Kia Sorento

Owned the 2.4 SX Sunroof model at 6k plus depre after renewing its COE.

Likes:

1. Despite having 170 odd horsepower, acceleration more than adequate for SG city driving

2. Comfortable cruiser on highways

3. Tall ride height projects presence

4. Very spacious driver and passenger legroom and headroom except 3rd row seats (best for small sized adults for short trips)

5. Quite well equipped for a 2010 model (sunroof, HID lights, cruise control, hill descent control etc, aircon vents for both 2nd and 3rd row seats)

Dislikes:

1. Very thirsty (7 to 8km/l city driving) but expected for its size

2. Front passenger seats not electric

3. Rear tailgate not electric (short person may not be able to reach and close it easily)

4. Weird looking tail lights design (subjective)

Test driven this 2.4L SUV sometime back...the features are not bad as compared to many other asian makes out there.

It could be the only make (in both asian and euro) that has 3rd row aircon but the seats are quite tight.

Driving it is comfortable but engine can be kinda noisy. Gear change is also not smooth too.

Overall, if you go for features, its the SUV to get in comparison to other makes from Asia.

Value for money. Styling is sleek and modern. Considering what KIA has invested, this car could match up to the japanese.

Although I was considering between Sorenta and Sporatge, the Sorento was more affordable.

It's a better car than I expected, smooth ride (6-speed), good pick-up, and surprising, pretty good fuel consumption. It's a big car to ride in, and it comes with 5-year unlimited warranty.

I was initially wary, since I have not purchased a Kia before. It might not be 'branded', but the quality is good and the pricing really reasonable. I have not regretted the purchase.

Having bought a Hyundai SantaFe few months ago (Sorento not available then), I was interested to see how Kia Sorento compared to it.

Both cars share same engine, gearbox, maybe chassis, probably suspension, so only the looks and interior would be different.

My friend bought double sunroof version Sorento, and sitting in it, I found the dualclimate control, double sunroof, pushbutton ignition, better quality half-leather seats, to be one-up on my SantaFe, which has basic interior. Only thing Sorento lostout was I have two front electronic seats while Sorento only has driverside electronic seat.

The red display lighting inside was not as bad as I thought(blue display for Hyundai), and the dash plus deeply recessed dials were more expensive-looking than the basic and simple SantaFe.

So Sorento interior easily defeats the Santa Fe.

The exterior, I like Santafe better, but this is personal opinion, and Sorento's exterior styling isn't that bad either, compared to some really ugly other-make SUVs tootling around our streets.

Since engine, gearbox and chassis are same, I think not much diff in performance, and I did not drive it anyway.

Same as SantaFe, seating arrangement is same, there is a foldup thirdrow behind, best suited for children, this is plusfactor for my friend, who wants extra seating, but doesn't need it all the time.

In short, a value-for-money car with an interior to match more expensive brands. Think my friend made a good choice.

If Sorento had been available when I bought my SantaFe, I for sure would have seriously considered it.

Since Kia is coming out with some pretty head turning cars these days I thought I'd take a closer look.

After sizing up the loaded Sorento the only flaw I found was the third row seating. It has that knee-to-the-chin fit that makes the third row pretty useless. Unfortunately there is not leg room to really call this a third row. It is really too bad because I do love the car.

Having said this I decided it was time to ask the sales person for the price list. After reading the pricing and comparing it to my homework, I noticed that the price was 5k above the last time the car was priced on May 20... when there was a COE auction and a price reduction. In other words, the price went up from 99k to 104k before the next 2 week COE auction. This seemed odd.

Confused, I asked the sales person why this was so and I was told that the price increased over the past week to off-set a possible increase in the next COE bidding... even though the COE was not scheduled for another week.

Wow, now I am having flashbacks to the last time I was looking at the new Cerato Forte with my Auntie, and when we asked about the pricing we were told that the latest increase in price was due to the company losing money from poorly managed currency hedges. Well, my poor Auntie was having flashbacks to that Lehman Structured Bond investment that she bought into and tears were welling in her eyes. The next thing we got was a smirk from the sales person who told us that we don't understand how cars are priced here in Singapore and that we should just continue riding the bus and taking cabs. Hurt and bruised we decided to walk away with our heads down.

That first excuse scared me away from the Cerato Forte and it took over a year before I walked back into the showroom, and now the pricing volatility of the Sorento has me just as scared.

I do wish there was more honest and transparency with the way cars are sold in my home country!

Am I alone or are there more people that are being treated this way?

Loved my new ride ever since i've stepped into it.

The features included in this SUV is outstanding.

For the price you pay, what can you ask for more?