Remember Aaaayyyeeee?
That was Sportage, Kia’s first entry into the sport utility vehicle market. The New Sorento faintly resembles the Sportage, but the commercial would have to be changed to Ahhh, as in relaxation and comfort.
My first encounter with the all-wheel drive Sorento was at its Canadian debut. When I saw the two-day schedule, I was a bit skeptical and thought that perhaps Kia was pushing its luck a bit. As it turned out, it was, but not for the reasons I was concerned about.
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During the tour, I looked at fit, finish, quality of parts and the way things work in general.
External panels lined up evenly with minimal gaps. The paint was excellent because Kia uses state of the art painting techniques. Inside, everything from the stitching on the leather seats to how the dash was put together came out looking good. Like all new vehicles, plastic is used extensively inside. Kia has kept the look and feel of quality in the plastic.
The front seats are as comfortable as they look. Lumbar, side and upper body lateral support was good without being obvious. The seats were well formed and nearly all sizes of bodies fit in without a problem. Really short people may find the seat cushion length a bit on the long side, but you may also find that the seat’s height helps keep your legs comfortable.
I am not short, so after setting the front seats for my comfort, I stepped to the rear. My biggest chore was getting in. The rear door curves around the wheel well, which means a slightly smaller space with which to access the rear seat. Once you know this, it is easy to place your body for easy entry and exit. I even went to the lengths of trying to get a baby into a seat without needing a chiropractor. I am happy to report that parents should have no trouble getting kids of all sizes into the rear seat.
Actually parking my bum in the rear seat gave me a new perspective on the Sorento. Torso, head, legs and feet all had ample room. Only my knees kept getting in the way. The rear is definitely more comfortable for two adults than for three, but three large adults can fit in without too much discomfort.
Driving the Sorento was a bit of a mixed bag. Kia laid out a course for a short morning jaunt that wound up taking six hours. Our first section was on pavement and the Sorento was a model of highway comfort.
Acceleration up to highway speeds from a stop was in the nine second range. Long sweeping curves, small bumps and road irregularities floated by. All in all, I nearly fell asleep when I was on the passenger side.
Test gets interesting
Part two was a bit more lively and this is where Kia ran into a bit of bad luck. We were going off road and the trail we were on was one vehicle wide, but not seriously tough. One of the journalists started to play hero and got a bit behind in his steering. The rock he went over bent a few things and broke a transmission line. The sweating started as we pushed this thing to a small clearing so the rest of us could get by.
About half an hour later, it was my turn. My partner was Paul Williams of Ottawa, a syndicated writer. I didn’t know it, but Williams had never done much off road driving, so when we came to a washout in the road, he didn’t quite do things right. He was too close to the edge and the bank gave way. We dropped about two thirds of a metre, were high centred and leaning over far enough that my door wouldn’t open.
We dug out and gave the Sorento a going over. No fluid on the ground, the wheels were pointed in the right direction and we didn’t want to walk, so it was my turn to drive and drive we did. That Sorento went the rest of the day and never missed a beat. The only damages were a few scratches on the passenger side door and to Williams’ ego.
I have to give the Sorento top marks. The skid plates did their job to protect the underside. The interior was comfortable, even at an angle.
The unexpected sojourns are often what makes or destroys confidence in a vehicle and my adventures gave me great confidence in the comfort and abilities of the Sorento.
– Charles Renny is a freelance automotive columnist and a member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada. The opinions expressed in this column are the personal views of the writer.
