m keen to see if turns out to be better on the road.

At the rear, the vertical tail lamps of the hybrid minivan remind me of the 2024 Seltos. I observed that the tailgate is also new, with the license plate area located in the lower section, not the upper section like on the current model. Another difference that I noted is that the brand logo is bigger and placed separately on the tailgate.

Kia manufactures the Carnival Hybrid at its Sohari plant in Gwangmyeong, South Korea. After spending some time closely looking at its exterior, I noticed that its panel gaps aligned evenly, and there were no noticeable quality issues. As for paint consistency and thickness, the Koreans have nailed it!

Interior

Inside, the Kia Carnival Hybrid has a revised dashboard that neatly integrates a thin ultra-wide ambient light stripe below the AC vents. It features a new panel in a proper rectangular shape to integrate the 12.3-inch cockpit displays and give a more harmonious look to the interior. I think the lower height of the frame of this panel leads to improved forward visibility.

When I sat in the driver’s seat, I first checked for all-around visibility. The large glass surfaces and flat panels make it easy to see out of the car, with my only complaint being the base of the A-Pillar, which is a bit thick. I noticed that while the gas-powered outgoing Carnival has a regular IRVM, the Carnival Hybrid features a digital IRVM that can show the live feed from a rear camera when the view in the optical mode is compromised because of tall passengers in the rear seats or tall luggage in the cargo area.

Also new in the 2025 Carnival Hybrid is a switchable touch-operated panel that doubles as a controller for both the climate control system and the infotainment system. The exclusion of the separate, relatively bigger climate control panel of the outgoing model has led to a cleaner look, but at the cost of reduced practicality.

Another change in the center console is the replacement of three USB-A ports with two USB-C ports. In total, there are seven USB-C ports in the cabin. The biggest upgrade here, however, is a premium, dial-type gear selector with a knurled finish instead of the outgoing Carnival’s gear shift lever.

Advanced ultrawideband-based Digital Key 2.0 allows customers to lock and unlock the doors conveniently with their smartphones without needing to hold them. They can also share this key with their friends and family. Lastly, the Carnival Hybrid supports OTA software updates and packs several new features like a full-color head-up display and Highway Driving Assist 2 (HDA 2).

I’m six feet tall, so I expected some issues with entering the 2025 Carnival Hybrid. What I found out was that the ingress was simple, with the ground clearance, seat height, and aperture all aiding my entry. In the first row, my head was well below the headliner. The lumbar support was good, while the under-thigh support felt generous.

In the second row, sitting right behind the driver’s seat that was adjusted for a six-foot-tall person, I had ample legroom and knee room since the captain’s chairs were adjustable. The electrical recline function ensures comfort for a wide range of passengers. The under-thigh support was very good, and I had ample headroom. Since the captain’s chairs were mounted slightly inward, getting out of the vehicle required a bit more stretching.

Kia has developed a new rear-seat entertainment system for the second row of the Carnival Hybrid. This system includes two 14.6-inch full-HD displays, both attached to the backrests of the first-row seats. It can stream media content from popular platforms, and its content keeps getting updated over the air. In the third row, the ingress felt a bit uncomfortable, as that part of the cabin is designed for shorter adults and children.

Specifications

1.6L Hybrid powertrain

The 2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid pairs a 1.6-liter turbocharged gas engine with a 54.4 kW motor and a 6-speed automatic transmission. The engine and motor together produce 241.7 horsepower and 270.5 lb.-ft. of torque, sending drive to the front wheels. When driving in Eco or Smart mode, the driver can adjust the intensity of regenerative braking in three levels, using paddle shifters behind the steering wheel.

Other HEV-specific functions include E-Ride for reduced vehicle shaking when passing speed bumps, E-Handling for increased steering response and stability during cornering, and E-EHA (Electrically Evasive Handling Assist) for turning stability. E-EHA’s control principle is similar to E-Handling, but its difference is that it activates when cameras and radar detect the risk of a frontal collision.

MPG

The Carnival Hybrid is significantly more efficient than the Carnival 3.5L V6. While the gas variant delivers a fuel economy of 21 MPG, 18 MPG (city)/26 MPG (highway)/21 MPG (combined), the hybrid variant returns 34 MPG (city)/31 MPG (highway)/33 MPG (combined), all as per EPA. Similarly, EPA estimates the gas-powered Carnival consumes 4.8 gallons per 100 miles but the Carnival Hybrid uses just 3.0 gallons per 100 miles.

According to EPA, while the Carnival can travel 399 miles on a full tank, the Carnival Hybrid can keep going until 627 miles, which makes it more suitable for long journeys. It says the latter provides a savings of USD 800 in annual fuel cost.

Price & Release Date

The 2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid has arrived at U.S. dealerships and is available in four trims, with prices ranging between USD 40,500 and USD 52,600, excluding destination charges. Kia says the hybrid minivan is sparking strong consumer interest and bringing a lot of visitors to its showrooms across the country.

Variant	Price
Carnival Hybrid LXS	$40,500
Carnival Hybrid EX	$42,700
Carnival Hybrid SX	$47,600
Carnival Hybrid SX Prestige	$52,600

In 2023, Kia registered its highest demand ever for the Carnival, with sales of 43,687 units, an improvement of 93 percent over 2022. In 2024, year-to-date sales as of October stood at 39,636 units, 2,956 units more than in the same period in 2023 (January-October 2023: 36,680 units). The facelift and addition of a hybrid variant should help Kia strengthen its presence in the segment and achieve stronger numbers for the full year compared to 2023.

TopElectricSUV says

The Kia Carnival Hybrid can be a great value-for-money minivan with significantly lower fuel consumption and a notably higher range than the V6-powered vehicle. If Kia can achieve around 33 MPG, it would approach the Toyota Sienna Hybrid’s territory, and attract a new set of customers towards the Kia brand. Kia should consider adding an AWD system in future model years to complete the hybrid range.

Also See: First Look Review: 2024 Kia EV9 offers comfort, space, features but at a price

2025 Kia Carnival Hybrid FAQs