First impressions count. Apparently the first 4 seconds of meeting someone has a disproportionately high influence on their opinion of you. Make a bad first impression, like being ugly, and it’s all going to be up hill. The Kia Sportage pulled up outside the office and - in quite a lot less than 4 seconds actually - I thought, “My god, that’s ugly.”
So, subconsciously, I was looking for the bad in the Kia. Around town, I wasn’t surprised that I could hear the clattery diesel quite clearly.
It is not tiring or intrusive, but it’s a fare way from the height of modern motoring refinement. The steering felt heavy at slow speeds too; it reminded me of times before power steering. When going to parallel park, I half expected the steering to become almost impossible to turn, like my Mum’s old Hillman Avenger.
But turning the wheel doesn’t require you to stand up and lever your entire body weight against the rim; it’s perfectly light. Although, it is still a bit tricky to park.
The problem is that the bloated wing design and car height mean you can’t see the ground in your mirrors very easily. So you have to guess whether you are in the bay or not.
Jumping out to see how close to the kerb I was, I noticed that the door trim, handles, and shut lines are all surprisingly good quality. Climbing back in to have another go at the parking, I noticed its impressive roominess in all the areas that count. Head, leg and shoulder room are excellent – especially in the back - where three grown adults can sit for sometime without cross words.
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Realising I can’t park from the back seat, I get into the front again and notice that like many Kias it doesn’t shout about the equipment level, it is just there: Air conditioning, CD player, , electric mirrors and windows, leather, air bags.
Giving up on the parallel park I head for the open road and as the chubby little 4x4 sounds like a subdued tractor at low speed, I think it is obviously going to be horrific on the dual carriageway.
And yet it isn’t. In 5th and 6th gear, the Sportage is quiet and refined and if I had to drive it to Scotland and back, then I don’t think it would be a problem. The refinement doesn’t come at a cost either. It accelerates with enthusiasm and pluck. MPG is a sensible and manageable 39.8.
So the Kia overcame the first impression. It is highly competent, great value and I shouldn’t have been so shallow as to let the styling mislead me into a rash judgement.
But that’s the thing with cars, isn’t it? How they look is taken as a reflection of your personality or life status.
Parking behind a Honda CR-V, in almost the same shade of silver, I wonder, which of the two car buyers is the smarter? They are a similar height and both can take 5 people and a chunk of luggage. The interior build quality isn’t - really it isn’t- much different. The Honda looks better and the engine is that little bit quieter and smoother.
It’s looking pretty good for the Honda. Until you realise that the Kia, if we look at one and two year old cars, is £2,000 less. That’s a lot more money for a slightly better car.
Summary
A competent, great value family car with high levels of equipment. Refined at motorway speed, shows a good turn of speed when required and is economical in diesel format.
Road test car details:
Kia Sportage 2.0 CRDi XE
OTR: £16,395
0-62: 11.2 secs
MPG: 39.8
Co2 per KM: 187
Words: Matthew Tumbridge