Would you recommend the KIA Rio as a small, reliable, petrol car?

I note that in Saturday’s paper you state that if a person drives fewer than 15,000 miles a year and keeps cars for longer than five years, diesel cars are best avoided. As this applies to me, which petrol cars could you recommend which are reliable, well built and have high mpg? I am looking for a car up to three years old and have £10,000 to spend. I noted that you prefer the Hyundai i30 to the i20. With regards to Kia cars, what do you think of the Kia Rio?

Asked on 13 April 2013 by GI. via email;

Answered by Honest John

The KIA Rio is a very solid, well-built and good looking small car. Test and video of the 1.4 here: www.honestjohn.co.uk/road-tests/kia/kia-rio-2011-r.../. Unless they have a 6-speed gearbox, the i30 1.6 petrol and similar KIA cee'd are a bit low geared.

Tags: build quality petrol engines reliability

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Hyundai i20 (2009 - 2015)

Easy to drive and refined. Very well built. Five-year warranty as standard. Neat and tidy styling. Decent room in the back seat. Good economy from entry-level 1.2-litre.

Kia Rio (2011 - 2017)

Much more stylish than previous Rio. Upmarket interior. 1.1-litre chain cam diesel emits just 85g/km of CO2. Three-door from £9,995.

Hyundai i30 (2012 - 2017)

Good quality interior, very efficient engines, excellent value for money, good reliability record, plenty of equipment as standard.

Kia Cee'd (2012 - 2018)

Impressive value for money and plenty of standard equipment, later T-GDI petrol engine offers impressive performance and economy, seven-year warranty.