Experiences with Kia

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meesham

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#183846 1-Nov-2015 00:35

I'm currently in the market for a new car and I'm looking at a new Kia Cerato SX Hatch 2L. Does anyone else own one of these or have any stories to tell about them? I've pretty much just owned Japanese cars up until now but the Koreans seem to be making pretty good cars recently, and the Cerato seems to have most of the features that I want. Does anyone also know how much the dealers are willing to negotiate when it comes to price? My current car is a Toyota who were very willing to drop the price.

The other cars I'm looking at:

Hyundai i30 Elite Ltd
Ford Focus Titanium
Peugeot 308 Allure

I'm not interested in the Mazda3 or Corolla, the Golf was originally on my radar but given recent news I'm a bit worried about the resale value of them.

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#1417938 1-Nov-2015 00:57

My opinion

Hyundai i30 Elite Ltd - Seems outdated. Looks to be a CVT, I prefer a proper automatic. Not the greatest fuel economy and smallish engine.
Ford Focus Titanium - Don't know much aboiut it, but the specs don't look that great, and not the best looking vehicle.
Peugeot 308 Allure - Wouldn't touch after my last one, the electronics in mine had all sorts of problems, and just not the most exciting drive. The only good thing is very nice comfortable seats.

Is there a reason you don't like mazdas? I think the Kias which are basically hyundais, offer best bang for buck in many cases, but they are a sort of budget brand name still. But they have improved a lot. When you resell a car , you will often lose a lot anyway. However you will lose more on Europeans on average, than you will on japanese. Toyotas, mazdas and hondas hold their value quite well.

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#1417944 1-Nov-2015 01:56

I would drop Peugeot from that list 100%.

Based on what you have chosen - my preference would be:

1. Hyundai
2. Ford
3. Kia

I have owned a Hyundai from brand new - cheap service, the car is as reliable if not better than toyota. I had an incident happen during the regular service (an apprentice made a mistake). I am so impressed with their follow ups and courtesy calls. If you do get Hyundai - make sure you have the extended warranty as part of the deal. It is also possible that you can get a good deal if the i30 range is due for an update. If you do more than 15k/year - go for the diesel version. Diesel in Hyundai is robust. Hyundai sells cranes and trucks before they venture into cars!

I currently owned a Ford also from brand new - the service/maintenance is a bit more pricey than Jap/Koreans cars. The car is otherwise solid. Focus just had a recent update - good look.

I have test driven Kia(s). I took one home for few days. The car is similar to the premium brother (hyundai) but the inside materials feel cheap to me.

What about M itubishi Lancer? I think their GSR range is on promotion for $6-7k less than RRP.

nathan

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#1417947 1-Nov-2015 04:25

don't buy a Pug, nothing but problems (I've owned 3 in my life and would only ever buy one if I didn't care about money)

scuwp

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#1417963 1-Nov-2015 06:00

nathan: don't buy a Pug, nothing but problems (I've owned 3 in my life and would only ever buy one if I didn't care about money)

Wouldn't touch a Pug. Personally would drop the Ford as well. Multiple bad experiences with poor build quality. I too am mystified as to the reason to exclude Mazda. The i30 would be my pick of your shortlist. We use them for the work fleet and the go very nicely.

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#1417968 1-Nov-2015 06:25

meesham: I'm currently in the market for a new car and I'm looking at a new Kia Cerato SX Hatch 2L. Does anyone else own one of these or have any stories to tell about them? I've pretty much just owned Japanese cars up until now but the Koreans seem to be making pretty good cars recently, and the Cerato seems to have most of the features that I want. Does anyone also know how much the dealers are willing to negotiate when it comes to price? My current car is a Toyota who were very willing to drop the price.

The other cars I'm looking at:

Hyundai i30 Elite Ltd

Ford Focus Titanium

Peugeot 308 Allure

I'm not interested in the Mazda3 or Corolla, the Golf was originally on my radar but given recent news I'm a bit worried about the resale value of them.

Of all the cars you mentioned as well as excluded I would rank them as follows.....

1. Corolla
2. Mazda 3
3. Ford Focus
4. Hyundai i30
5. Peugeot 308
6. Kia

You could also consider Skoda Octavia (petrol), Holden Cruze, Honda Civic Euro.

Here is a crazy notion, lets give peace a chance.

scuwp

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#1418027 1-Nov-2015 08:48

I don't have any issues with Golf's resale, just don't buy a diesel. Nice cars and love em to bits, not as bad as the Pug but likewise if you buy one you had better reserve plenty of $$$ for maintenance and repairs.

I knew a mechanic that worked at the local Pug dealership, he use to particularly hate Monday mornings because that's when all the tow trucks would roll in with all the Pug's that had broken down over the weekend!

As with others I would be butting the Mazda, Honda, and Toyota on the list for a small car. Value for money would have to be the Mitsubishi's right now though. A quite nicely spec'd Lancer at 25K with the best warranty out there is a fairly attractive option for a new car. Comes down to personal choice though in what you consider has the features you are looking for.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

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alasta

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#1418148 1-Nov-2015 13:35

mattwnz: My opinion

Hyundai i30 Elite Ltd - Seems outdated. Looks to be a CVT, I prefer a proper automatic. Not the greatest fuel economy and smallish engine

This is not correct - the Koreans have never used CVT transmissions because they are very unpopular in the European market. I'm pretty sure the facelifted i30 still has conventional torque convertor automatic, however Hyundai/Kia are gradually phasing in dual clutch transmissions.

I owned a Kia Rio for 3.5 years and did about 25,000 with absolutely no problems, and the dealer service was excellent. I ended up replacing it with a Mazda3, but would happily buy another Kia in the future if they have the right product at the right price.

It's worth noting that the Focus and the 308 will give you better efficiency than the Cerato - they benefit from a more modern engine design which will give you more torque, lower fuel consumption, and similar power.

I looked seriously at the 308 and one of the drawcards is the huge luggage space, however this is achieved by cutting the rear legroom to the point of being woefully inadequate, and by using a torsion beam in the rear suspension rather than the more sophisticated multi-link system used on some of the better vehicles in this segment.

The Focus has just been refreshed, and has always been very highly regarded by critics. However over the last couple of years posters on this forum have provided mixed feedback around Ford's reliability and ownership satisfaction. In my view the Focus is better than the Cerato in a purely academic sense, but Kia is likely to be more reliable and also offers the extra peace of mind of a five year warranty.

It might be helpful if you can give us an idea of your priorities - performance, operating costs, reliability, safety, etc.

meesham

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#1418152 1-Nov-2015 14:17

Thanks for all your feedback.

Regarding me excluding Mazda, I've had a bad experience with them in the past and I also find the seats uncomfortable - I also don't like the styling of the Mazda3.

I took the Cerato for a drive today and it was quite nice, the main problem I had with it was the low ceiling due to the sunroof but it wasn't too intrusive. It was quite nice to drive and soaked up the crappy road conditions around parts of Dunedin quite nicely.

The main thing I'm looking for is enough space for the kids (18 months and 4 years), both currently in rear facing car seats but the 4 year old will go forward facing shortly - and most importantly my wife being happy with it. We're looking at getting rid of her Jazz (2010 sport) and my Rav4 (2013 GXL) and downsizing to one car, so the trickiest bit is finding something we're both happy with. It basically needs to be small enough to drive around town but comfortable enough to take to Central Otago for extended weekends, at the moment it looks like the Cerato ticks all the boxes.

I agree with comments regarding the Pug, I've never owned one but all my friends who've owned one have had problems with them, the main thing that drew me to the new 308 is the number of journos who rave about it. Golf could be a possibility but my mother in law owns one (first strike) and she had nothing but problems for the first 3 months of having it (it was in the dealer's workshop for most of that time) - I know it's only one person having a problem but it makes me extra cautious.

I'm not totally against Fords, I owned a Mondeo before the Rav4 and it was a decent enough car, but when things went wrong it was expensive to fix. The Focus is also the most expensive of the lot, has the smallest boot space (important for the baby buggy) and has the biggest turning circle.

I've owned a Mitsubishi in the past, I had nothing but problems with it and sold it after 18 months. Honda Civic Euro seems underpowered, I hadn't considered the Octavia and will take a look. I don't mind the Corollas and while one would probably last forever I'll feel like I'm driving a rental car all the time :)

alasta

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#1418161 1-Nov-2015 15:00

meesham: I've owned a Mitsubishi in the past, I had nothing but problems with it and sold it after 18 months. Honda Civic Euro seems underpowered, I hadn't considered the Octavia and will take a look. I don't mind the Corollas and while one would probably last forever I'll feel like I'm driving a rental car all the time :)

The higher spec versions of the Corolla look quite a bit nicer than the fleet configured variants, but they are all just as underpowered as the Civic Euro which is why I ruled out both of those vehicles.

It sounds like you've almost made your decision in favour of the Cerato and in my opinion you won't be disappointed as long as you don't pay the full retail price - $40.5k for the 130kw Cerato SX is a bit on the high side compared to what competitors are offering.

I'm not going to try to talk you into reconsidering the Mazda3 because you sound sure that it doesn't suit your tastes or requirements, but it is widely regarded as the benchmark in this segment so you can probably get a better deal out of the Kia dealer if you convince them that you prefer the Mazda due to better fuel economy, better audio system, heads up display, more torque, 3 years free servicing and slightly lower price. Likewise, the Focus Sport also offers slightly better value for money.

Bearing in mind that the current generation Cerato has been on the market for a couple of years and is rumoured for a facelift next year I think you should probably aim to be paying an absolute maximum of $37k including free servicing for the Cerato 2l SX based on what's available in the general small car market at the moment. Maybe even mid thirties if the dealer is in a good mood.

Did you have a decent look at the tyres when you test drove the Cerato? I have heard a few complaints about the cheap Nexen tyres that were fitted to some examples, but I can't remember whether that was the current or previous generation Cerato.

Lias

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#1418164 1-Nov-2015 15:25

I have a 2004 Kia Rio and it's a good little car.

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#1418170 1-Nov-2015 16:08

meesham: ... The main thing I'm looking for is enough space for the kids (18 months and 4 years), both currently in rear facing car seats but the 4 year old will go forward facing shortly - and most importantly my wife being happy with it. We're looking at getting rid of her Jazz (2010 sport) and my Rav4 (2013 GXL) and downsizing to one car, so the trickiest bit is finding something we're both happy with....

To me, this does not make sense. I would have thought the best option here is to get rid of that jazz and keep Rav4 if downsizing is a must. You can't never have too much space with kids!

I consider Rav4 is a little townie car with extra boot space... They used to be a tad longer when the spare was mounted on the rear door but the '13 model has smaller dimension.

I think if you go down the path of selling both cars and go with a car of in between size - you will end up looking for another car in 6 months or so.

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meesham

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#1418208 1-Nov-2015 17:25

nakedmolerat:
To me, this does not make sense. I would have thought the best option here is to get rid of that jazz and keep Rav4 if downsizing is a must. You can't never have too much space with kids!

I consider Rav4 is a little townie car with extra boot space... They used to be a tad longer when the spare was mounted on the rear door but the '13 model has smaller dimension.

I think if you go down the path of selling both cars and go with a car of in between size - you will end up looking for another car in 6 months or so.

Simple answer is my wife won't drive the Rav, and the Jazz is too small for us to use as our only car. We thought about the number of times we've actually filled the Rav and it's pretty rare. When we lived in Christchurch my wife wouldn't drive at all so I'm being very careful to get a car that she'll be happy driving around town, I really don't want to go back to being the only driver. I work from home so I'm not using the car every day, I can live with a slightly smaller car, at worst I'll get a roofbox for the longer trips if needed.

mattwnz

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#1418211 1-Nov-2015 17:30

alasta:
mattwnz: My opinion

Hyundai i30 Elite Ltd - Seems outdated. Looks to be a CVT, I prefer a proper automatic. Not the greatest fuel economy and smallish engine

This is not correct - the Koreans have never used CVT transmissions because they are very unpopular in the European market. I'm pretty sure the facelifted i30 still has conventional torque convertor automatic, however Hyundai/Kia are gradually phasing in dual clutch transmissions.

Interesting, one review I saw said CVT, but the specs on it say CVVT, which looks to be different. Maybe the reviewer got confused over the specs.

meesham

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#1418214 1-Nov-2015 17:38

alasta:
It sounds like you've almost made your decision in favour of the Cerato and in my opinion you won't be disappointed as long as you don't pay the full retail price - $40.5k for the 130kw Cerato SX is a bit on the high side compared to what competitors are offering.

They've got a pre-reg model for $35K at the moment (in Pearl White), it's only got 140km on the clock and looks pretty nice. I reckon I'll get them a bit lower.

alasta:
Bearing in mind that the current generation Cerato has been on the market for a couple of years and is rumoured for a facelift next year I think you should probably aim to be paying an absolute maximum of $37k including free servicing for the Cerato 2l SX based on what's available in the general small car market at the moment. Maybe even mid thirties if the dealer is in a good mood.

Thanks for that, I hadn't heard about the facelift model coming out next year and apparently it's going to be a major change. It's pretty tempting
to wait and then either get a runout model or one of the new ones.

alasta:
Did you have a decent look at the tyres when you test drove the Cerato? I have heard a few complaints about the cheap Nexen tyres that were fitted to some examples, but I can't remember whether that was the current or previous generation Cerato.

Excellent advice, thanks I'll take a closer look.

mattwnz

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#1418236 1-Nov-2015 18:20

meesham:

Excellent advice, thanks I'll take a closer look.

With the technology changing a lot at the moment, I would personally possibly hold off for a facelift model. It is often a 'tick', 'tock' development with cars, so the tock, is often more a technology update. Adaptive cruise control is something that is getting added now to lower down models, and it is something that is very useful to have. ALso daylight running lights, and slow speed collision control are getting added to lower models of some brands.

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