2007 Kia Sorento

Kia Sorento surrenders space for style

Sun, Jan 14th 2007

Unless you write about cars or are a total gear-head, you don’t get the opportunity to keep up with trends in automobiles. I figure I’m pretty much the norm because before I started reviewing “dogmobiles” I didn’t pay much attention to what was going on, aside from noticing an especially good-looking new model as it swept by me.

Which is why I’ve been pretty surprised at how much has changed since I last bought a car, almost a decade ago. Safety, in particular, has come a long, long way, and so has the idea of what’s “basic” in features, now including such luxuries as electric windows in most models. Then there’s change in which manufacturers are coming up with high quality. When I was last in the market, Korean cars didn’t have that good a reputation and people who bought them were pretty much those who were lured by hyper-competitive pricing.

The pricing on these vehicles is still very competitive, but everything else has changed.

These last few days I’ve been driving the Kia Sorento, the all-bling 4WD model — yes, heated seats! — priced at a very sweet $30,000 (basic models start at a little less than $21,000). It’s equipped and drives like vehicles priced thousands of dollars higher. Rides smooth, feels solid and very quiet indeed. Nice looking, too, and a pleasure to drive. So … how does it stack up as a dogmobile?

Although it’s a classified as a mid-sized SUV (the Sportage is Kia’s “cute ute”), the Sorento suffers from the same swoopy-line disease that minimizes the usefulness of what otherwise is a roomy cargo area. To fit crates in, you’d have to build a platform over the wheelwells, and when you do that, you won’t have enough headroom to fit. Nothing new here, since most SUVs suffer from the same problem. I guess we’ll just have to wait until styles trend towards the boxy again to have our cargo space made useful.

The seats fold flat, but not effortlessly. You have to pull off the headrests, lift the seat bottoms forward and then fold the seatbacks into place. (Lifting the seat bottoms always makes me think of airplane travel, by the way, but I’m guessing that’s just the crazy way my mind works, always leaping toward worst-case scenarios and water landings.)

The Sorento does have one of my absolutely most favorite dog-friendly features: A rear hatch with top glass that flips up to provide ventilation when the engine’s off. It’s also an easy way to put groceries in the back — flip up the glass, put in the bags and slide the cargo cover into place to hide it all.

Cupholders are dog-conveniently placed in the middle between the seats, but at least none of the window controls are. McKenzie can try to sneak a sip of latte without changing gears or opening a window, and for that, I’m grateful.

For a mid-sized SUV, the fuel economy is good (17/22).

If it weren’t for the problem with crates, the Sorento would be at the very top of my list, combining comfort and value for people and most of what I look for in a dogmobile. All things considered, I’d venture that if you are a two-dog-crate family as mine is, it might be worth it to shift to one crate and seat restraints for your four-legged family. The Sorento truly is nice enough to consider compromise.

-- Gina Spadafori

Carguy Comments:The Kia Sorento sports a powerful, all-aluminum V6 engine producing 262 horsepower – more than Toyota Highlander (V6), Ford Explorer (V6) and Toyota 4Runner (V8). The Sorento is available in LX and EX trim lines, as well as LX Sport Package and EX Luxury Package, and two-wheel or four-wheel drive. The total interior volume is 137.5 cubic feet while the cargo capacity is 31.7 cubic feet. Emissions rating is Low Emission Vehicle (LEV) II.

-- Keith Turner, The Family Car

You’ve come a long way, Kia

Barking Lot Banter: The Korean automaker Kia has come along way in producing quality vehicles at a great price. As a people mover, the Kia Sorento is superb, but for multi-dog families, lack of crate space may force you to look elsewhere. But you gotta’ love the heated seats!