KIA Cerato – Long Term Update
May 26, 2009 by Matt Brogan
KIA Cerato SLi – Long Term Update
So far, so good!
- by Rose Harris
Kia has made some ground-breaking changes which should see buyers think twice when it comes to purchasing a new vehicle.
When I tell people I am testing a Kia, the response is usually a less than enthusiastic one and I have even felt a distinct “oh, you poor thing” response from some. However, when the doubters see and even go for a ride in the Cerato, opinions quickly change.
The exterior styling of the Cerato puts it comfortably in the league of good-looking cars. It certainly doesn’t look like a boring, affordable family vehicle. During my couple of weeks with the Cerato so far, I am yet to come across someone who hasn’t had to re-think their Kia opinions. So it seems, in my experience, Kia’s effort in turning its reputation around is working.
Life with the Cerato continues to be enjoyable. I decided to be fair and give the Cerato some settling-in time before drawing some hard and fast fuel figures from it. For around-town and heavy city driving, the Cerato was using around 8.2 litres per 100km, according to my calculations.
However, since we took the Cerato on a long country drive, and it has clocked past that 1000km mark, the fuel figures are dropping drastically. On the long drive I speak of, while the intention was to take in some fresh country air, we sat in peak-hour roadwork traffic for near on two hours.
Just for the record, we travelled 29km in 90 minutes! When we next refuelled, the Cerato had used 25.01 litres over 341.1 km, giving a figure of 7.3 litres per 100km. The in-dash display was estimating an average fuel intake below seven for some of the trip.
The manufacturer claims a combined figure of 7.8 litres per 100km and I would say that is pretty accurate and expect the Cerato will sit around that figure from here on in; if not better.
I am constantly receiving compliments on the Kia’s colour, Santorini Blue premium paint which is certainly a head-turner. There was a second purpose to our jaunt to the country – to catch up with my son’s grandparents for his third birthday – and in the small country town inwhich we met in, there was plenty of attention centred around the glistening blue Kia.
The sound system is fantastic for such an affordably priced car. It has six speakers; front door, rear door and front tweeters and the USB input is iPod compatible and automatically displays the song information on the central LCD screen.
I tested the stereo as best I could with a song carrying plenty of bass and was surprised with the little, to no vibration from the speakers. Directly below the input jacks and the 12volt outlet is a handy storage space to stash a phone and iPod, so there is no need to be stretching cords all over the place.
Another bonus which I have found to be a rarity in cars I have tested is a mute button. It may sound trivial, but I love the ease and immediacy of a mute button on the steering wheel; to quickly hear the kids, talk to the drive thru speaker or use the hands-free.
The cruise-control buttons, located on the right of the steering wheel, are very simple to use with no need to take my eyes off the road and I have found the cruise to be accurate.
One small gripe I have, which is just an attention-to-detail thing, is the illuminated cruise control “SET” light. It is located underneath the fuel level needle, so when the needle gets to a certain point, the “SET” light is all but obscured from view. Not something that really impacts on driving, but little things like that annoy me.
Overall, the instrument panel is very clear, well lit and easily read. The large speedometer is central and in the main view of the driver, two smaller dials are off to each side – tachometer on the left and fuel gauge on the right. The heat gauge is part of the in-dash display, located below the three dials.
I am in two minds about this as I love the easy read dials and their un-crowded nature, but I also like the constant reminder of the temperature. At the moment I am coping with scrolling through options to check the heat.
The boot space held up to a week away with the family. The boot is very deep and with things packed right in against the seat back, it is surprising what can be fitted into the sedan’s cargo area. Occasionally I would have a bag obstructing the hinge struts, but so far I have no qualms with the space.
I am yet to test the Cerato with the full five adults so I can’t really speak about rear leg room and space. Of course, the two kids in their car seats are more than comfortable and my now three-year-old always asks for a ride in the “blue car” and thinks of things we might need at the shops so we can go for a drive.
The climate control is easy to use and cools or warms the front of the car in an instant. One thing I am still debating the impact of , if any, is the absence of rear air-conditioning vents. While the kids haven’t looked hugely uncomfortable, they aren’t able to give any hard and fast feedback on whether the Cerato needs those rear vents.
There is a good chance the large front vents do enough to cool the whole car. I’ll put this to the test when I stash my three adult passengers across the back.
I can vouch for the effectiveness of both the headlights and windscreen wipers after my long trip. Both are without fault. I did notice, however, after about three hours of sitting in the Cerato’s seats they seem to harden a little, and the comfort factor declines. But that is more than long enough for one to be behind the wheel without a leg stretch anyway.
So it’s a case of so far so good with the Cerato. My next instalment will bring with it some expert back-seat feedback, the usual day-to-day run-arounds and another trip to the country, hopefully this time with less roadworks.
Print it: 
stuff the hatch then! coupe! coupe! coupe!
Suddenly KIA is on par with Mazda ,Toyota and Honda. I don’t think so.Maybe one day but certainly not now.
Sumodog – drive the cerato & rest assured you will be convinced as well.
I can plainly see that this model is light years ahead of RIO and similar.Don’t want to drive it as i don’t want a car of that size and performance.
KIA can not match ten generations of Corollas ,Civics and 323 (3) in one hit.It is a step in the right direction but only a gen 1.
There’s an old saying (by a noted Italian of all people).
Japan took 40 years to make it. Hyundai took 20 years. China will take 10.
The Japanese and Koreans have often bought their talent from Germany and Italy and France (let’s not forget Nissan).
How they make their cars I don’t really care. If it takes a German to head up a good Kia well so be it.
By the same token I don’t think a Corolla or Civic or Mazda 3 are great cars to emulate. Have you driven a new Corolla? A $38k Civic Si from England?
No I believe you should examine a car on it’s own merits and it’s own price. When I drive a Kia do I aspire to be in a Corolla? Hardly.
I’d be the 1st to admit I’m wrong. I thought my mother buying a Carnival would be the worst decision of her life. But it takes someone without prejudices to consider a Kia, like my mother. I have prejudicies but I have changed my mind and I am open to Koreans or Indians or even Chinese cars.
Hell I drive an Aussie car and I hate them. If you won’t park your prejudices there’s no point even reading about Kias let alone driving them because all you do it troll places like this.
Tony i am glad your mum likes her Carnival. I ve driven and worked on few Kia’s. Not the Cerato. Don’t do much for me. Corolla and Mazda 3 are much better cars . Sales numbers confirm this is the case for majority of people.When Kia makes an equivalent to 2JZ-GTE or 13B-REW i ‘ll consider it.
Good to hear the Cerato coming along nicely.
I agree, the mute button is great. I have one on my Punto. handy both for turning to mute to hear the wife talk…. or for putting the music back on so I can’t hear her talking :)
SteveC
Have done 2500ks in identical speced Cerato to Rose’s long termer.
This is my first Kia and is a work commuter only.
It is well kitted and the reversing sensors are more useful than I expected (something I would never have considered if it had been an option) The engine is quite linear but works best in the mid ranges. Still learning the capabilities on the handling front, the ESC is interesting and not too intrusive, works well in the wet and gives good warning.
The cruise control has glitched a couple of times – not setting or not resetting. I’ve read elsewhere similar issues with i30s.
It is well screwed together with not a squeak or a rattle.
My only gripe is no driver seat lumbar adjustment or thigh tilt adjustment.
let me ask this
there’s no keyless entry push button start with the audi style key?
it’s on the overseas one but i guess they removed it here
CERATO in USA, u can spec. a optional $600 ‘Fuel Economy Package’
“Available on the EX model that upgrades the car to a five-speed automatic transmission, Motor Drive Power Steering, a “smart” alternator, silica tires, and aero enhancements. Rated at 27/36 mpg, Kia says this package makes the Forte the most fuel efficient car in its class that’s not a hybrid or diesel.”
Also 10year/100,000mile powertrain warranty
Finally “available 2.4-liter inline-four comes with an impressive 173 horsepower”
As usual not for Oz…
Cheers
F-0
it’s easy to sit over here and say how come the 370z is only us$29,990 in the US yet aud$69,990 here
or how come the Pontiac G8 is available for $28k and yet here you pay close to $50k for the same Holden SS V8 when the car is made here!
different markets are different markets
in Korea they only have the 1.6 until recently!
it’s always been this way… we often pay more for less and that’s the price of living in a market of only 1 million cars a year for 20 million people
4 star ANCAP – very disapointing.
The sister-co. i30 is a better vehicle and incs. the saftey pack as std.
The Cerato does seem to have the better 2L engine of the group though.
No trip computer on base model……PASS
Need a hatch, the sedan is not all that liked in the market
Cheers
F-0
the 4 star rating is a bit disappointing but i’d rather wait for confirmation from the US NHSTA
one thing that swings back to the Kia is that the top of the line SLi is only a little bit more expensive than the std. one esp. with the safety pack and very very much cheaper than the i30 fully optioned which pushes $30k
Cerato looks great. Seems to have good engine but where is the 5 speed auto as in the USA. An where is the auto up and down drivers power window. Both would really make this a real contender to the Holden Cruze. Why wasn’t the SLI version used to do the crash test. If it had with its Stability Control maybe the Cerato would have been given a 5 star rating not 4 as has been published. It has not been tested in Europe or the USA yet so maybe they will test a better version and give a better rating.
I am looking at buying a new car next year and my choice is a toss up between Cerato and Cruze. I hope Kia makes at least a 5 speed auto available maybe even a 6 speed.