the Bucket: Sorento

Friday, February 8, 2019

Bucket Seat: KIA Sorento

When it comes to the Korean manufactures, there was just something about KIA that had me drawn to the brand. Their cars from the onset were different, more practical and I suppose as close to the German rivals as possible. After the arrival of Peter Schreyer, formerly of Audi as their Chief Design Officer, this just enhanced brands European styling and appeal. The models that KIA churn out slot in a various array of segments, from budget, all the way up to luxury, sporty and commercial. Late last year I got to sample the revised range topping SUV in their stable, the Sorento. Having driven the model prior to the update, I felt that while it was a great package, it was lacking quite a few elements to bring it up to speed with the competition, so it was time to find out if KIA did add these in to their latest offering.

DESIGN

With the Sorento, the shape has remained the same for many of the generations but as a newer model comes up, there are more curves and rounded edges. This latest offering remains predominantly the same in terms of design but minor changes and updates give it that refreshing look. The grille is finished in a chrome silver and there are some trimmings to match in the front. The headlights now are LED's which give it more character and detail, same goes for the rear lights. The front bumper is more edgy and gives off that menacing look. Being a 7 seater, the Sorento is a big vehicle but the design does well to not make it look bulky, the contours and flow of the windows give it that coupe like swoop on the side profile and the new diamond cut rims. Moving on in the inside, here is where you can notice the German influence, minimalistic but functional design, everything is where you expect it to be and easy to reach for the driver.

PERFORMANCE

The model I had on test was the AWD 2.2 CRDi, Turbo charged, in-line 4 cylinder, 16 valve with the 8 speed automatic gearbox. The engine is standard across all models in the range and produces 147kW @ 3800 rpm and 440Nm of torque to haul the big body from standstill. While it may be big, the torque compensates for the size and weight propelling the Sorento from 0-100kph in 9.4 seconds which isn't bad for a 7 seater family SUV. The Sorento picks up speed well when on the open road and the light steering wheel makes it easy to maneouvre around. The car is well balanced and you don't get much body roll when taking bends at high speed, this is thanks to the MacPherson Strut & Stabiliser suspension in the front coupled with the multi-link rear suspension. While KIA doesn't make much comment on the average fuel economy, I was getting about 9.5L per 100km with mixed driving which isn't bad for a car of this size

COMFORT

Overall size of the KIA Sorento is quite big, with it measuring 4.8m in length and 1,9m wide with a height of just under 1.7m which gives it more than enough space on the inside for its occupants. The seating is a 40:20:20 split rear seat folding configuration. The driver and front passenger seats are very comfy and wide for more support, the second row of seats is pretty similar to the front and surprisingly the two fold away seats in the last row are quite spacious. The entire cabin air temperature is controlled by an automatic climate control, making sure every is comfortable in the car at all time. In terms of tech offerings, the KIA Sorento now comes with a 3.5" TFT touch screen which has built in SatNav and Bluetooth audio/ telephone. It also benefits with the Apple Car Play and Android Auto apps, so your mobile device fully integrates with the car. The Sorento even has a wireless charging mat should your device has wireless charging capabilities, simply just place the device on the mat and it will charge as you drive.

VERDICT

With SUV's becoming the choice of many on the roads these days, and the market growing ever so popular, it's good to see competition coming from all parts of the spectrum. While many wouldn't rank KIA as a luxury brand, I think they're doing well to convince the buyers otherwise. Their cars are built well, have offerings that can rival any of the German brands, and are a heck of a lot cheaper as well. The KIA Sorento is very well priced, coming it at R579 995 for the 2WD LX derivative and the model I had being the AWD 2.2 EX starting at R649 995 with pretty much everything standard. It's spacious, comfortable, solid drive platform and looks great. Overall if you looking for a 7 seater SUV or even a slightly larger than your medium ones, with loads of trunk space, this is the car for you. The engine is great, gives you great return on your fuel when doing urban driving and has a solid service plan of a 5 years/100 000km as well as a 5 year unlimited kilometer warranty.

SPECIFICATIONS

Engine	2.2 CRDi Turbo Diesel
Gear Box	8 Speed Automatic
Power	147kW
Torque	440Nm
0-100	9.4 seconds
Top Speed	203kph
Price	R 649 995

Pictures by @YuviKPhotography

Friday, September 8, 2017

Bucket Seat: KIA Sorento 2.2CRDi

When I was first told I would be receiving a KIA Sorento to test, I honestly thought it was the previous generation Sorento, the one with the revised rear lights that look a bit odd. I didn't even know KIA had launched a new one! So it was much to my surprise when heading home one day, I came across this rather good looking SUV next to me, it was in a metallic bronze colour. From general design and observation, it was clearly a KIA but not one that I've seen before, so when I glanced at the badge and saw it was the Sorento, I was a bit confused. So when I got a chance to, I visited the KIA website and saw that the new Sorento was available in SA, not sure how they managed to sneak such a large SUV into the country with not many knowing about it, unless it was just me who missed it? Anyway, from then on I was quite excited to get it and see what this range topping SUV from the Korean's had to offer, since I was already blown away from the smaller Sportage.

DESIGN

When the test unit arrived, I was pretty bleak to see it was white and not that fancy metallic bronze, (which the correct name is "Imperial Bronze"), I saw but never the less it still had those great looks. As mentioned previously, the older gen Sorento had this rather awkward looking rear, especially the tail-lights. It just looked out of proportion and something that was cut and pasted there. The new Sorento however has been crafted well, a bit of it's styling still comes from the older model but with subtle differences. The big changes are its size and in the front and the back. The front features a new grille with like a 3D effect with the KIA badge almost floating in the center. The front headlights have been re-sculpted and aren't fused with the grille as before. They're more edgy and sleek. The rest of the front is molded well with large openings for the front fog lights. The rear end has a very American look to it, with the rear lights looking to that of a Jeep but not overly similar that you'd think it is one. Overall the design is perfect and on the EX, SX and SXL models look even better with the chrome finishing.

PERFORMANCE

I had the 2.2 LS CRDi, which was one of the entry level Sorento's available, so while it didn't have all the bells and whistles on the inside, it still had that great 2.2 litre diesel engine, which delivers 147kW and 440Nm of Torque. Plenty of power to pull this big boy along on any surface. Actually the diesel engine was very eager to go as I found sometimes with quick acceleration from a stand still caused the tyres to spin! I thought the 6 speed automatic gearbox won't be adequate for the Sorento, seeing that many other manufacturers are opting for 7 speeds or higher but somehow KIA got this one right. It's got great timing on the changes and responds well when needed, all while keeping revs at a minimum and thus conserving your fuel. Speaking of which, in my 7 days with it, I clocked up over 700km and it still had a few 100 left on the range.

COMFORT

While you can get the Sorento in a 7 seater configuration, the model I had was a 5 seater, so space was a plenty and it made it for a very very big trunk. So big you could fit two adults in there...not that I tried...okay, maybe I did. If sitting in the trunk isn't your thing, then you will be glad to hear that the seats in the Sorento are extremely comfortable. The 2.2 LS CRDi comes with cloth seats and has the extra option of leather if you prefer it, however I had no real complaints about the cloth, normally I find that the cloth makes it a bit warm in the car but didn't really have that problem, unless it was the winter weather? The ride quality on the Sorento is exceptional, it's soft and smooth, suspension copes well from gravel roads to speed humps.

TECHNOLOGY

While I did have the entry level Sorento, it came with the bare minimum. Bluetooth Telephone and Audio streaming, multi-function buttons on the steering wheel to control everything from audio, telephone and the trip computer in the dash. Being a rather large vehicle, it was nice that it came with PDC's so that made parking it a bit much easier but a reverse camera would be nice, mind you with the radio being a normal LED type info screen it wouldn't be much of use unless they integrated it into the review mirror like their previous models. In saying that, the EX, SX and SXL models do have a colour screen infotainment display but it's rather tiny. It's a bit annoying that the previous KIA I had on test which was the Rio had this lovely, large touch screen display, capable of such wonderful things but then I got this and well, it didn't. But KIA have noticed this as well and just this week released a revised Sorento which I'm pretty such does have all these goodies as well as some minor design tweaks.

VERDICT

Overall, the KIA Sorento is a wonderful family SUV. The price tag makes it even more attractive when looking at large SUV's in its class and even though I had a base model, it was more than sufficient for my needs. During my time with it I gave as many people I knew rides in it as well, just to get a wider consensus on what others had to think of the vehicle. One of which was a KIA owner who currently drives an Optima, he was blown away by its size, ride comfort and what it had to offer, which makes me wonder what he'd think of the revised one that is yet to hit the shores. I do feel KIA missed the mark on certain aspects which they fixed up in the upcoming Sorento, not sure how big the gap of the release between this and the Rio was but if they picked up most items from the beginning, this would put some serious competition out there to the German and Japanese manufacturers.