The Most Luxurious Kia Ever Is Not An SUV or EV, but A Carnival MPV

The face-lifted Kia Carnival sees its opulent 'Hi Limousine' trimline return for the 2026 model year in Korea.

Here’s a variant of the Kia Carnival that can – and will – shame both the ever-popular Toyota Vellfire and Alphard, not to mention its Lexus LM cousin. Returning for the face-lifted 2026 model year Carnival line-up in Korea is the MPV’s nameplate’s opulent ‘Hi Limousine’ guise.

First introduced in the current-gen pre-facelift Carnival range back in 2020, the Hi Limousine trimline stands apart from the regular Carnival thanks to its upscale equipment and extended roof section that increases cabin height and stores additional equipment.

This extended roof section noted was specially crafted from press-formed steel and features and aerodynamic design to boot. 

In this updated and face-lifted version, the Carnival Hi Limousine gains a sharper face with new vertically stacked headlights flanking a new grille that’s noticeably more squared. At the rear, the face-lifted base Carnival’s full-width taillight cluster is retained.

On board, the Kia offers the Carnival Hi Limousine with four, seven or nine-seat layouts across either a two- or three-row arrangement. The most indulgent here is arguably the four-seat Signature guise as it features a pair of second-row ‘Captain Seats’ with massage function.

The most opulent choice here is a four-seater Signature guise that brings a pair of fully-reclinable 'Captain Seats' in its second row, plus a host of added luxuries like massage seats function and more.

Additionally, the second-row seats in the four-seat Signature trim has fully reclining backrests plus dedicated shoe storage compartment. Passengers here also get treated with a massive 21.5-inch roof-mounted entertainment screen, refrigerator, folding tables, coat hanger, and more.

Also offered as an option here is a new 12-speaker Bose audio suite, but that’s not all.

Key amenities brimmed in the range-topping Signature four-seater guise include a dedicated shoe storage compartment, coat hanger, and a massive roof-mounted 21-inch infotainment screen that can be optionally paired with a 12-speaker Bose audio suite.

In this refreshed 2026 model year version, the Kia Carnival Hi Limousine gets upgrades like thicker floormats with new stripe patterns, as well as pleated curtains with a new added stitch line. Enhanced too are the cabin’s mood lamp and ‘starry sky’ mood lamp in the high-roof section.

Kia also enhanced the Carnival Hi Limousine’s ride quality in the four-seater Signature version specifically, which gets an additional damper, soft pad, and lower rear seating height. These come on top of improved suspension tuning and cabin sound insulation imbued in the face-lifted base Carnival.

The extended roof section was specially designed to increase cabin height and store additional features. It also boasts a special aerodynamic design plus press-formed steel construction.

Other notable luxuries primed in the Hi Limousine trimline include a refrigerator and foldable tables.

Under the hood, Kia offers this plush MPV with a hybrid powertrain option. This choice pairs a 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo petrol mill with an e-motor and compact battery setup, altogether outputting 242 hp and 367 Nm.

Said hybrid choice comes on top of a 3.5-litre V6 petrol mill choice, which puts out roughly 294 hp and up to 360 Nm. What’s not available in this opulent trimline though is the Carnival’s signature 2.2-litre 4-cyl turbo-diesel lump.

Under the hood, the Carnival Hi Limousine ditches the base Carnival model's signature 2.2-litre turbo-diesel for the choice between a 1.6-litre turbo-hybrid or 3.5-litre V6 petrol lump.

Of course, all this added opulence comes at a price. In Korea , the Kia Carnival Hi Limousine range is open for orders starting from KRW63.27 million (approx. RM192,061) in nine-seat Noblessse trim with the V6 powertrain.

Said starting price raises to KRW97.80 million (approx. RM296,879) for the four-seat Signature hybrid flagship guise. For reference, the regular Carnival model is tagged from KRW36.36 million (approx. RM110,373) onwards.