Topic: 2011 Kia Sportage EL Luxury; Day 1

[Factger]

I see they make up for it in financing at 6.99%

Does not impact my situation too much. But yes that will for others.

[random006]

A few manufacturers do this with their competitors, probably the best place to look.  It's a LOT of work.

yup...it's a US site, but it's a start:

http://www.hyundaiusa.com/competitive-comparisons/

How about Edmunds?  As it is not a dealership but rather a car & industry review site, it avoids at least that "conflict of interest" problem.  Yes, it is American but so is the above site.  As long as we're comparing American pricing/specs to American pricing/specs, the tool can be used to give us the necessary info to draw a conclusion.

Here is the link:
http://www.edmunds.com/apps/nvc/edmunds/VehicleComparison

[Ontariodriver]

Ummm....Looks like it has bad blind spot though, that back pillar you could hide a bus in it. I bet some will says it tricky to park as well. I'm also surprise at how small it looks from the outside. Massive leap ahead tho compare to the MK1 and 2's.

[diceman]

RAV4 Limited 4cyl with leather is only $800 more, with a far higher resale value
Price seems high

toyota's are death traps and most likely to be recalled.

[pro/zack]

nice but too pricey

[Shnak]

nice but too pricey

This kind of post is exactly why I'd rather see reviews of middle of the pack trims... I bet a lot of opinions in this thread would be reversed if James was reviewing a $26k Sportage instead of a $33k one...

[Shnak]

James:

When I respond with “a Kia” when asked what I am driving, I’m typically presented with a similar response. It goes something like, “Oh, I’m sorry,” or “Too bad.” That’s the reputation Kia seems to have, but then I have to respond with, “It’s actually pretty nice,” which is rewarded with blank stares. I guess it is a process.

Either you meet a lot of uneducated people, or I meet a lot of educated people... In over 4 years of owning a Sportage, I've never been told anything remotely close to what you just said here. If anything, they don't know what a Sportage is, so I just say it's the same thing as the Hyundai Tucson, a small SUV. Some people are surprised to hear that Kia is now partly owned by Hyundai and that they share a lot of their designs though.

[Dante]

nice but too pricey

This kind of post is exactly why I'd rather see reviews of middle of the pack trims... I bet a lot of opinions in this thread would be reversed if James was reviewing a $26k Sportage instead of a $33k one...

The EX is $29.5K. Still no cheap, but at least is well equipped.

[Shnak]

nice but too pricey

This kind of post is exactly why I'd rather see reviews of middle of the pack trims... I bet a lot of opinions in this thread would be reversed if James was reviewing a $26k Sportage instead of a $33k one...

The EX is $29.5K. Still no cheap, but at least is well equipped.

I was mostly talking about the very well equipped LX AWD Automatic... which is around $27k. But yeah, from there the EX would look incredibly tempting for another $2.5k.

And I can't believe the EX Luxury comes with ventillated leather driver's seat... what other vehicle in this price range comes with ventillated leather seat?? This Sportage will be an incredible purchase in a couple of years when they improve packaging even more and the incentives start rolling in.

Something I just noticed while browsing kia.ca... the Sportage top of the line (EX Luxury Nav) sells for $37k (incl. pdi/dest) while the top of the line Sorento (EX-V6 Luxury) sells for $38.5k (again, including pdi&dest). Either the Sorento is priced incredibly aggressively or the Sportage is priced too highly by at least $3k. And that seems consistent in different trims too: Sorento LX-V6 is $29.5k while Sportage LX is $28.7k. Those prices are way too close... the Sorento offers just much more of a vehicle for a a few hundred dollars difference. It doesn't make sense to me!

EDIT: Add in financing over 60 months and the Sorento is actually cheaper than the Sportage!!

[wing]

Shnak, most people I tell are very well educated and make > $100k a year, hence not caring about Kia I suspect

[Thinking Out Loud]

James:

When I respond with “a Kia” when asked what I am driving, I’m typically presented with a similar response. It goes something like, “Oh, I’m sorry,” or “Too bad.” That’s the reputation Kia seems to have, but then I have to respond with, “It’s actually pretty nice,” which is rewarded with blank stares. I guess it is a process.

Either you meet a lot of uneducated people, or I meet a lot of educated people... In over 4 years of owning a Sportage, I've never been told anything remotely close to what you just said here. If anything, they don't know what a Sportage is, so I just say it's the same thing as the Hyundai Tucson, a small SUV. Some people are surprised to hear that Kia is now partly owned by Hyundai and that they share a lot of their designs though.

Keep in context, though who is being asked the question.  James drives all sorts of exotics and pricy $X00,000 figure automobiles....I'm figuring that he would likely get the exact same response when he was testing the Mazda 2 from that perspective.

Amonsgt John Q Public, the Kia perception for the majority I feel is a good one.  But, like Hyundai, some still think it's 1984 and the Pony still marks the 'high water mark of Hyundai quality'.  

[Shnak]

Shnak, most people I tell are very well educated and make > $100k a year, hence not caring about Kia I suspect

In that case, since they're so 'rich and educated', they don't care about every other mainstream brands right? Honda, Toyota, Mazda, Nissan... those are all 'poor-guys' brands, right? Not good enough for them, right?

And people wonder why these 'rich and educated' people get negatives looks by everyone else when they drive off in their expensive and fancy cars... 

[wing]

Actually most drive Toyota's and Honda's parking lot is filled with 90% of those 2 brands I'd say, then a mish mash of the rest.

[Shnak]

Actually most drive Toyota's and Honda's parking lot is filled with 90% of those 2 brands I'd say, then a mish mash of the rest.

So... like I said, you mostly talk about cars with a bunch of uneducated car people then. Gotcha!

[wing]

Right which reflects the average buyer

[Shnak]

Right which reflects the average buyer

Disagree with you there... if that was the case, 90% of the cars on the roads would be Toyota and Honda, as you're seeing in your parking lot. There are many makes nowadays just as popular as Honda and Toyota, and the fact that this isn't reflected in your workplace's parking lot speaks alot to the type of person that works in your workspace, IMO. They may make high salaries, but they sure don't like to educate themselves on what they're buying.

[wing]

Right, if they did they would all be driving sonata's and sportage's your logic here is skewed towards what you like and think is good...

[Dante]

Actually most drive Toyota's and Honda's parking lot is filled with 90% of those 2 brands I'd say, then a mish mash of the rest.

So... like I said, you mostly talk about cars with a bunch of uneducated car people then. Gotcha!

That's it.... I guess the very same people would say D3 makes crap and Toyota/Honda are the most reliable and fuel efficient vehicles on the market.
This category represents the vast majority of the buying public as Wing mentioned.

How many people (percentage) spend hours every day talking about cars and comparing specs when they are not even buying a car?
A car is an appliance, like it or not, for the vast majority of people and this is what the companies try to capitalize on.

A car could have the most basic platform, mediocre steering and dynamic characteristics, but if it has Bluetooth, leather seats, 20-speakers audio system, sunroof, it doesn't drink too much gas and it's inexpensive it will sell well. Most volume manufacturers try to capitalize on this and some have succeeded.

[Shnak]

Right, if they did they would all be driving sonata's and sportage's your logic here is skewed towards what you like and think is good...

No, if people where you work do represent the average buyer, you'd have a mix of vehicles similar to those on the streets. As that's clearly not the case according to you (90% have Toyota/Honda), they clearly are not representative of the average buyer. IMO, the fact that most of your coworkers pity you for driving a Kia is clearly says more about your coworkers than Kia. IMO, of course.

[dutch]

what were we talking about again?    Oh yes the Kia, nice suv I hear