Kia Sorento XS

2005 Kia Sorento 2.5 CRDi XT Auto

After spending 7 months trying to find my perfect 'Sorrie', I finally found my true love on the 15/09/08 and it has been a relationship made in heaven ever since!

I previously drove a 2002 Nissan Primera 2.2 Diesel SVE Estate which we used to tow our caravan. We sold our caravan in June this year and have been looking to buy a new one since. With caravans, newer tends to mean heavier ...
...a 4x4 and especially the Kia Sorento. The higher running costs such as the more expensive road tax and drop in fuel economy put me off. That was the head thinking mind, the heart always wanted one. When however I realised that I needed a heavier tow car in order to tow whatever new caravan we would buy, that swayed it and the heart and head finally agreed.

I looked at countless Sorentos before making my purchase. My reasons for not ... more

2005 Kia Sorento 2.5 CRDi XT Auto

After spending 7 months trying to find my perfect 'Sorrie', I finally found my true love on the 15/09/08 and it has been a relationship made in heaven ever since!

I previously drove a 2002 Nissan Primera 2.2 Diesel SVE Estate which we used to tow our caravan. We sold our caravan in June this year and have been looking to buy a new one since. With caravans, newer tends to mean heavier and the caravans we where looking at where putting us over the 85% rule for the caravan to car weight ratio.

I've always fancied a 4x4 and especially the Kia Sorento. The higher running costs such as the more expensive road tax and drop in fuel economy put me off. That was the head thinking mind, the heart always wanted one. When however I realised that I needed a heavier tow car in order to tow whatever new caravan we would buy, that swayed it and the heart and head finally agreed.

I looked at countless Sorentos before making my purchase. My reasons for not buying other ones included one being way to overpriced (the seller was looking to recoup the cost of installing nudge bars all round) and another was advertised at a good price but when I went to look at it, it had numerous scrapes/dents on it and one of the rear light clusters was broken. When I first saw the one I ended up buying, it was love at first sight, not a mark anywhere on her. The previous owner had obviously loved her as much as I plan to and after taking her out for a test drive, I paid my deposit and picked her up two days later.

So ... what does this car say about me? I guess it says I'm not to image conscious and like to get value for money. While Kia doesn't have the same brand image as the likes of the Mercedes M Class, Volvo XC90 or Landrover Discovery, the Kia Sorento has certainly attained a reputation as being a reliable no nonsense well equipped 4x4. Mine would have cost me £25,095 new. I picked it up with 32k on the clock for £12,250 from an independent dealer. The dealer also took my Primera off my hands and offered me £400 more for it than any other dealers had. In my books, I got an absolute bargain and I look forward to many years of trouble free motoring.

Naturally when you buy a new car, you have to go round and show it off to all your friends and family and I have been no different in this regard. Everyone loves the colour (Sport Blue) and have commented on the masses of space inside and equipment levels. Some who have test driven it have never driven an automatic car before and they loved it. The auto box is silky smooth!

So, what's she like to drive. Like I said, the auto box is silky smooth. You are aware of it changing up through the gears but not down. The box also has a triptonic function which means if you want, you can flick her across and over-ride the auto box, selecting the gears yourself. I can see this being useful in say the likes of snowy conditions where you may want to start off in second gear or when going downhill etc. when towing a caravan.

Dimension wise, with never having owned a 4x4 before, it took a while to get used to the size of her. Yes, she is a big car at 4.57 metres long and 1.86 metres wide. Now I'm used to the dimensions, I can throw her about like the best of them.

That leads me onto handling. On motorways she drives like a dream, very comfortable and if conditions permit, you can throw on the cruise control and relax a little. At motorway speed there is hardly any noise intrusion into the cabin and the 138bhp 2.5 litre diesel engine can make swift progress, despite the vehicles 2059kg kerb weight. By the same token, the brakes are effective at bringing her to a standstill. On country roads she's not just as refined. You are most definitely aware when you have run over a pothole etc. as the sensation of doing so is vibrated through, into the cabin. Don't get me wrong, this isn't especially annoying of uncomfortable, it's just that you seem to be more aware of same, when compared to other vehicles. I suspect this may be because of the larger 18" wheels and low profile tyres that are fitted to her and the fact that she is fitted with self-levelling suspension. Yes, the wheels and tyres look great and the self-levelling suspension is great for towing but maybe not so great when riding solo.

The steering is nimble and responsive, if perhaps a little light. Personally I would like a little more feedback through the steering wheel which the Sorento does not give. Like I say though, that's just my personal choice. The indicators are on your right and window wipers on your left which is 'back to front' from every other car I've ever driven. Takes a little getting used to, I've already cleaned my windscreen when trying to flash my headlights at people and indicated when trying to clear my windscreen!

Parking ... for such a big yoke, thankfully I've had no problems when parking it. This is partly due to the rear parking sensors which are fitted. Visibility is good out all four sides of the vehicle.

Running costs ... the only running cost so far has been diesel. The Sorento will return approx. 30mpg if driven sensibly. The C02 emissions for this vehicle are 223g/km which puts it into tax band F at the minute £210 per year and from 2009 tax band K, £300 per year and from 2010, £310 per year. While this certainly isn't cheap, it would be a lot worse had the emissions been over 225g/km.

So what's it like inside? Well, the boot is huge! I have three german shepherd dogs and they can all pile in no problem. I bought a rubber mat for the boot to protect the carpet when they're in and all I have to do now to make it fully dog proof is buy a dog guard. The rear seats will seat three comfortably with all rear seat passengers having an over the shoulder seat belt each as opposed to the middle one getting shafted with a waist belt. There are two cup holders in the rear at the back of the arm rest and a 12v power supply to power up any games/toys to keep the kids amused. In the front of the cabin, the electric heated leather seats are glorious. No more do I end up with numb buttocks after a long drive! There's also plenty of storage up front with wide door pockets to accommodate maps etc, there's a storage box under the front passenger seat along with other numerous nooks and crannies. Everything is well put together with no rattles squeaks etc. You can also feel safe inside ... with a Euro NCAP rating of 4 out of a possible 5 stars for adult occupation protection and isofix seats in the rear to help secure any young ones.

What's my favourite toy? Well, the XT model is the top of the range model which like I say, comes equipped with all the toys. I could spend forever listing them but of the bunch, my favourites would be:-

1) Cruise Control
2) Rear Parking Sensors
3) Leather Seats
4) Electric Seats
5) Heated Seats
6) Electric Sunroof
7) Climate Control
8) CD Player with Sat Nav
9) Split Opening Tailgate
10) Doors automatically lock
11) Rear Tinted Windows.

As I said, I could go on for ages but those listed would be my favourites.

So to sum up the Sorento, it is a no nonsense, value for money, reliable, economical, practical 4x4 with a high kerb weight which will let you tow most caravans.

If you're thinking about buying one and your heart is in it but your head is wondering about the higher running costs compared to an Estate/MPV if, like me you can get your head and heart to agree then go for it and happy motoring! 

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