The Kia Ceed has enjoyed a fitting end to its stay on our fleet, with a sojourn to an awards ceremony where the brand picked up a number of gongs.

The AM Awards, organised by our sister magazine AM, are top awards for the motor retail industry, recognising dealer excellence in a number of areas.

Kia won best manufacturer digital initiative and digital initiative of the year for its decision to publish customer reviews from independent provider Reevoo on its website.

Our Ceed transported several members of the team to Birmingham to attend the awards, delivering its usual mix of comfortable cruising and city flexibility, especially thanks to the three power steering modes, covering Normal, Sport and Comfort.

Having the chance to change between steering assistance levels is an excellent feature. I tend to favour the Comfort mode, but colleagues have opted for the more weighty Sport option.

It’s been one of many positive aspects of the Ceed during its 12,000-mile stay with us.

I mentioned in a previous test that while Kia historically could have been considered as an alternative to traditional mainstream fleet brands, where financial savings were gained at the expense of quality or refinement, it is becoming clear that massive investment in product is bringing it close to equal footing with traditional fleet rivals.

All the key boxes are ticked, such as build quality, ride and handling. There are minor issues, such as noise at motorway speeds, but overall impressions have been good.

As mentioned earlier, Kia owners have been able to review their cars through Revoo, and overall the Ceed is rated 9/10 by 843 customers.

Clearly, it’s a worthy winner of the AM Awards and it has also won the admiration of the road testers here at Fleet News.