Kia Optima Si $30,490 new variant

By Alborz Fallah | December 28th, 2011

Kia Australia has today released details of a new Optima variant, named Si. Priced at $30,490, $6,500 less than the Optima Platinum (pictured), the Si comes with the same engine and transmission, but cuts out a few of the luxury features to give customers more choice in the medium car segment.

For a start, the front disc brakes are slightly smaller, measuring 11.8″ compared to 12.6″ for the Platinum. It sports 17″ alloy wheels wrapped in 215/55/R17 tyres, instead of 18″ alloys (but still comes with a full size spare).

Most notably, it misses out on the LED daytime running lights (DRL) which have given the Optima its signature look over the last year. Cornering lamps and LED rear fog lamps are also omitted but all other safety features including a full compliment of airbags and electronic stability control are standard.

On the comfort side, the Si comes with a standard key (as oppose to the smart key with push button start on Platinum), cloth trim instead of leather, standard seat adjustments (no power) and does away with the wood-look interior trim. One of the more pleasant features of the Platinum, the ventilated driver’s seat, is also missing, as is the front seat warmers.

For those with a keen eye, a different radiator grille is used and there are no sports bumpers, rear lip spoiler or rear LED combination lamps. The Si still keeps features like cruise control and leather steering wheel, but no longer has the TFT instrument cluster screen, scuff planels or sports pedals.

Audiophiles are likely to stick with the Platinum’s premium Infinity sound system with 6 CD changer as the Si lacks both features. However the entry model does have full Bluetooth (phone/audio) and iPod/iPhone support as well as six speakers.

When you add all those features together, the Platinum’s $6,500 additional asking price ($36,990) seems pretty darn reasonable. Nonetheless, the new entry model into the Kia Optima range is sure to bring in more customers as Kia expands its lineup to capture additional marketshare in 2012.

Read: Kia Optima Review

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001583322266 Henry Toussaint

Doesn’t sound bad….oh and does it have the Panoramic Sunroof?

Anonymous

No, it won’t
DAVIDZ

STILL $10k+ overpriced

Wheres the diesel version?

JHP

$10k overpriced?
you’ve gotta be kidding me, so you are saying that optima should be priced $20490. if you want to buy cheap car, go to great wall or chery dealership.
and yes, kia is currently developing 1.7l diesel engine for optima.
so be patient

nickdl

Actually sounds a bit stripped out with all of those features omitted. When will the Platinum get sat nav?

http://www.caradvice.com.au/ Alborz Fallah

Very soon.

Anonymous

Ive heard stories earlier (when the Optima was launched) about it having an electronic parking brake for 2012. Is this still true? And are we any closer in finding out whether or not Oz is getting the 2L turbo??

Lucii Pooky

Agreed! You can get the Accord Euro for $29990! It may have less torque but with a Manual it fells much more lively and sounds great! Its also got a premium feeling interior, Leather steering wheel, 2 Zone climate control, Rain and light sensor and its by far ugly. The only its missing is a decent boot and some actual legroom, And considering Honda have a good reliability record and its wheels COTY I know what id go for!

Anonymous

Accord Euro with auto is $32290. That’s $1800 more than Optima.

Lucii Pooky

Im referring to the manual. And its still good value compared to the Kia.

Able

No.

New Euros are nothing compared to the last generation car. Fussy, bloated styling with no rear seat room and a strange boot are nothing as good as the last generation model. It’s $29,990 and they STILL don’t sell many!
Lucii Pooky

Yes I know that but I’m saying compared the Optima the Euro is still better. Yes it may be painfully small but its still the better car. If you don’t believe me go read reviews, or better yet sit in one! And that dash is confusing but like the dash on the Ford Focus/Fiesta it gets easy to use after a while.

http://www.facebook.com/antmindel Anthony Mindel

The Euro is the mid size sedan benchmark,and has been since 2003,as its such a good overall package.

Sydlocal

As long as it is for only 2 people. The Euro has always had “less than average” rear seat leg room and boot space. Plus the size of the boot opening was tiny making it difficult to load suitcases etc (the dealer let me take one home for a little bit etc to try out it in our “home” environment). That lack of space and small boot opening was one of the main reasons why there isn’t a Euro in my garage. The rest of the 1st series package was pretty darn good though.

Anonymous

Bring on the turbo!!
Able

Kia, do everyone a favour and bring the turbo in! Please! And a manual would be nice too! To be honest, the Platonum seems even better value now that there’s a model underneath it, let alone as a standalone model. Kia just need to fix the chassis and lack of power (it says 148kW but it really doesn’t feel like it) and you really would have one of the best mid-size saloons around.
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Anonymous

I
knew that there would be some changes seemed to have gone to far, other than that will wait till I come back from holidays and have a good look and hopefully drive both, though I reckon that I will be buying the Platinum
http://www.ficklepeople.com/ TJ

This new variant is definitely good news for the budget conscious. But why remove the cornering lamps? That is one important safety feature I wouldn’t want to lose.
Aaa

A KIA. They should have started at the bottom when it was launched. Their sales and marketing department are lost.
NotTheStig

Misses out on the vented and heated front seats ? – well if you have cloth you no longer need them after all. This leather = prestige thing is so overrated… Yes, great if you have messy kids but live with them in the heat and cold (and my car has heated and cooled seats too) and a nice cloth is quite superior…
Gianni

It’d be a great (or better) car if it came with better tyres and a manual. Kia says it has 147 horses under the bonnet. Doesn’t go as fast as 147kw suggests and I bet it has to do with that auto.
Monsieur Heinous

@ NotTheStig are you part of the cloth mafia on CA? Seriously these cloth is so good comments pop up all the time. Leather is better. End of story. Try wearing a nice suit on crappy fluffy cloth!

NotTheStig

Suit ? – I used to wear one of those once.

I did say a “nice cloth” didn’t I ? My wife and children also hate leather. They are far more important than you.

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Anonymous

Shame that they got rid of the LED tail-lights. All i45s have LEDs, even the base model.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001583322266 Henry Toussaint

I wonder what the base model will look like cause they remover the LED’s at the front and back, the Xenon’s are removed, it wont have “Sport Bumpers”, no TFT screen, cloth seats, no Panoramic sunroof, and 17″ alloy Wheels. I want to see a Photo of it!!!

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Sumpguard

   Overdue and yes they should have put this model out to begin with. Stunning looks at a cheaper entry point. I expect they will sell more now. Good move.

      I’m a little surprised to read the various posts in here regarding equipment being ommitted. It stans to reason that things will be removed to lower the price point.

   Meanwhile Gianni 147kw’s is NOT 147 horses

Sumpguard

Also I read elsewhere that the turbo model that sells overseas is supposed to be coming here as well as the turbo Sportage.

Have you guys heard anything Alborz?

http://www.facebook.com/priusfreezone Matthew Werner

I think the problem is the turbo engine won’t fit in RHD cars and needs some engineering work to be done, so places like the UK are missing out as well
http://www.caradvice.com.au/ Alborz Fallah

dont believe the turbo has been confirmed for AUS – who knows, it has potential but given the small volume it would sell, not sure what the business case for it would be

Sumpguard

Cheers Alborz.

The sportage seems to be selling fairly well up here so maybe we will see it in that car.

Gianni

Oh my bad
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001583322266 Henry Toussaint

Plus it’s 148kw
bd

The reason why Kia Australia started with the Platinum is b/c there was limited supply since the only factory at the time producing the Optima was in Korea (that’s why Australia’s alottment for the year was limited to 1k Optimas).

If you only are going to have 1k Optimas to sell, mind as well sell the ones with a full load of kit.

US production of the Optima started a few months ago so now more (Optimas built in Korea) are available for the Australian market and Europe finally gets the Optima after 2 delays (due to no supply).
Lucii Pooky

Yes, but TOO much equipment has been omitted. Kias are meant to be cheap and cheerful, and their latest range of cars have been far from cheap!

Diezel

Bring the Turbo!!! cmon KIA!!! sheesh! and i will buy it tomorrow…
Shak

When you look at all the features they have omitted from the Si for $6500 it makes you realise just how much value they have packed into the Platinum model. All of those little goodies for $6500 is very very good value.

Anonymous

Agreed, Imagine adding the prices to a VW, Base 30k, Adaptive lights $3200, Leather $3200 etc etc, very good value

zej

Good riddence to the daytime running lights…. Tacky in the extreme.

Sydlocal

If you think these DRLs are tacky I would hate to hear what you think about the DRLs on the HSVs!
Karl

Why do so many people think DRL’s are a fashion accessory?
They are a safety feature with a practical purpose and should be on all cars.

Shak

Most people realise that DRL’s are a safety item, but the execution by some marques on their cars is laughable. I mean im an HSV fan but even i think the lights on the front clip look a bit out of place. Same goes for the KIA. I mean it can be done well, just have a look at Audi or BMW.

zej

Sure I can understand that DRL’s might be a safety item to those who are too lazy/ignorant to use parking lights, headlights, driving lights and fog lights appropriately… but seriously, of what practical value do they have for the other 5% of Australian drivers out there?!

zej

So prior to Audi fitting LED-DRL’s (and every 2nd manufacturer subsequently stumbling over themselves to shamelessly copy it), can I safely assume that the only car you would have considered buying would be a Volvo?

Sumpguard

   They had to “Shamelessly Copy” them as you put it, because they are about to become compulsary in Europe. Try and keep up. Also zej many cars nowadays have auto headlights will come on when parkers would have anyway, effectively making the parkers redundant!

       Given that Kia’s head of design is from Audi where they originated ,DLR’s were a given on their cars. I have them on mine and they look fantastic and get comments as such Each to their own I guess.

       ! As we tend to follow world safety standards on cars it is bound to end up law here also so get used to looking at them Maybe once they are law or various levels of government can then instrust our police to start enforcing our fog light laws too ………..

        The overdone rubbish on the HSV was a classic example of how NOT to integrate them but then they perfectly match the rest of the overdone *ahem* “Styling”.

Devil’s Advocate

Sumpguard, just to clarify. Did you mean just DRLs (I put your mistake of DLR down to finger troubles, I have that problem all the time!) originated from Audi or LED DRLs? If you meant what you wrote with just DRLs (without specifying the LED bars) it is not quite true as Volvo and SAAB have had DRLs for quite a few decades now.
zej

“about to become compulsary in Europe”? My understanding was that they already are compulsary in Sweden, Norway and Finland among others (where it can be dark all day in winter). Try and keep up. With Canada, at least – I guess they set the standard in automotive technology there too.
Not convinced by their safety credentials (in Australia where we often get daylight during winter).
Aesthetics (which seem to be important to it’s supporters) are questionable – even if the car was designed in Europe and LED’s “perfectly match” the rest of the car. Why cars need extra eyeliner in addition to headlights is beyond me. Just compare the current fusspot-Audi’s with the original 1994 A8′s clean, uncluttered lines and subtle detailing. I fail to see how it’s much better than HSV’s hamfisted attempt at an aggressive looking face, but they’re not European so maybe they just need to keep up as well.
Environmental impact, I will concede, is screw-all especially if they’re LED’s.
Sumpguard

   A few countries does not make all of Europe. Try and keep up.   The European commision is legislating for them to become compulsary in ALL of Europe! Infact it may have happened already? Given all of the latest crop of Beemers, and Mercs drivi9ng around up here in Cairns all have them on perhaps it has already gone through.

   Either way as you quite rightly pointed out they are already law in some of the countries so they are hardly being “shamlessly copied”. They are a requirement!

   Current Audis are fantastic looking cars to me. Especially the R8 I see driving around here complete with DRL’s. Again each to their own!

   Devil’s Advocate surely you do realise the conversation relates to the current LED DRL’s which are very much a product of Audi and not the parkers attached to the ignition in Volvos?
Devil’s Advocate

The “parkers” on Volvos and SAABs etc are still Day Time Running Lights and have always been classified as such no matter how you put it. That is all the LED DRLs are as well, just LED “parkers” attached to the ignition. They are both the same thing and intended for the same purpose, it is just Audi use a bar of LEDs, of which I am not denying that they were the first of the LED bar type. They just weren’t the originator of DRLs that you said they were!
Anonymous

Yes, the running lights on the old Volvos were a slightly higher intensity than mere park lamps, I recall, and they were always spoken of as running lamps.
Sumpguard

Audi developed the LED DRL’s….
Anonymous

Yeah, yeah, that too.

Jui

One problem with Kia is that it tunes the auto more for economy rather than speed like in the new Rio.

DAVIDZ

THATS WHAT WE REQUIRE YA FOOL

save it for the track

The brakes have been made smaller? That hardly seems sensible. Given that the Si and Platinum have the same engine, and that Si will have less equipment, the Si has the potential to be faster. Smaller brakes? Big fail.

Phil

Won’t matter for most Australians.

The Platinum already had bigger brakes than a current Bombadore and Falcoone despite being lighter and less powerful.

Karl

You’re only looking at the front brakes.
Commodore has larger rear brakes (because unlike the Optima it has near 50/50 weight distribution).
Unless I’m missing something, Kia doesn’t specify if the rear brakes are ventilated or solid.

Ee

Well I was at the dealers and I went on the Kia sorento and the interior quality was actually quite poor.. Don’t know about the optima as I didn’t find any in stock..

But compared to the accord euro the 50k sorento has a vlow quality interior..

bd

Have you seen the interior of the Honda Pilot?

The dash of the Sorento has hard plastics, but I would hardly call it “poor”; certainly no worse than the Pilot.

The interior/dash of the Optima is a good bit better than that in Sorento, so the Sorento isn’t a good comparison.

The interior of the Optima is somewhere between the US and Euro Accord, which is pretty good considering that the Optima competes against the US Accord.

Tcc

My cousin who is from Los Angeles got a brand new optima for 18k! It has a 20k sticker price, but no one there ever pays full price for any car but 19k is just crazy for a brand new optima.. Australia everything here is a ripoff.. Our power bill for 3 months worth was at $750 where as my cousin in USA only payed $100 for 3months !

Carbon tax really benefits our society right?

Don Quay

Tcc, you’re an idiot! What does a carbon tax have to do with your power bill? The tax won’t be introduced until 1st July 2012. Check your facts before you have an irrelevant whinge next time. Besides, if you hadn’t noticed this is a automobile forum, not a whinge site for Fans of Alan Jones and Andrew Bolt.

Sumpguard

Well I find myself agreeing with Don entirely!

P.S Who’s Alan Jones. Just kidding of course but you left out Rupert Murdoch!

Don Quay

Well, well, must be the Christmas spirit! Happy New Year to you too.
PS Alan Jones is a self important radio announcer and bully, who has an overinflated view of his place in the world. Sort of like a Kyle Sandilands for seniors. It would be nice if he moved to FNQ and took Kyle with him. As for Rupert, I always thought that Bolt was his poodle. But now I’m getting off topic myself. I should stick to cars.
I’ve seen a few Optimas on the road these holidays and while they are infinitely better looking than the i45, I’m getting less of a fan of the styling everyday, and they are way too expensive compared to the others in the class, for what you get in terms of the whole package and engineering.

Anonymous

Australia in general is a lot hotter than California. California gets quite cool in the winter months requiring no/little need for air conditioning. In most of Australia (aside from VIC/TAS), you need A/C almost year round. Hence the higher electricity costs.
Horse

you have to also realise that wages in America are on average a lot lower than ours.
Anonymous

Sounds very unlikely to me. The base model Optima is $21,750 in the USA. Sales tax in Los Angeles County is 8.25%, bringing that up to $23,544. Now if your cousin in fact bought a new Optima for $18k, he got a 24% discount. I don’t believe that any dealer would knock 24% off the price of a relatively new model that is very popular. Their profit margin would be completely wiped out. Also, remember that the base Optima in the US only has 16″ alloys – we get 17″.

Tcc

He got it for 19k.. If you read stats then you would know that the average incentives in USA are over $3,000.. With Kia and Hyundai providing bigger incentives to capture market share..

All cars, cost of living, tax rates etc and everything is real cheap compared to Australia, yes wages here are slightly higher but the difference is non critical as the cost of living and cost of everything in Australia is much higher then the wage difference..

I make $22/Hr working double shifts (12hrs)/day at factory here, if I was in California the rate would be $17/Hr.. See the difference is not significant if we measure the over inflated cost of living Australia compared to U.S

Tom

You get SOOOOOOOO much more with the Platinum you’d be mad not to go for the higher spec!
Jonno

KIA may be an upcoming Marque in Australia but truth be told, Aussie buyers are somewhat hesitant to buy a KIA brand new. In my home state WA, I’ve noticed that there is always, always ample stocks sitting in the new KIA dealers courtyard and over a number of weekends, their stock don’t move as fast as other car dealerships. There are also always a number of pre-registered demo models available for sale. This contrast against their fellow Hyundai’s which surprisingly sell very well despite being almost the same model chassis.
Regarding the Optima Si, I would rather be patient enough to wait for a pre-owned Optima Platinium (with all the fruits) to be available than to get the Si now. Besides, KIA’s don’t have very good residuals – so why buy new?
Cheers for the 2012 New Year!

bd

Kia is a bit behind Hyundai, but catching up quickly.

Kia is actually growing faster than Hyundai in Europe, Canada and the US.

As for residuals, in the States, Kia has the biggest improvement in residuals over the previous generation of models.

ALG which the industry uses to set lease rates in the States pegs the residuals of the Optima same as the Accord.

Faz

you missed middle east… KIA is growing more then Hyundai there..

Andre

Alborz? – Pics taken near Gloucester?
Thanks,
andre

Anonymous

No, they’re take in Australia.
Artega

NSW number plates!

Artega

Unless you mean Hunter Valley of course…

DAVIDZ

One word………………………..YAWN
Sam Jeff

I just bought an Optima SI, probably the best value for money car on the Australian market. Check all the specs together when you compare to UK or US cars. I think you will find that the Aussie car is priced just right. My credentials spawn from 20 plus years selling cars in Oz and UK, from BMW audi VW Citroen Toyota Honda Land rover etc etc. I can categorilly tell you that for a new car in any of the three countries to match up to the SI Optima you will have to pay at least 15 to 20 percent more for another make , even the sister i45 Hyundai has a far below spec at the price. As for you Brand buyers , you need to wake up and smell the roses – at least the Koreans are giving us value for money – go have a look at the Camry Passat and Accord , do the maths and look in the mirror. Now ho is the idiot!!!!

Shak

I’d say with the just announced price drop of the Accord, that is better value. But congratulations to you anyway on your purchase. The optima is a very well designed car and with that 5 year warranty, you get peace of mind.