Mercedes-Maybach transformed the latest S-Class into a limousine by adding seven inches to the wheelbase. Kia wanted to make a limousine, too, but it started with a model that doesn't need additional sheetmetal. One of the most luxurious cars in its 2021 lineup is the Hi Limousine, which is based on the humble Sedona minivan.

If space is the real luxury, few members of the Kia range offer as much of it as the Carnival, which was introduced in 2020 and is widely expected to become the next-generation Sedona. It's a big, boxy van with a cavernous interior even in its cheapest and most basic configuration. Stylists added more bright trim to the exterior, running boards on both sides, and a luggage box-like extension to the roof, which presumably explains the Hi in its name. It's 80 inches tall, meaning it's five inches taller than a 2021 Chevrolet Suburban. It wears Kia's new logo, too.

Kia explained the interior design was inspired by spaceships, but we don't think astronauts have ever left the stratosphere in anything this lavish. It added a pair of business class-like seats for the second-row passengers, fabric side curtains, and a television-like 21.5-inch LCD monitor with HDMI and USB ports. Clearly, the middle of the Carnival is the place to be. You can direct passengers you like less to the Hi Limousine's third-row bench.

Raising the roof allowed the company to install LED cabin lighting, LED reading lights for the second and third rows, plus vents for the climate control system. These additions make the Carnival a bright, airy place to travel in.

Kia made no mechanical modifications to the Hi Limousine. Motorists can choose a gasoline-powered 3.5-liter V6 rated at 294 horsepower and 261 pound-feet of torque, or a 2.2-liter turbodiesel four-cylinder tuned to provide 202 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque. Both engines are bolted to an eight-speed automatic transmission.

Pricing information hasn't been published, but it's reasonable to assume that the Hi Limousine is significantly cheaper than any limousine delivered with a "made in Germany" label. If you want one, there's a good chance you're out of luck: nothing suggests the Hi Limousine will be offered in the United States.

Sedona, Arizona, will stop lending its name to Kia's entry in the minivan segment for the 2022 model year. NHTSA documents confirm that the company's next people-mover will receive the Carnival nameplate.

Kia began using the Carnival name in 1998, when it released its first family-oriented minivan, but it chose to call the American-spec model Sedona for marketing reasons. Four generations and 23 years later, the model is falling in line with its global-market sibling, according to a VIN decoder published by the Sedona Forum.

Unveiled in June 2020 in its home market of South Korea, the 2022 Carnival will land with a sharper exterior design and more tech features inside, including an available twin-screen setup that bundles the instrument cluster and the infotainment system's display. We don't expect that there will be major visual differences between the Carnival sold overseas (pictured above) and the variant that's headed to America in the coming months. Motorists who want the ultra-luxurious Hi Limousine variant with business class-seating are out of luck, however.

Globally, the Carnival's engine options include a 3.5-liter V6 rated at 294 horsepower and 261 pound-feet of torque, and a 2.2-liter turbodiesel four-cylinder tuned to develop 202 horses and 325 pound-feet of twist. Only the six appears in the NHTSA's database, unsurprisingly; it goes without saying that the diesel will not be available in the United States. Front-wheel-drive and an eight-speed automatic transmission will come standard.

Kia will publish official information about the 2022 Carnival in the coming months, and sales are expected to start during summer 2021. Pricing will start in the vicinity of $32,000. When it lands, the Carnival will compete in a minivan segment that's more competitive than ever in recent memory. Its rivals will include the Chrysler Pacifica, which entered 2021 with comprehensive updates, and the new, bullet-train-inspired Toyota Sienna.