Check before you buy: Kia K4 safety differences lead to dual rating

Separate ANCAP safety ratings have today been published for the Kia K4 sedan. The majority of K4 variants achieve five-star ratings, while the base variant achieves four stars.

Kia has opted to sell the K4 with varying safety specifications between variants – a decision that echoes the approach taken with model predecessor, the Kia Cerato, meaning consumers must carefully consider which variant they choose.

The Kia K4 Sport, Sport+, GT-Line, and S with Safety Pack are all equipped with a broad range of safety features and crash avoidance technologies - enabling five-star performance.

The K4 demonstrated sound crash protection across the range of physical crash tests. In assessment of its ‘aggressivity’ - or the risk it poses to other vehicles in a crash - the K4 also scored very well, demonstrating a relatively low risk to collision partners.

The Kia K4 S, when the optional Safety Pack is not chosen, has different hardware and software than higher variants. The omission of the hardware component and subsequent software tune sees its autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system unable to detect or react in T-bone intersection crossing scenarios.

Oncoming and overtaking emergency lane keep (ELK) functionality is provided on the base S variant – as it is on higher grades – however the tuning of the crash avoidance software fitted to the base S variant does not detect other cars or motorcycles in the adjacent lane, thus posing a greater crash threat.

These differences see the Safety Assist score for the S reduce by 13%, resulting in a four-star rating. The Vulnerable Road User Protection score is also lower than that of higher-specified variants.

A dual rating is permitted by ANCAP in cases where specified active safety features are optional. To qualify, these features must be available on base variants in the form of a ‘Safety Pack’.

“The five-star rating achieved by the majority of K4 variants is encouraging news for private and fleet customers,” said ANCAP Chief Executive, Carla Hoorweg.

“However, it is important for consumers to note that the base grade without the Safety Pack does not provide the same level of standard safety.”

“In 2025, safety should not be treated as a ‘pay-for’ option.”

“Our advice for consumers is to check before you buy. Make sure you know the ANCAP safety rating of the specific vehicle model and variant you’re considering, as there can be important differences that aren’t immediately obvious, or that may not be explained at the point of sale.”

“Our message for Kia is to provide the same standard level of safety across the model range. Consumers should not have to pay extra for safety, nor should they have to compromise on safety when buying to a budget.”

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