The Kia Carens Clavis has made its world premiere in an online unveil event, and is set to join the standard Carens in Kia’s India lineup in the coming weeks. Essentially a facelift for Kia’s popular MPV, the Carens Clavis will be positioned as a more premium, feature-rich alternative to the regular Carens (which will continue to be on sale), with its suffix translating to ‘golden key’ in Latin. During the event, Kia also confirmed the Clavis will spawn an EV, which is expected to be launched in the second half of 2025. Bookings for the Carens Clavis will open at 00:01 am on May 9, with Kia promising ‘Priority Delivery’ to customers who make their reservations early. The Clavis will be available in seven trim levels – HTE, HTE(O), HTK, HTK+, HTK+(O), HTX & HTX+.
In appearance, the Clavis is quite similar to the regular Carens, but with a revised face and tail section. Kia says the Clavis follows the company’s new ‘Opposites United’ design philosophy, and its front-end – bearing L-shaped daytime running lights connected by a light strip and ‘Ice Cube’ LED headlights – is reminiscent of some of Kia’s EVs sold overseas. The bumpers are new, as are the 17-inch dual-tone alloy wheels and the ‘Starmap’ connected LED tail-lights. A new ‘Ivory Silver’ paint option is available with the Clavis.
On the inside, the changes are more significant. The Clavis has a new dual-tone colour scheme – Triton Navy & Beige, with navy-and-beige leatherette seats. The Clavis’ dashboard is significantly different from the Carens’, as it features a combined dual display – clubbing the central infotainment touchscreen with the full-digital driver’s display – measuring 26.62 inches.
The Clavis also gets a panoramic sunroof, something that’s not available on the standard Carens. Another first for the Clavis is a powered one-touch double-folding function for the second-row seat, to make access to the third row easier.
Also included on the Clavis are ventilated front seats (with four-way power adjust for the driver's seat), 64-colour ambient lighting, five USB-C ports, dual-view dashcam, seat-mounted air purifier, and an 8-speaker Bose sound system. The Clavis will be available in 6- and 7-seat forms, with the former equipped with captain seats for the second-row passengers.Exclusive to the Clavis is the Level 2 advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) suite, which brings over 20 functions, including adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist and rear cross traffic alert.
Engine options for the Clavis are the same as on the Carens – a 1.5-litre petrol engine, 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine and a 1.5-litre diesel engine. Kia said the 1.5 turbo-petrol will also be available with a manual transmission option.Prices for the Clavis are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. The Clavis will sit above the Carens, and we expect prices for it to be in the range of Rs 11 lakh to Rs 20 lakh (ex-showroom).
Other Upcoming Kia Models are the New Carens, EV4, EV5, EV2 and New Seltos
