Love how you still take joy in the cheapest car. True petrol head like me

Front mounted NA petrol engine, manual box, 4 seats, decent comfort level; everything a proper Ferrari should be.

Love these reviews. So fed up with all the high end cars.

My first car, funnily enough, is a 2010 Kia Picanto 1.1 - I bought it the other day and I’m smitten with it, it’s terrific!

I absolutely love cars like this. Simple unpretentious honest to goodness transport that's actually a big bag of fun to kick about town in. Proof that less really is more.

My first car was amazing. Took me a year to save and cost me £700. It was a 1.0 Seat Arosa, with a widebody kit, bucket seats, coilovers, and loads of lovely bits. Was a very engaging drive and I could rev and use all the 49 horsepowers every single day. Was a laugh to own and drive and I miss it dearly.

I love hiring small cars like this. In their own way they have much more interesting engineering, cost saving, maximising space etc. One of my favourite cars was a 1.3L yaris. Drove the nuts off it, never missed a beat and was great fun

Day after passing my test I drove back to college in my Mums Citroen 2CV, great fun, my mate's loved it for its quirkiness

Those reviews are also what make this channel really enjoyable to me

The first car I started driving and then drove it for some years was my father's 1980 Toyota Corolla. I loved it.

My first "car" was a Reliant Rialto GLS Estate - chosen due to only having a motorcycle license at the time! I rode a 400cc motorbike up to see it, put the bike in the back of the Rialto, and drove it home down the motorway having never driven a car in my life before.

It was a bit of a shock to watch this - a proper review! It was like watching Top Gear in the 1980s! Well done Jay!

My first car was Fiat cinquecento and then moved to Fiat Punto ;)))) changed rims, exhaust and lowered it ;)

My first driving experience was in a Peugeot 406 sedan. It was rusty and pretty beat up, but I still think the 406 line has some of the most beautiful cars produced in their time, especially the coupe.

My first driving experience, was my grandmas 2007 ford fiesta ghia, loved it so much when I passed my test I bought a 2007 ford fiesta zetec :)

Love supercars that I'll never be able to afford, but a sensible car review was a nice change.

I thought this was going to be more like Mr. Clarkson’s reviews of the sensible cars he used to do back in TG. The ones he told how nice the car was and then threw it off the ferry or something. “Is it green? -No, it is red.” Jokes aside, as a fresh driver myself with a long lived passion for all things cars, I can totally feel the message of this review. You can absolutely lust for the sound of a screaming v8 or some kind of an exotically shaped exterior, but there is also something about that little mass production box meeting you everyday in the parking lot. And yes, I accidentally started the love letter for my 08 Chevrolet Aveo 1.5. It starts, it goes and gets you to the places with relative comfort, can carry your friends and even some load if you need to. And being a newbie on the road it is also not scary to learn and have fun with it! Isn’t that what motoring was all about from the go?

4:14 really sounded like 'Ford' collision assist - so you don't crash into Fords.

Thank you. At last you have regained my attention. You have broken the seemingly endless procession of beautifully conceived and crafted cars perhaps capable of outperforming most drivers and possibly their bank accounts along the way. I first watched your channel ages ago when you were reviewing some elderly French cars. I really enjoyed those. Variety is the spice of life and all that. Since you asked - my first car was an old but lovely 1958 VW Beetle with a sunroof and a maximum of 35bhp! I seem to remember a great deal of oversteer. That was great fun at 17/18 and I never did spin in it all the way round.

1st drive was an Austin Maestro 1.3 city. C505 EOD It was a loveable piece of crap but I'll never forget the freedom of the open road.

I had a 54 plate picanto as my first car. Moving out of uni I had 2 large bikes, all my clothes and a desktop computer in the back of my car. oooodles of space for activities.

My first car was a Citroen Saxo, a base spec 1.0 4 cylinder with a whopping 50 hp. 0-100km/h in 20 seconds. It was supposed to be orange (more yellow than orange, though) and had some pretty snazzy alloy wheels and a little boot spoiler. Very easy to drive and comfortable too. Rusted out though, so it was followed up by a Vectra A 1.6 a year later. Had that car for almost 4 years.

Terrific review. I love it that as a motoring journalist you can just ring up and they'll send out a press car! Good for KIA, and that 7yr warrenty is outstanding! First car was a Mini 850, and my learner car was a 1984 Nissan Micra!

Genuinely I'm tempted by the GT Line S version of this with the 1.0T engine, looks like a lot of fun (I'd buy a used one and tune it a little). Little hatchbacks that you can thrash the balls off while not going very fast are more fun than virtually anything else on the road. I'd take one over an A45S or Type R any day of the week.

Your starting to remind me of Swiss Toni for some reason 😂 Having a station car, Paul .........

Started with a kia picanto when they hit the market in 2004 and still have a kia picanto. Have 2 in total as both me and the hubby have them. Fantastic cars. Really give higher brands a good go for the money. Safe, reliable, very good storage for long journeys like camping, going the tip, ikea runs etc. Have more modern amenities than more expensive models on their basic models. A true fan 😀.

Had my Fiesta 1.2 for almost a year now and I'm still loving it. Great little car and great to learn driving dynamics (and heel and toe) in without even breaking the speed limit.

Smart video. We love the higher end stuff but as petrol heads its good to see the full spectrum and probably more realistic cars too. This is a very well round channel, well done.

I just bought my daughter the Picanto GT-line auto this weekend. It cost $20,990 in Australia. Fantastic little car. Much better spec'd then what you reviewed in this video. Wireless apple carplay, 8 inch colour infotainment screen, leather interior, go fast red bits against the white paint looks great. She's super happy!

This year I learned how great a cheap modern car can be: in a postmodern way a car is what you make of it, not what it is when it leaves the factory.

my mum ( in her late 60's ) has an Auto one .. bought it new 10 years ago & sees no reason to trade it in yet .. as a car for a new driver or a retired couple or as you said a small car to leave at the station all day , it's pretty hard to beat

Canadian viewer here... First vehicle of mine was a '72 Dodge D100 Adventurer SE. Bought it for $75.00 USD at 16 years old and fixed it up with my Dad. Still have, and enjoy it today at 25. Love the videos, keep up the good work!

Learn to drive on a 98' Buick Riviera, manual 92' Audi 100CS, first car was 92' MR2. Thanks for bringing that memory back!

My first car was a Renault 5 1.1TL, it was 5 years old when I bought it, had it for 5 years until I traded it in for a GT Turbo😁😁😁

Lovely Jubbly, a 1973 BLMini which was a rot box in 1984.

Thank you for the review! As to "affordable dream cars": What about a current rear-engined Renault Twingo? My first driving experience was my dad's long wheel base Merc. The A 170 CDI ;-) It was an utter joy!

“£550 more expensive than the panoramic roof on the Ferrari” - that puts it into perspective! So I’ll have the Ferrari without the sunroof, please!

My first driving experience was my dad's Jetta TDI, the first year of dieselgate. Aside from a seemingly common fuel pump issue it was great, actually pretty fun to drive around

My first car, 93 Mitsubishi Space Runner, then came my 96 Toyota Paseo. And that is all the cars I have had. I still have the Paseo and I will do everything I can to keep it forever and ever. Thank you for the Kia review. It's nice to see that cheaper cars get some love too.

Austin Metro 1.0L - Under the bonnet was mostly empty.

Hey Jay ! Although I have a Mustang, MX5 & a Kona Highlander , I much prefer when you do reviews of basic cars like this ! It’s a lot harder to make a decent cheaper car than a mega dollar super car ! Big fan of yours ! Greetings from Western Australia !

My first car, a 1997 BMW 528i SE Touring manual in Calypso Red. Such a great car it has been, and which I still have to this day. Although in full restoration process.... I find it refreshing when down to earth, cheap cars get reviewed.

My first car was a Citroën Dyane 6. 602cc 29bhp taught me all about maintenance of momentum, I loved it, it was so much fun to drive flat out everywhere.

First car I drove at 17 was a 2005 Toyota Corolla Verso with 7 seats! Featuring a torquey, if noisy, 2.2 turbodiesel unit attached to a not-so-nice 6-spd manual.

1975 Vauxhall Chevette Hatchback. Great car - I had 2 of them at different times and both were reliable, went everywhere and did everything. Brakes caught fire going down Hardknott Pass, with 5 adults in it, but were fine again once they cooled down 😁

More of these please. Very enjoyable. I learnt to drive in a very knackered Land Rover Series 2 that had some gears, sometimes. The first car I owned was a Rover P6 2000SC. That had some body panels, for a while.

Absolutely brilliant, loved seeing this review! Kia and Hyundai now make some of the best mainstream cars on the market.

My First Car was a 1997 Citroen Saxo 1.1. No rocket ship but 100% reliable over 2 years. However my driving instructors car was a 1.9 fabia vrs diesel. That was fun to learn in. Brilliant video as usual, nice to see the variety👍

First car in 1964, 1936 Austin 7 Ruby saloon. Present and probably last car 2015 Kia Picanto 2, 1.25 litre. Love it, cracking little car & does everything I need it to do. Great video, thanks very much. PS. 44 mpg same as you.

Mitsubishi Colt ZC3 1.33 95hp was my first one. Absolutely loved it and kept it for nearly 3 years. Taught me a lot about driving.

Fantastic review. Yours is definitely my favourite car review channel on KZfaq! So nice to see "normal" cars being reviewed for a change. My first driving experience was learning to drive in my parents' 1988 Isuzu Trooper v6 truck (with long range fuel tank, if I recall correctly). Did me well, until it suffered some sort of catastrophic driveshaft failure (or something like that). Was a great thing to learn to drive in though. My favourite cars have all been "cheapies" as well, particularly a 97 Citroen Xantia I scored for $1400 (roughly 700 GBP) from a young family down the road from me. 2.0, 5 speed manual, hydropneumatic suspension ... it did everything I wanted for less than the cost of an iPhone and I loved it to bits. I can still remember one particular drive over some windy hill roads with my brother, seeing just how far we could push the suspension. Sold it a few years later to a colleague and upgraded to an Alfa 156 JTS 5 speed, another great car that was "worth more" than the $3500 I paid for it. Eventually had to say goodbye when it started using about as much oil as petrol though. Although I'm now in a position where I can finally afford better cars (i.e. decent new cars) I still find myself yearning for some of the old beaters I've had over the years. There's something about affordable cars that make them so much fun. Same goes for affordable "new" cars - I drove a Kia Rio Manual once and was blown away by how much fun it was, and how well specced it was in terms of gadgets for a brand new car. Same with the new Suzuki Swift ... it's a total hoot. Please do more of these reviews! Also more JDM reviews ... try to find a 'Mazda Sentia' if they were ever in the UK. I had two of them (the original 2.5 v6, and then the later 3.0 v6 'Royale Classic' version). Amazing cars and both were purchased for the price of a mid range TV. Thanks once again.

Learnt in a Maestro, first car owned Talbot Sunbeam. Hatchback blew off it on the motorway as I was changing a tire. Life lesson, secure the hatch before a truck passes by. Enjoyed the review, Kia have come a long way.

Well done James on an honest review of a car that does exactly what its designed to do. My first car was a 1979 Fiat 131 Supermirafiori 1600TC. FGD 937T. I bought it from an old couple who had owned it from new and only used it for supermarket shopping at the weekends. So at 9 years old, it only has 14,000 miles on it.

The first car I drove when I was learning was a Citroen AX. My first car was an A reg Vauxhall Astra 1.3L. I didn't have it for long but it was roomy and got me from A to B.

First steed back in 1987 was a mk5 1.6 Cortina. Lightweight version (rust in boot floor replaced with fibreglass lol). Had to keep a brick in it to pop on the accelerator to keep it ticking over on cold mornings. Quickly upgraded to a 1984 XR3i and then onto an 1986 RS Turbo Custom. In the days before insurance premiums went mad.

Great video, nice part at the beginning talking about the car etc not just driving

First driving experience was a LWB land rover pick up in about 1997. It was bright green and had no power steering. Then a 205 GT we used to rag down farm tracks where we worked. Like a go cart next to the landy 😂😂 great vid as always James

First car: 1981. Used Marina. Orange. AVJ687L. I was 21; rode bikes before that. Someone had put a TC (twin carb) grille on it, even though it wasn't. Surprised the mechanics when I took it in for some work. Driving became more...challenging, when the 4-speed box lost 2nd and 3rd. I got a replacement from a breakers and my dad and I dropped the broken one out and popped the replacement in one Saturday evening in the garage.

my first car was a 1971 ford escort 1100 hc , my first mod was self cancelling indicators and temp gauge/light.

Fiat Punto 1.2 16v Go! Edition was my first car. Loved it, drove it into a river, survived for a little while after. Put halfords alloys on it, cracking factory speakers and great mpg with a city button when you are bored sat in traffic. Would have it back as a project car in a heartbeat ♥

First car was a mk1 Ford Escort that was so worn it would only do 55mph. This was around 1990 and before the mk1 became a classic. Rust meant the carpets were nearly always wet and it was a constant gamble if it would start in the morning. Door locks could be opened with ANY key or a screwdriver. But it was freedom and I stayed largely dry after a couple years on motorbikes. Happy times scouring scrap yards for trim bits from higher spec models - having a centre console was an absolute luxury!

Great channel btw and looking forward to your GSA drive.

would absolutely love a sporty version with like 120-150 hp like a abarth 565 rival. And looking at kia and hyundai at the time doing crazy stuff, it isnt even that much out of question :D

Hi just watched and thumbs up. My first car was a C reg Fiat Uno. C205 AOT. I currently own a 2017 KIA Picanto 3 with the 1.25. This is my third Kia.

When I think back to my first car - an old Austin Metro 1300S (great car, bought it for the kick ass sound system) - then seeing cars like this with all the modern tech safety features and comforts, I feel like putting on a flat cap and talking about "kids today..." while ranting about how hard we had it back then. However, getting insurance was a doddle in the 1980s in comparison to today and it was easier driving on the roads imho. The picanto is a city car for sure and as a teenager I would not want to be seen dead in one BUT if it was a choice of one of them or the bus to college, then what a great little motor for not a lot of money. Can always put some go faster stripes on it or something (is that still a thing???). Anyway, I'll be stood at the bar with my whippet scowling at the younguns.

The hyundai brother to this, the i10 SE (the one up from the bottom) with the 67HP 1.0.

Parents bought me a brand new 1987 Mazda B2000 when I was 16. Thing was manual with a tiny 4 cylinder engine but since it was so light the thing would chirp 3 gear. I learned how to lower the front of it by unscrewing the torsion bars and got 3 inch lowering blocks for the rear. Yeah, the 80's where I lived was big on lowered trucks and the kids who had the Toyota version of my truck were the envy of the school. Looking back the thing really was quick and once it was lowered handled like a go cart, lol.

Hello from the US, my first car was a 1970 Toyota Corina. I love the car because it was mine and represented freedom. Had a laugh out loud moment when you compared the price of the Kia to the glass roof panel.

Wow. 110k followers. Well done. I remember not that long ago you were 20k.

Awesome review, thank you. First drove a Vauxhall Chevette and first car was a Fiat Uno (very rusty, rear suspension collapsed). Currently drive a very quick car but wouldn’t worry if it was one of those Kia’s as all I really want in a car is a good heater in the winter. The most fun car I have ever driven was my mum’s Fiat Panda on local B roads.

Excellent review James, these small cars are a blast, people are very quick to judge and forget how good cars like this are. And you can drive them like a madman and police probably won't bat an eyelid yet you feel your tearing down a backroad like Colin McRae.

1998 Clio, grandparents hand me down car. 1.4 16v. I absolutely loved it. Only owned it for a few years but it was everything I needed

1st car I owned was a dark grey 300.000km 1998 3-door Audi a3 1.9TDI 110hp. Very reliable, I only had to clean the egr valve. Fast enough as it weights only 1165kg.

First Drive was my dads Chrysler 180 when learning but was short lived as I reversed into a lamp post! First car Hillman Avenger 1250 TWK878J. Currently driving a Lotus Evora, Porsche 356 (replica!) and Alfa Giulietta as my daily.

Always get these as rentals out in the Caribbean we’re I work, decent little cars for short distances. First car beaten up old mini field car back in the day where you couldn’t give them away!

My first car was a 1981 VW Golf MK.1 GTS (unique to South Africa) - same exterior styling as the GTi with 4 headlight grille, black wheel arch extensions, GTS side decals, blacked out fender, door & sill trims (but no tailgate spoiler) - and with a blue/black tartan interior, Recaro-style front seats, 4-spoke steering wheel, instrument panel with rev-counter & digital clock (but no trip computer or up-shift light), additional gauges for voltmeter, oil temp & oil pressure on the centre console, a 1.6 NA carburettor engine with 63 BHP & a 4+E gearbox with golf-ball gear knob, 13" steel rims with chrome trims & centre caps & 175/70SR13 tyres - I upgraded it with GTI front dampers & wider 185/70HR13 Dunlop SP73 tyres but left the engine as standard - it was the most fun, enjoyable & chuckable car I have ever owned - sadly it was written off in Sept 1983 with just over 90,000 kms on the clock, when some idiot in a Mazda 323 did a u-turn right in front of me on a blind corner... still miss that car!

My first car was a BSM Triumph Herald. I passed my driving test in a company Morris Minor van. We turned up with ladders on the roof, which the examiner asked us to remove. The passenger seat was an orange box with a blanket over it. The passenger door had to be clipped shut, otherwise it tended to fly open on tight L/H turns. There were no seat belts in 1962. The examiner entered nervously with a great deal of trepidation and I suspect it was one of the fastest tests that day. Happy days...

First car I drove was my instructors Seat Corboda 1.9 Diesel - non-turbo. We used to start and end every lesson with a 3 mile run along the A303, and it would JUST about get to 70mph in that distance.

A reg Micra in red so similar to the Kea only with a lot less goodies on board!! Wind up window,4 speed etc... great car to learn to drive in! Probably worth a bob or two now....

A refreshingly different review, but in the familiar dry witted style 👍 Learned to drive in a 1.2 Nova, first car was my Mum’s old 1990 1.1L Rover metro, in black...oh yes, most definitely THE virgin conversion unit of choice. 😉

My first car was a Renault 5 GTL and it was an excellent car for a young family. I learnt to drive in a Mini Clubman and still think the original mini was a great car to learn in because of its wheels on each corner and minimal bonnet and good all round visibility making it easy to get to grips with. I think if you are young and have a limited budget the Kia in this review is a perfect starting out car.

First car i drove on the road - Simca 1100, First car owned Avenger. But the first one i drove aged 13, was a Ford Anglia in a field with the leaf spring sticking up in the boot!

Pulled off the Rebecca Jackson car review perfectly 😂

First car driven on the road - 85 Opel Ascona First car driven in a field - MK2 cortina First car owned - 91 Honda Integra Xsi (da6 engine)

Great review by the way. Really well stated. Practical. It would be cool if you ever did comparative car reviews. “The three cheapest cars you can buy, compared. Which one will I hate the least? “ lol. Or , “The grand city car challenge! Which city does the best at being a car in the city?” Lol

First car I drove regularly was a Renault 4 - around a paddock, aged from 10 on. Learned to drive in a driving school Triumph Dolomite. First car owned was a Mini. In descending order, Mini, Renault 4, Triumph.

I was driven in the back of a Picanto to do Ben Nevis and back and I was quite happy. Enough room. Boot wasn't massive so we had some of our gear (3 people) on the other back seat as well. Only annoying thing I found is that there were no speakers in the back seats, only the front had them and it was fairly well spec'd - fancy looking with a touchscreen and twin exhaust tips.

My first ever drive was in a 94 Camry V6 with my mom. I'd never driven before, and she was very scared (this adventure was a poor suggestion on her part). I crashed it a few years ago in the rain RIP. We have the Kia Rio in the US (our cheapest small Kia), and it's very inoffensive and smooth considering the price point. It really puts into perspective just how good cars are now.

I’m interested to see how young most commentators are on your channel...that is good news..and even better news is that they understand and like the fact that a drive to the shops in the Picanto is vastly better than in a Porsche GT3 RS Weissach...you can park it, nobody wants to vandalise it, nobody films you for You Tube and you are far less likely to get done by the mobile speed camera van. Often..less is so much more! My first car was a 1961 Austin Se7en Deluxe who I had for five years and I wish I had it now but the first car I drove was a 1953 Ford 10 van (PHT 13)...rough as nails but good brakes and unstoppable in snow! Good Work JayEmm...more reviews like this would be good...😀😀😀😀😀

My first was a mini 1100 N reg (the N was at the end of the reg). It was great fun.

I rented a Yaris a few years back for a 1000 km+ road trip over 2 days. I utterly loved it. I don't know why but I did. More so than the Civic, the Mercury Disable, the Ford Taurus I am not one of those vroom vroom kinda guys and usually the joy of driving is more in seeing the miles pass by and looking at the country side but still.

My dad let me drive his 1972 Rover P6 2000TC in 2013 when I was learning, would’ve been the first car I drove as well, such a nice drive and felt modern to me

My 1st car was a 1970 Chevy Monte Carlo 307 V8. Bought it off dealer lot in 1971. Wish I still had it..

The first car I drove was my mums Saab 900 turbo (back in 1987). That thing had so much lag that over thirty years one we are still waiting for the turbo to spin up :)

Driven a similar Picanto from Kia UK before, but with the bigger touchscreen; gets a lot of love from the car mags!

James there is something about having a small car that is appealing, a few years ago I bought at £250 Citroen AX 1.0, great fun to drive. My first drive was in my driving instructors mark 1 Nissan Micra 1.0 4 speed in solid red. Very light controls, simple to drive and thrashy at 70.

the skills needed to get the absolute best performance from a tiny engine are just as hard won as the skills to get a silly big engine round the Nurburgring in the fastest possible time....

My first car and driving experience was a 2003 Ford Crown Victoria ex police car that I bought from a retired sheriff for $500. That this was amazing, V8 RWD and dual bench seats meant that me and 6-7 of my friends could go drifting in boat like comfort

That’s the hallmark of a good car reviewer - appreciates the cars for what they are. Anyway - first car - G reg 1.1 Rover Metro C. First crash came a week later when I went round a corner too fast and the front passenger wheel trim flew off. I was so busy watching the trim continue it’s journey without me that I hadn’t straightened my steering.....mounted a kerb and drove straight into a tree🤦‍♂️

First car was a 1975 1300 Marina followed by 1977 Simca 1100 Estate. Then followed 1978 Avenger Estate, 1971 Capri 300E, 1986 Ford P100 Pickup, 1983 Opal Manta 400, 1982 Mk2 Scirocco GTI, 1966 MG Midget, 1985 Fiat Uno Turbo, 1985 BX GTi, 1994 Rover 414Sli, 2006 Mazda 6 TS2 Estate, 2016 Volvo XC60 SE Lux, 2019 Peugeot 3008 GT Line, 2001 Mazda MX5 1.8is. Many owned at the same time.