New Sorento says ‘R’
Kia is on track for record sales in New Zealand during 2012. Paul Owen discovers that the new Sorento R has the potential to lift sales further.
THIS ROAD test is brought to you by the letter R. For R usually stands for ‘‘Race-bred’’ any time you see it attached to a vehicle’s model nomenclature, and is nearly always a signpost to its sporty character.
Honda overuse it a little on their flagship sportsbike, the CBR1000RR, which has no less than three Rs to ensure that you get the message that it is essentially a two-wheeled ballistic missile. So when does the letter stand for something else?
When it’s attached to an SUV like the new Kia Sorento R you see here.
Then it stands for something a lot more laidback and close to our hearts at this time of year – recreation.
Actually, the new Kia is almost capable of living up to both implications of the letter. For it’s definitely taken a turn towards the sportier side of the SUV performance spectrum with its recent upgrade. Although the Sorento R’s humble engine capacities and cylinder counts ensure that powertrain performance is still far removed from the lofty heights staked out by expensive luxury SUVs from Porsche, BMW, Audi, Mercedes, and Range Rover, the upgraded chassis offers a lot more on- road grip and more precise steering than before.
This is a bit of a win for anyone whose favourite recreational turf/ slice-of-heaven lies at the end of a tortuously winding road. For you get to enjoy a more secure and nimble- handling chassis on the drive to the destination.
On the other hand, if said pieceof-paradise lies at the end of a rutted and rocky track, you’ll be wishing for Sorentos past. For what was once a worthy bush- basher has now evolved into a vehicle that’s almost totally road-oriented, shedding live rear axles and high-low ratio transfer cases along the way.
The latest deletion of mudplugging equipment is the loss of Hill Descent Control, a feature that once stopped the Sorento running away from the driver on steep downhill sections off-road.
Also AWOL are several handy millimetres of ground clearance thanks to the 10mm lower floorpan, and the deeper new bumpers that freshen up the look of the Sorento at the front and rear, but restrict the approach and departure angles further.
Perhaps the R should really stand for road.
This is the meaning that the Sorento R’s target market are most likely to read into the single-letter suffix. They’ve been using new SUVs for no tougher jobs than tackling the speed bumps in a shopping centre’s carpark, or towing the boat up a slippery ramp for years.
For many Sorento drivers, the most likely daily use is the school run. For them, further urbanisation and on- road refinement can’t come soon enough, and the latest version almost fulfils their wish-list enough to consider trading the previous model on the new. I just wish there was a little more distinction between the two latest Sorentos visually. The doors, glasshouse and roof are shared, and anyone trading up from the outgoing model is going to have to ply their neighbours with a bottle of wine or two to convince them that they’ve actually bought a new car.
The best way is to let them take it for a drive for it is while the Sorento is on the move that the differences really make their presence known. New rubber-damped suspension sub- frames at both ends contribute to both a quieter cabin and a more comfortable ride. Pitch the Kia at any corner, and the more incisive steering, lower centre of gravity, and more robust weight transfer control instantly answer the roll call. Less immediately obvious is the slight improvement in fuel consumption that the more aerodynamic body butes.
Both the fuel use and acceleration of the carry- over 130kW/ 227Nm petrol and 145kW/436Nm diesel engines benefit from having between 92kg and 75kg less to haul, depending on the model.
It is the increased standard features of the Sorento that will most attract the market’s eye, especially as they are included for lower prices than before. The range, which starts at $46,490 and rises to $66,190, lists between $500 and $1000 less than the outgoing Sorentos. lighter, contri-
Yet some models now come with automated self-parking, panoramic sunroofs, and smart headlights that track the curves in the road. A touch-screen interface, reversing camera and multi-media system is standard across the range.
Just about everything desirable in a motor vehicle is available for less here (with the glaring exception of factory- fit satellite navigation).
What the R doesn’t stand for is radical. That will come with the Sorento’s complete makeover in 2014.