Kia’s heavily revamped Stonic compact crossover has broken cover, complete with a bold new look and a raft of extra in-car technology.

The facelifted Ford Puma rival has been reshaped inside and out while retaining a petrol and mild hybrid engine line-up to reflect the model’s role “as a transition vehicle that supports a range of mobility strategies across European markets”.

Outside, the new Stonic gets a major overhaul based on the brand’s ‘Opposites United’ design philosophy and echoing models such as the EV5 and 9 along with the Sportage. Additions include Kia’s Star Map Signature Lighting and bolder front and lower grilles. The rear sports a new tailgate layout, tail-light signature, updated skid plate and streamlined rear bumper.

The striking new look is augmented with new wheel options across the range, including 16-inch and 17-inch alloy wheels, as well as 17-inch alloy wheels exclusively for the sportier GT-Line trim. And there’s two new “expressive” colours: Adventurous Green and Yacht Blue.

Dimensions are largely carried over, with just a 25mm increase due to its resculpted front and rear bumpers, and the Stonic continues to offer 352 litres of boot space.

Inside, there’s a “reimagined” cabin with “upper-segment influence”. Centre stage is the panoramic dual display, merging two high-resolution 12.3-inch screens for infotainment and vehicle information.

The traditional climate controls are ditched and replaced with a Multimode Touch Display with a sleek interface that allows the driver to toggle between climate settings and infotainment menus. The cabin also gets new two- and three-spoke steering wheel designs, a resculpted gear knob and centre console, and an updated dashboard design.

Equipment upgrades also include USB-C fast charging ports, wireless smartphone charging, and ambient lighting.

Engine line-up includes a 100hp 1.0 T-GDI petrol engine that’s “designed to cover a wide range of customer needs” and is also available as a 115hp mild hybrid version. Both are available with either a six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

The Stonic also gets the Kia Connect package of cloud-based services and real-time vehicle diagnostics. This includes a Digital Key that allows drivers to unlock and start the vehicle using a supported smartphone or smartwatch. Drivers can also remotely monitor, control and interact with their vehicle via the Kia App.

Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) include blind spot collision avoidance assist, forward collision avoidance assist, navigation-based smart cruise control, highway driving assist and lane following assist.

Full UK pricing and specifications will be announced in the coming weeks.