Review: Kia Rondo, kind of a Hyundai, right? Options

[Doohickie]

Since the dealer is hanging onto the Elantra an extra day to fix the OCS sensor, they sprung for a rental car for me. I ended up with a Kia Rondo.... thought I would put my thoughts about it out there, starting with what I originally posted in the OCS thread:

So they gave me a Kia Rondo, which I think I would really like IF it didn't handle like a more extreme version of an unmodded Elantra (steering is too touchy, and WAY too much body lean!)  Good acceleration though, and it's got a shiftronic which is okay to play with when I'm bored.

If I were in the market for an affordable people mover (lots of room for 4 tall people; a fifth could squeeze into the middle of the back seat), this would get a look-see. They apparently read my thread about under-floor storage in the cargo area because they have a pretty nice built-in setup for that.

Ride is okay. No sports car, but handles well enough on the freeway. I'm not used to riding up as high as this is, but other than that it's a pretty car-like feel. When I was test-driving prior to buying the Elantra, I test drove the Vibe/Matrix and it kind of feels like that. The V6 has plenty of power for the vehicle. The dash materials and finishes, while kind of truck-like, are at least as good as, or probably a little better than, the Elantra in materials and quality.

The fit and finish on the Rondo is better than I recall in the Vibe and Matrix. The cargo area especially is nicely finished with a flat floor that hides multiple storage bins. Basically, you just don't see where corners have been cut; there are no obvious cheap areas. This is one area where the Rondo has a clear advantage over the Vibe/Matrix and the Caliber.

As I mentioned earlier, the downsides of the vehicle are the body roll and steering. The steering is light and twitchy; you definitely have to drive it with a light touch. It is more responsive than it should be for the force applied to the wheel. The body roll is kind of annoying but since I'm not a truck or SUV guy, I can't really comment on how it would compare to other models.

I kind of like the shifter. It is right at my right hand, just where it should be. In general I left it in Drive but would occasionally knock it over to the right and play with the shiftronic manual mode when I wanted to make sure I was in a good gear for traffic. Having a V6 though kind of makes that unnecessary since there is plenty of power even at lower rpms.

While quite a bit taller than the Elantra, the length and width are very close; it fits into the garage in the Elantra's spot. The only adjustment I had to make was to back it in just a little bit further than the Elantra goes.

I could see where they could have done better, but overall it's a pretty nice package.

[cobas]

Nice review. It's supposed to seat 7, but I guess the third row is optional.

[Doohickie]

It doesn't appear to have a third row, but I've heard about a 7-passenger option as well.

Honestly, if this vehicle had been out when we bought the Taurus, *and* I could talk my wife into looking at anything besides a Ford, this would have been a much better fit for my family vehicle, considering I have 2 6-foot-tall sons.

[mtlelantra]

the 4 cyl version has the 2.4 L theta I believe. I wouldn't pay $1000CDN more for only a 20 hp increase with the delta V6.
I tried to steer my dad into either the Rondo or Mazda 5, but he had to have the Sportage.

This post has been edited by mtlelantra: Oct 18 2007, 09:23 PM

[Doohickie]

I would. Everyone talks about how much power people get out of 4-cylinder engines, but they have no low end torque. The Rondo, my wife's Taurus, my son's Cutlass (that he wrecked a few months ago) all get/got up to freeway speeds without any complaints out of the engine; just smooth acceleration all the way.

My Elantra has to downshift nearly every time, even if I'm driving like a granny.

Also, vibration at idle is much less pronounced with a V6.

[mtlelantra]

meh, you can't compare the beta to the theta. I don't remember what the torque curve of the delta is like, but the theta has the VGIS which widens the torque curve a lot (iirc it hits a plateau at about 80% of max torque at 2500 rpm and then hits max as the plenums change over), plus max torque between the two are within 250 rpm of each other. you'd have to drive them both to have a realistic feel (and realistic mpgs).
Now if it were the Lambda v6, I wouldn't hesitate for a second...

although the v6 rondo does include the 5 spd automatic, vs the 4 spd on the i4... so for $1000 you get both the v6 and the 5 spd tranny, which I guess is a pretty good deal then.

[Doohickie]

Yeah, I have to admit that except for deceleration (where a downshift can help), the 5-speed pretty much always had me in the right gear.

[NovaResource]

I've driven both the 4-cyl and V6 Rondo. I considered buying one as a replacement for the Chrysler minivan but it was too small for my family. 5-passengers is not enough and the rear seats of the 7-passenger version are VERY small.

Anyway, the Rondo is very underpowered with the 4-cyl and only mildly underpowered with the V6. Remember, the Rondo weighs MORE than a Tucson. The V6 gains 20-hp AND 20-lb/ft of torque over the 4-cyl.