In the fast lane
For 2018, Kia’s new Niro sips and zips
One thing you have to say for Kia’s Niro, no matter how much I hot-rodded it, I couldn’t get it to register under 40 mpg.
If you are the type of driver with a light foot on the throttle, you could see 50 mpg.
The Niro is the first Kia which was designed to be a hybrid right from the drawing board. This means that the engineers didn’t have to work around what was already reality or work around existing designs.
To be honest, this is the kind of car that will be the standard in another five or ten years. By then there will be few cars – and they will be specialized – that don’t have some form of electric power as a part of the powertrain. Kia isn’t really being a pioneer here, as Volvo and other manufacturers have already announced this goal.
What is important is that the process has begun to make alternative power mainstream. You no longer are making a philosophical statement by buying a hybrid. It really is just another powertrain option. And while hybrids for the most part still depend of fossil fuels for their power, no one argues with the efficiency of storing it and expending it through electric motors.
The Niro is a small crossover and presents a reasonably sensible face to the world. Well, it presents the Kia face, but the overall design is pleasing, but not the current trend to give it some macho appeal. It does have a solid presence with sturdy shoulders. The wheel arches are high, helping with its crossover ute identity. In back, there is a racy-looking rear diffuser and somewhat dramatic LED taillights.
The Niro started development in 2012 and Kia’s idea was to create a car which may be a hybrid, but isn’t one which particularly pushes that fact. Rather it seems to be a nice crossover that gets really good gas mileage.
That EPA mileage rating varies with the trim levels. The base FE earned a rating of 52 mpg in the city and 49 mpg on the highway. For the mid-level, LX and EX trims that rating is 51 mpg city and 46 mpg highway. The top model, the Touring gets only 46 mpg in the city and 40 mpg on the highway.
The other thing that impacted it development was Kia’s belief that its customer base is moving both upmarket as well as becoming more sophisticated in their tastes. So, the Niro must appeal to these evolving customers. It is not, however, an expensive vehicle. The price range for the Niro starts at $22,890 for the base Niro FE and runs to a starting price for the top-of-the-line Touring of $29,650.
The powertrain for the Niro consists of a 104-hp. 1.6-liter fourcylinder Atkinson Cycle gasoline
engine, and a 43-hp electric motor. The total power of the car is 139 hp. and 195 lb.-ft. of peak torque. Flowing through a six-speed dualclutch automatic transmission
The Niro only comes with frontwheel drive. Adding all-wheel drive would require rearranging the batteries, raising the floor, particularly in the cargo space, and the additional weight would impact fuel efficiency and liveliness.
move the gearshift knob to the left and it enters Sports mode and seriously changes the feel of the powertrain – as well as its performance.
The Niro is comfortable to drive, and most will soon forget it is a hybrid. If you put the transmission in Sport mode it holds the gear and uses the engine aggressively enough to make it fun to drive in hilly country. This is how I drove the car for most of the time I had it, and as I said I still recorded an average of just more than 40 mpg.
The interior of the car is nicely done, with a modern feel and attractive dashboard and instrument panel. Built on a compact car platform, the Niro makes good use of its space, especially in the passenger compartment. The front seats are comfortable and supportive, and adults can ride comfortably in the rear. With those seats up, there’s not a great deal of cargo space, but when you drop them you get a flat floor for when you use it as a cargo hauler. There is a roof rack where you can lash the luggage down for a longer trip.
The audio system comes from harman kardon, and its 315-watts channel through eight speakers, one of which is a sub-woofer. The system uses the company’s proprietary CLARI-Fi sound expansion system to make music closer to the dynamic range of the original recording – before being compressed to “fit” into a digital format.
The Niro also contains the latest infotainment and connectivity system called UVO. One advantage to it is, since it’s connected through your smartphone, there’s no subscription fee.
If you choose for the top Touring model you can also add driver assistance and convenience technologies, including blind spot detection, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-change assist, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and autonomous emergency braking.
This is a thoroughly modern and well-thought-out vehicle. It also makes a clear point that Kia understands what the future of automobiles is likely to look like worldwide. This is a small crossover here, but it is closer to a fullsized vehicle in most of the rest of the world. That is perfectly alright with Kia.