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Posted March, 2007

Road Test: 2007 Kia Sorento

By Kevin S. Lowery

From the time my Kia arrived, it was on the move. Literally. Friends asked my help in schlepping their belongings to their new home. What a chance to check out the flexibility of this vehicle as well as how it drives under the weight of the extra cargo. Hey, an opportunity like this seldom comes around — and I hope it will be the last.

The Sorento is a small SUV competing with the Honda CR-V and the Toyota RAV-4. Heavy competition. But I think it stands up as a cheaper alternative without sacrificing quality or convenient features.

Would I buy this vehicle? Well I’m only a two-person household so it wouldn’t bother us if we needed to put down the back seat. If I were a three-person household (or more), hauling long objects might be a problem because the back seat did not lie flush with the rest of the cargo space. This was depressing. I couldn’t get as many longer items or boxes in the expanded cargo area. Finally, I gave up and put the seat back in its normal position. Sigh.

The Sorento we tested, the EX 4x4, comes with a 3.8L 24-valve DOHC V6, five-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel drive with low range. It also comes with a traction control system, curtain and knee airbags for ultimate passenger safety. Other features included air conditioning, cruise control, power windows, door locks, outside mirrors, AM/FM/CD/MP3 Audio with steering wheel controls, eight-way power driver’s seat with lumbar support, 60/40 split folding rear seats with armrests, leather wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, keyless remote entry system, audio dimming rear view mirror with Homelink, dual center console front/rear beverage holders, compass, trip computer, ambient temperature gauge, rear cargo cover, cargo tie-down hooks under cargo floor and under passenger seat storage.

Overall, we found the exterior design very creative, sleek even, but the front and rear were not as attractive. Too much clutter and everything looked jumbled due to the more elaborate cladding design--especially on the front. R&D