Forte 5-Door!, ...took one for a quick spin today. Options

[popeye]

So I have been rolling past a local KIA dealer in anticipation of spotting the new Forte 5 and today I was granted my wish, they had an SX in stock: a spicy red with the black cloth interior.

After walking through the lot and into the dealership and back out and around and then back through again I finally caught the attention of a salesperson! He asked if I liked what I saw and I told him I did, then he wanted to know if I wanted to take it for a drive. I told him I was hesitant as it had been raining all day and was drizzly and I had really just stopped to see if one was on the lot as I needed to get back to the house. He responded that if I owned it I would be driving it in the rain and how about a quick roll around the block?

OK sure twist my arm...

He went to get the key and I waited in anticipation while seated in the driver's position. I adjusted the seat and rearview and got a feel for the cockpit. Not surprisingly it had a similar access and feel as the Elantra in addition to layout (or at least intuitively so). After starting it up and engaging reverse, my first surprise was the brakes, they were noticeably more potent than the GT (11.8" discs up front!). After strolling through the lot, I got out into traffic and had my second surprise: This thing has really decent power, much more potential than my daily driver thanks to the 2.4L.

Everything felt in place in terms of access and management, I had to clear the front and rear windows as well as defog the windshield and shut off the radio. Now these tasks seem easy enough in simple terms, but sometimes the layout and controls are counter to what one or at least I find usable, but as I mentioned before the dash controls seem to fall into place, maybe because there is some Hyundai/KIA DNA at work or maybe the designers just did their homework. Either way I was happy with this aspect, because it's these little things that go far in making driving a pleasure, not some tedious task to be best avoided.

Seeing around from with in the vehicle was typical with regards to hatchback visibility. The Elantra has pretty good visibility all around, the 2010 Mazda 3 hatch not so much, or a least I felt more inhibited than my current sled when I've sat in them. The Forte 5 was acceptable and I felt comfortable looking around. Granted I did not spend my usual time in the car (20-30 minutes per drive to/from work) and would need a longer drive to sus out this aspect, but I feel it may measure up well in this regard.

The interior is decent and nicely appointed for a car that can be bought for less than 20K, but to be realistic though I don't have a whole lot to write home about and found some areas of it to be more 'plastic-y' than I had hoped. That said it's functional and serves it's purpose with due regard to it's parentage which is to say that it's humble and dutiful but not luxurious or sleek (as the Mazda 3 is). I do wish other interior color options were available, but like the Model T you can get any color you like as long as it's black. I understand the SX has paddle shifters with the 6 spd AT, but took no notice if they were present (only because it was after the fact that I understood they were standard in this trim level).

Something else I didn't rightly take note of was handling, feel and ride, my drive was all of about 5 minutes some of it freeway at 65-70 and the remainder street at 35. This is something I will fixate on if I take another test drive this week. The 17's I suspect are a bit harsher than the 16's on the other levels/models.

Other minor points: the rear cargo tray insert is a formed bit of dense styrofoam, it seemed cheap and easily broken, maybe a slathering of tool dip or a thin coat of fiberglass would give it some durability. The rear leg room was more than ample at least with where I had the front seat adjusted. Metal pedals were a nice touch and I think I would pay extra for the moon/sun roof as I have never owned a car that had one.

Overall I was impressed with all that I saw of the car and liked it far more in person than in photos. I'm debating whether to go and drive it some more tomorrow or later this week (it may not last, it's the only one on the lot!). That said I probably wouldn't buy the spicy red version and would hold out for the titanium I think. I would also price out the leather as the suede/cloth seats were decent the GT has spoiled me towards leather (sorry PETA...).

But now here's the sticking point: Gas mileage.

I was not overly impressed with the figures for the SX or even the lesser trim levels. In my heart of hearts I would own the Alfa Giulietta with the 170hp Multiair motor and the TCT transmission. The claimed average mpg for this combination is 40! Man would I love to get those figures with a gas powered vehicle, to hell with the Prius! But Fiat may or may not bring the Alfa to NA and at the very least the Dodge Caliber will be replaced with some sedan built on this platform (Compact Wide), and though I like the tech specs, I really love the Alfa hatch styling and doubt Dodge will even come close. It may not be until late '12 before Sergio brings Alfa to the states if at all. So either I wait or I make up my mind on something more concrete. And besides who knows, maybe KIA will have some design improvements motor wise to tart up the mpg figures by then? But a wish is just a wish and a want can be more easily satisfied in the present tense. I do know this, I currently get roughly the same mileage out of a lesser powered vehicle...

OK so to sum all this up I would heartily recommend this car to anyone considering a hatch that has style and substance with a great warranty and improved track record.

[elantragt]

A couple of points.

The suspension on the SX models (at least in sedan and Koup form) is somewhat harsh over rough roads. The 17's and low profile tires are the culprits.

As far as gas mileage I can give you some real world figures. One pure highways drives, I've been seeing 36-38 MPG which is pretty damn good. Mileage has been improving as the engine breaks in. But, this is a bit of a gas hog in stop and go driving and you'll only see the EPA rated numbers, at best.

As far as you mentioning it looks better in person, I totally agree. People only seeing the Fortes in pics have no idea how nice they look in person.

[popeye]

Mitch are you measuring mileage with the trip meter or empirically? And I understand you have the 5 spd AT, did you test drive a MT model prior to purchase? The 5 door comes with a 6 spd MT or AT, and I'm wondering how the clutch feels as they were early reports on the Koup of touchy clutches and such.

[elantragt]

With the trip computer.

I never drove the manual because this is a car Tammy and I have to share. The issue with the manual is less the clutch and more the throttle tip in. But the '11 is supposedly improved in this regard.