Kia Cerato – Long Term Update

Since collecting our long-term Kia Cerato SLi back in early May the Santorini Blue sedan has been shoved from pillar to post around the CarAdvice office, with Rose Harris, Nadine Armstrong and Paul Maric all spending considerable time behind the wheel.

Now it’s my turn with the past few weeks seeing the Cerato spend some garage time with my family here on the Mornington Peninsula.

The small sedan has been put to use as the weekly runabout seeing such chores as the daily commute to Melbourne and shopping cart duties (as well as a photoshoot with Kia’s new Cerato Koup) all taken in Cerato’s stride.

The car has pleasant road manners and is easy to manage offering light steering and excellent visibility. These facts combined with the rear parking sensors also make Cerato a cinch to park.

With 7300kms now on the dial the Cerato is holding up very well, and with the exception of a few trivial ‘niggles’, the car still feels like new.

Handbrake travel is now a little higher than where it began, nothing the next service won’t address, while a curious noise has also began to present itself when the suspension is at full travel, such as when turning from an angled driveway.

It’s subtle, but it’s there, and as the only squeak or rattle yet to appear in Cerato comes as an unwelcome surprise to a car that’s otherwise been free of any complaints.

If I had to be picky I’d also note that some plastics in high wear areas – such as around key hole, door trims, scuff plates, kick panels, console trays – have began to show a few light scratches. Otherwise the interior is holding up very well, is easy to clean and perfectly functional.

One other downside to Cerato is the combination of light clutch and sensitive throttle are not ideal in stop-start driving, an issue that takes a little time to adapt to.

Fuel economy seems to have settled at an average of 9.6L/100km (combined – 91RON unleaded fuel) with a mixture of city and highway driving comprising Cerato’s drive since last we spoke (ADR 7.8L/100km).

The engine is clean with no signs of oil sweat around the seals. All fluid levels are spot on with the only attention at last check being to that of the windscreen washer reservoir.

Cerato’s 415 litre boot still manages to impress me with a recent trip to north-eastern Victoria seeing an extraordinary amount of food, wine and cheese carried home.

Driving from Mansfield through the Ovens and King Valleys, to Milawa and home via Tatong also highlighting Cerato’s deft ability over steep hills, twisting ‘B’ roads and lumpy country lanes.

We’ll be back with another update on the Cerato’s progress next month, but until then, you can follow the story so far by clicking on the link below.

Kia Cerato Long Term Test