The Kia Stonic may be almost eight years old, but the Korean brand is squeezing some more life out of the popular Mazda CX-3 rival.
Images published by New Car Scoops show camouflaged examples of the facelifted Stonic wearing design cues from other, newer members of the Kia lineup.
Kia has been busily making over existing models to give them versions of the new corporate face, with the Picanto micro hatch, the Sportage and Sorento SUVs, and the Carnival people mover all refreshed to look like new-generation models like the new K4 sedan, and the EV5 and EV9 electric SUVs.
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The Stonic wears the new face, featuring vertical headlights with blocky internals.
While we can’t quite make this out under the camouflage, the facelifted Stonic is also expected to receive a restyled front bumper, grille, and potentially a light bar across the top of the grille.
Down back, the tail-lights closely resemble those of the electric EV5 mid-sized SUV.
It’s unclear what other changes will be made to the Stonic, though we’d expect a refreshed interior with a larger infotainment touchscreen and Kia’s latest instrument cluster setups.
The Stonic remains an important model for Kia not only in Australia, but also Europe. It’s also sold as the KX1 in China, though it was discontinued in Kia’s Korean home market in 2020.
The Stonic arrived here in 2021, after having debuted in Europe in 2017. It eventually supplanted the closely related Rio hatchback, which was retired in 2023.
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Current Kia Stonic
The naturally aspirated 1.4-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that had opened the range was dropped in 2024, with the Stonic henceforth offering only a turbocharged 1.0-litre three-pot. However, Australia has continued to miss out on the 48V mild-hybrid system offered with this engine in Europe.
Last year, the Stonic was the sixth best-selling Kia in Australia with 6189 examples delivered, a drop of 11.4 per cent on the previous year.
It was also the fifth best-selling vehicle in its segment, behind the dominant Mazda CX-3 as well as the Suzuki Jimny, Toyota Yaris Cross, and Hyundai Venue.
Last week, Kia previewed a new entry-level electric SUV concept called the EV2, previewing a Slovakian-built production model that’ll serve as an electric alternative to the Stonic in Europe. However, it’s unlikely to come here.
MORE: Everything Kia Stonic
