[audioslim]

Interesting.


I wouldnt have considered only 2wd sportage.



Although I'm not towing anything, I had to dig my Mazda 6 out of the snow 5 times last year, and I live 4 miles out of Manchester hence why I wanted an econimal 4wd.



So glad I decided to jump at the chance of a FE now.



Slim

 

[jules]

Hey Slim - me too - 4wd is what attracted me to the idea of the car in the first place. I travel through the french alps 4 or 5 times a year (not arduous off roading but enough snow and ice to trouble my SPAM... snow socks to the rescue...).

I think Kia is being clever/lucky in restricting sales of 2l diesel models - I guess they are learning from the ix35 mistakes. What a nightmare that has been for them...

 

[kiaman]

hi guys,Just had the word from my dealer that my sportage has arrived and I can pick it up on wednesday. Im sorry to read about the problems some people are having getting one, I know they have 2 at Chester Kia a Black one and an orange one but I dont know if they are sold or not, it may be worth giving them a call,they also had a silver one on demo, hope this helps.

 

[Sparky2009]

Sparky here again,

I was chasing the auto sportage at Bicester, when I had some bad news about my private sale - everything went on the back burner.

However, within hours I have another buyer and my name is now on the Techno Orange Auto in Chester.

Hoping to pick it up midweek sometime - can't wait

Sparky

 

[kiaman]

Happy days Sparky !are you picking up on wednesday aswell?

 

[jules]

congrats guys Enjoy the new wheels... fingers crossed for this week or next for me!

 

[johnathan1]

I ordered a black sportage after a test drive last week-the dealer rang tonight and its sitting waiting for me at the dealership-now thats quick-will pick it up wed pm-can't wait-will let you know how I get on and how she drives etc-I'm changing from a volkwagen passat cc which is nice but the sportage is nicer!!! Johnathan

 

[murray10]

After test driving the first edition,the salesman told me that the 800 car allocation of the afore mentioned model had already been took up ,and that the only way i would get the same spec was if i paid 5 grand more,i told him i wasn't prepared to go down that route,anyway happy ending,they are letting me have the demo car (techno orange),not bothered if it's got a bit of mileage on it,they are still putting 12 mths road tax on it,besides i've still got 7 yrs warranty.......really,really pleased,get it in november.....already own the sportage xs (07),but this is some car to drive

 

[kiaman]

Congrats guys

I hope u enjoy I know I will, these cars have come along way from my first kia which was a Mk1 Sportage so I will be going full circle ( I had 2 of these ) a good

car but no diesel back then (1997) if I remember correctly they cost me about 9K new so the FE price seems good for what you get 13 years on.

 

[Sparky2009]

Hi Kiaman,

I hope to pickup tomorrow pm from Chester dealers.
May see you there, if not enjoy the day and the car.
Regards

Sparky

 

[kiaman]

Hi Sparky,
The strange thing is I am getting mine from Bolton, But we may pass on the road I will keep an eye open for you. looks like we'll be gettin wet though ( rain Forcast).
all the best & enjoy

 

[jules]

How did it go then, guys?

 

[audioslim]

Picking mine up at 4 today, I'll report back tommorow or something hopefully.


Slim

 

[Sparky2009]

Sparky here again,

Picked up my Techno Orange Auto Wednesday pm and drove it gently across Cheshire to the A49, then north to the M56 and then home to Bolton.

Well impressed with the 'stately' feel of the driving position, light steering and the very smooth auto box. I can feel the change from 1st to 2nd, but all others are imperceptible. I suppose that's because I was driving gently to try to get the max feedback from the car.
(I've found if you press on in a car you are concentrating more on making progress and keeping it pointed in the right direction and spotting hazards than 'experiencing the feel of the car'.)

One aspect of the autobox that I discovered is it will often cope quite well in"Sport Mode" in a higher gear than it selects in Drive. I had expected this because when I test drove the manual;I found it would make progress on the flat, without labouring, at 30MPH in 5th gear. This must be the result of the very good torque/rpm curve of the engine/gearbox combination. Using the higher gear certainly moves the instantaneous MPG figure much nearer to the 60 end of the display!

The car suffers from what I call VW syndrome (because that's where I first experienced it) - you can't shut the driver's door easily. This is not a design fault, but caused by the high quality of the door seals. If you lower the window first, no problem, a sure indicator of the pressure in the car inhibiting the door closing, and of good build quality!

The instrument lighting is very bright, even in daylight, and I'm pretty sure it's not adjustable on the FE. (If it is please advise - I can't find anything in the manual.)

The audio worked great with my MP3, and the radio reception, Traffic Announcements etc were good.

I managed to sync my iphone via the Bluetooth but I've not yet mastered the voice dialling.
E.g. Me - "Call Home"
Bluetooth - "Call Whom" or was it Hume or Hulme?
and then I got the options "Confirm/Cancel...etc"
I don't have a Hume,Hulme, Holme or anything like that in my Contact list?????
I have managed to voice dial a couple of contacts so it's either my accent or I need to check/simplify/clarify the tags or whatever the car end of the Bluetooth is looking for. I received incoming calls perfectly.

The car will proceed well without a heavy right foot, but it's there when needed, as I found when I had to accelerate to leave a slip road for the motorway. The brakes also need a light touch, unless you want to feel the seatbelt restraining you at every application!

As far as roadholding, handling etc I think it might be skittish over rougher surfaces at speed, but there again, if I had wanted Sportscar performance I would have bought a sportscar!

Two things I am already missing compared with my previous ride (Octavia Estate Elegance 140 BHP) An ashtray/rubbish area for sweet wrappers/used parking tickets etc and a sunglasses holder in the roof.

Well that's enough for now. I'll write more after a month or two.

If you're about to get yours enjoy and be prepared for lots of attention! Its good looks certainly attract peoples eye, and in two days I've been stopped, when leaving the car, and asked about it, what it cost etc five times!
Regards

Sparky

 

[kia passa]

Hi Sparky, If yours is a diesel wait till the engines done at least 12 k and you will find the auto is well suited to the engine.
And I find it hard to get the grip down on max power.



Bob

 

[kiaman]

Hi guys,
I picked mine up yesterday and really enjoyed the drive home, i agree with sparky about the drive and feel of the car, fuel consumption wise things are looking good, i've done 100 miles and the average mpg is showing 40, thats a mixture of motorway and A roads and even some time stuck in traffic in the city centre as well. i'm going down south next week so i will have to see how it does on a longer run. I dont think the dash light is adjustable i've been trying to find this aswell.

ps I hope you enjoy your day too slim

Edited by: kiaman

 

[audioslim]

Hi Everybody.


First full day with my sportage. Was hoping to take a picture at lunch to show you allbut it's not stopping hammering down with rain so far!.



I'll post a more indepth review some time, but safe to say I'm loving the thing.



As per above with the 'call home' 'hulme' thing !, does exactly the same with me on my phone however it's just a pronounciation issue I think (with the voice recognition) as even though it says phone Hulme it does mean home and phones home succesfully (yes it's in as home in my phone book).



The only complaint (as such, although it just makes be roll about with laughter) is the horn. I've never heard such a feeble and week horn on such a car. Its like the horn of noddys car. It really is so weak you cant help but laugh at it!.

Oh and the slight lack of storage options is another slight annoyance. Like said somewhere around here, no sunglassess storage or anything like that.

It is slightly jittery as I've seen mentioned in a few reviews but handles perfectly in all other ways.





Still overall it's the best car I've had so far.



Slim

 

[Seasider]

Hi guys,
I dont think the dash light is adjustable i've been trying to find this aswell.

It'sone of five accessory switches on the button panel just press the + or - to alter brightness button.



Search for "Dennis KIA - Sportage Kia Button Panel" on youtube also contains other useful videos.

http://...youtube.../watch?v=ATa3hmOjYmg&feature=related
Edited by: Seasider

 

[Sporty]

Hi,

I ordered a Techno Orange manual which was expected in the country on the 24th Sept.












Got a call from the dealer with bad newsthe car had been damaged in transit and therefore would not be delivered.

Have been told Kia will build a new car and deliver in November but no definite date.







Has anyone else had this problem as the dealer seemed to think there were more cars affected.

 

[Sparky2009]

Hi there Seasider,

Instead of the panel light adjuster (+/-) I have an economy button, labelled ECO with an indicator icon in the instrument display, plus the button itself also has an indicator light built in. The other 4 are as yours : headlight leveller, downhill brake control, antiskid off and internal movement alarm sensor disable.

The economy mode is always on, unless you press the ECO button to disable it. The manual says it restricts power to the aircon and limits power output when climbing hills i.e. it will climb hills OK but you can't mash the pedal to the metal on a steep hill ( a somewhat pointless waste of fuel anyway!) and expect flat out acceleration. Uphill acceleration is fine, you just can't max it with ECO mode on.

The instrument display is bright in daylight but I noticed, driving in the dark last night, that switching on the headlights auto dims the instrument display. I suspect it's controlled by the car computer and the sensor on the windscreen that works the auto headlight function.

Regards

Sparky