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A Respected Heavyweight in its Class
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Having owned the Kia Cerato SX for close to a year, I'm here to give a humble owner's experience.
The Kia Cerato's latest iteration pays homage to its bigger brother - the Kia Stinger, as could be seen in its design cues. I am personally attracted to the aggressive styling cues on the exterior, the young and sporty look of the interior (the 'floating' 8.0" ' touchscreen infotainment system got me sold) coupled with a few high tech features such as wireless charging, Apple Carplay and Android Auto was something that sweetened up the entire package.
To add on, things like ventilated car seats, only available in continental makes, are the first to be introduced in this vehicle. Knockdown rear seats are available in the 'SX' trim and above and to spoil you with even more goodies, the car is equipped with DRL (Daytime Running Lights), smart trunk system, cruise control and different speed modes to suit your day-to-day driving style.
As a driver bonus, you even have your own 'conti-like' electronic seat with memory function for you to lock it between yourself and your driver No. 2, never again would you need to fumble for the right seating adjustment if you should you T-Loan your car to that desperate sibling of yours itching to show off this ride to your, maybe soon to be 'sister in law'.
Back then, C&C was selling only the 'L', 'SX' and 'GT Line' model and of course, since I wanted a fully assembled car in Kimchi land, it's simply a no-brainer. To pay an extra $8k to bump from SX to GT-Line when the parts are fixed locally? No way! I'll probably dive into more details along the way, but in a nutshell; Would I still buy it if I had to go back in time to decide on this car? For a car with that much features and at such a price-point, in a heartbeat - a resounding 'Yes!'
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This is a review from someone who drove this car for almost a year already.
I was driving a Vios previously and was looking at the sedan for my family. At the start, i was comparing the stonic and the cerato as my budget was anything below 80k. After test driving the cerato and stonic, the stonic's 1 litre turbo was pretty impressive as compared to the cerato where the pick up was not very good especially with roads that has elevation. It really feels like the car is trying very hard to push itself.
As this car is fairly new, i can't comment much regarding reliability. I hope kia will be the same as their peers from japan in terms of reliability.
I ended up taking the cerato GT Line as it has everything fitted from Korea. Especially the ventilated seats (i always use it), at such a price point you will not get features like these from other brands. With the sports rims and body kit, it is really worth it for the extra 10k that i paid. I ended up paying alot more than my budget but i am really satisfied with it.
A few issues i have with the car though:
1: the car isn't really fuel economy for me with 10.8km/litre with almost 9000km driven. And to clarify, i am not even a heavy footer. So i am pretty disappointed in this area.
2: you always have to leave the temperature at 22 degree Celsius as anything above that will be quite warm. (the mechanics mention that this car has the heater function therefore they can't help it.)
3: the pick up is very lackluster at times. I understand that it is only a 1.6 litre, but at times, i feel like it is lesser than that. I feel like my vios picks up slightly faster than that and my vios was a 10 year old car.
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I write this review after driving the car for more than 1500km. My last car was a Subaru Forester XT(2.0). Similarly to all cars under 1.6, there is not much to talk about on power and pickup. The Sports mode does not make much difference on the pick up. The interior design is sleek as compare to similar 1.6 Korean or Japanese car; Wirelss charging, Apple Car Play and Andriod Auto, rear aircon, spacious boot space. Rear seat is spacious and comfortable. The paintwork is mediocre as there are spots with paint chipping rather easily. I would prefer for ceramic coating to be done to protect the paintwork. Headlight fog up during raining days and a search on car forum indicate this is a known problem. C&C service center offered to replace some part to suck out the moisture. I do not have time to do this corrective work during the 1k servicing and will enquiry and have it done in the coming 10k servicing. Overall, this car is value for money when compared to similar Japanese car like the Civic or Altis which easily cost 10-20k more. The ride is comfortable for family of 4 or 5 with small kids/teens.
Take away, there is such thing as cheap and good(with all high end parts)! I'm more than happy with the reasonable priced and yet sleek and stylish ride.
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Great value for money for the features
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Current owner of Kia Cerato GT line. It comes with the body kit for a sportier look. It also has alot of features which other cars on it's price range does not have. The GT version also comes with a cool looking sunroof. The ride is quiet and very smooth. Handling and turning is good. FC im getting is about 10km/litre. Not exactly the best but not the worst either. The seats are very comfortable and also has ventilation option which is great for Singapore weather. Very large 508L boot space.
Only negative point is that engine available for Singapore, is still the old NA 1.6L MPI engine. Other country Kia's GT comes with the newer Turbocharged engine. It would have been perfect if it comes fitted with the new engine.
Some owners are complaining of foggy headlights area, but this can be solved easily.
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Kia Cerato
