If you’ve been looking for a vehicle that is big enough to haul the entire family but isn’t as huge as a full-size SUV, the all-new 2022 Kia Carnival might be the perfect fit. Replacing the outgoing Sedona, the front-wheel-drive Carnival can hold up to eight people comfortably and haul all their gear.
2022 Carnival; all photos courtesy of Kia
Appearing more like an SUV than a minivan with its boxy, aggressive stance, the 2022 Kia Carnival has a 3.5-liter V6, 262 pound-feet of torque, and 290 horsepower — yet it still manages to be quite aerodynamic and gets an estimated 22mpg combined! With up to 3,500 pounds of towing capacity, the Carnival can pull your trailer, boat, or camper. With four trim levels, it’s possible to make it as simple or luxurious as your needs require.
2022 Carnival
The 2022 Kia Carnival’s boxy, SUV-like exterior features LED headlights, a bold front end, and sleek taillights; the vehicle can be ordered with either 17″ or 19″ wheels.
2022 Carnival
With 168.2 cubic feet of passenger room and 145.1 cubic feet of cargo room (behind the first row) in the LX, EX, SX trim levels, there is plenty of space for passengers, which makes it perfect for family road trips. Still, it’s also made to be capable of hauling larger supplies for home projects.
2022 Carnival
The 2022 Kia Carnival’s center console has high-gloss black finishes, and a chrome garnish runs the length of the panoramic dashboard. Slim, integrated metal air vents look modern, and there are three interior colors to choose from.
If you’re looking at one of the eight-passenger versions, you’ll appreciate the “SlideFlex” seating that allows you to choose from multiple seating configurations; there is a sliding second-row center seat that can be positioned forward to allow easy access from the front seat to parents to check on children riding in the back. The sliding center seat reveals a functional table for the passengers when it is folded down. In all but the top-level SX-Prestige version, the second-row seats are removable and the third-row seats fold down into the floor to open up even more cargo room when needed.
If road trips are your family’s thing, you’re going to be in for some fights on who gets to ride in the second-row! The seven-passenger 2022 Kia Carnival SX-Prestige version has heated and ventilated VIP Lounge Seating with power control, wing-out headrests, and leg extensions that will make it easy to lay back and fully relax. Dual monitors that mirror Android or iOS devices allow passengers to watch what they want and stay content on long trips. With up to nine USB ports spread out among the three rows and two 110-volt power inverters, and wireless phone charging in the front, it will be no problem to keep everyone’s devices charged.
The 2022 Kia Carnival has plenty of features to make travel easier, safer, and more enjoyable. Some of them include:
- Standard hands-free opening power sliding doors with Smart Key
- Available hands-free Smart Power Liftgate with auto-close (EX and above)
- Available Smart Key with one-button open/close functionality for rear sliding doors and liftgate (EX and above)
- Rear Occupant Alert (ROA) uses ultrasonic sensors engineered to detect child or pet movement in the second and third rows after the doors have been locked. It then can notify the driver and surrounding area by sounding the horn, illuminating the hazard lamps, and notifying the driver through mobile phone via the UVO link app (EX and above)
- Safe Exit Assist (SEA): Audibly alerts the driver or passengers opening their door not to exit the vehicle when the system detects approaching traffic. The system can intervene to lock the rear doors when the vehicle is equipped with available Power Child Lock
- Rear Passenger View Camera with zoom and night vision to keep an eye on children in the back seat, even after dark (standard on EX, SX, SX-Prestige)
- Passenger Talk cabin intercom system for clear communication between passengers up front and in the rear (standard on EX, SX, SX-Prestige)
- Passenger Voice Recognition allows second-row occupants to control numerous in-vehicle functions through voice commands by pushing a button mounted on the ceiling (standard on EX SX, SX-Prestige)
- Dual Rear Screen Entertainment Monitors with Wireless Apple and Android device screen mirroring (standard on SX, SX-Prestige)
2022 Carnival
And as we have come to expect from Kia, the 2022 Carnival has plenty of standard and optional technology, like:
- Standard 8-inch touchscreen display with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- Wireless smartphone charging
- 3-in. navigation display
- 3-in. full digital instrument cluster
- Multi-Bluetooth connectivity
- Bose Premium sound system, available with 12 high-performance speakers
- Bose Centerpoint technology converts stereo sources into a richer surround-sound experience
- Dynamic Speed Compensation analyzes the sound source and automatically adjusts according to speed
- UVO link telematics offers an array of advanced connected vehicle features, such as:
- Connected Routing: A new cloud-based route calculation system that uses UVO cloud to calculate the optimal route using real-time maps, predicted upcoming traffic info based on historical information, and AI to learn the preferred routes of users
- Connected Weather: Provides weather information for more than 25,000 cities
- Enhanced UVO voice assist feature allows voice control of the vehicle’s climate, seat and steering-wheel heating, audio system, and other functions
- Connected User Profiles: Allows customers to add an additional driver profile to their vehicle. The drivers can have their individual UVO accounts linked to the vehicle and access to the remote features using the Kia Access App. The profile stores some select settings in the UVO account and can be shared with other compatible Kia vehicles
- Calendar Integration: Designed to sync your Google or iCloud calendar with UVO link allowing you to receive event notification alerts while in the vehicle, and, in some cases, navigation to your event’s destination, if the address has been entered in the calendar event
- Last Mile Navigation: Gives you walking directions to your selected navigation destination from up to one mile away through the Kia Access with UVO link app on your compatible smartphone
- UVO & Smart Speaker Integration lets customers use Amazon-Alexa or Google-Assistant enabled smart speaker or device to remotely control some functions (such as remote start)
- Advanced notifications:
- Engine Idle Notification and Automatic Engine Shut Off notifies the driver via the UVO link app if the engine is left idling and, after a pre-selected time, turns off the engine
- Rear Occupancy Alert can send push notification alerts via the UVO link app if movement is detected inside the vehicle
- 911 Connect and Roadside Assistance will automatically attempt to call 911 via the built-in UVO modem if an airbag deploys. For non-emergencies, it can connect with 24/7 roadside assist and share the vehicle’s location
The 2022 Kia Carnival also has a bunch of standard safety equipment built-in, including
- Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist (FCA): Assists the driver when braking to help prevent a collision or lessen the effects in certain conditions if a pedestrian or vehicle is detected in front. Uses automatic braking to avoid or mitigate an impact.
- Blind-Spot Avoidance Assist (BCA): Under certain conditions, it can detect vehicles traveling in the next lane. When a vehicle is “seen” in the blind spot, the vehicle brakes the outer wheel under certain conditions to help return the vehicle to its lane.
- Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist (RCCA): Helps detect most approaching cross-traffic when in reverse. When approaching cross-traffic is detected, the system alerts the driver and applies brakes.
- Parking Distance Warning-Reverse (PDW-R): Detects certain objects behind the vehicle, issuing an audible warning when an obstruction is detected. The warning tone chimes faster as the vehicle gets closer to the detected object.
- Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS) with Lane Following Assist (LFA): Follows lane markings that the system detects and provides steering inputs to help maintain the vehicle in the center of the lane and includes Lane Departure Warning (LDW), which provides an audible warning when the vehicle drifts from its intended lane.
- High Beam Assist (HBA): Detects oncoming traffic and automatically switches off the high beam headlights, then turns them on once traffic has passed.
- Driver Attention Warning (DAW): Senses inattentive driving patterns and sends an audible/visual warning to alert the driver.
For additional peace of mind, the 2022 Kia Carnival offers several available “Kia Drive Wise” Advanced Driver Assistance Systems:
- Segment-exclusive Blind-Spot View Monitor (BVM): Projects live video view of adjacent lanes in the instrument cluster and activated via the turn signal.
- Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist-Cyclist (FCA – cyclist): Helps detect cyclists in front of the vehicle and uses automatic braking to avoid or mitigate an impact.
- Highway Driving Assist (HDA). Uses federal highway speed limit information from the navigation system and, under certain conditions, will automatically adjust speed to be within the posted speed limit and maintain distance with the vehicle detected in front.
- Navigation Based Smart Cruise Control-Curve (NSCC-C): Leverages the navigation system to lower the vehicle’s speed proactively before upcoming curves.
- Parking Collision-Avoidance Assist (PCA-R): Uses the rearview camera and rear ultrasonic sensors to help detect most pedestrians or nearby obstacles when the vehicle backs out of a parking spot, warning drivers with a chime and can engage brakes to prevent a collision.
- Surround View Monitor (SVM): Utilizes four cameras to provide a 360-degree perspective around the vehicle, enhancing driver confidence in tight parking situations.
If you want to take a look at the standard and optional features available on each trim level, you can download the spreadsheet here. If you want to see a full list of each version’s specifications, you can download that spreadsheet here.