Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Options
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
I talked at length with a regional Kia rep (it was kind of slow in the Kia display). I asked him how much ABS and ESC would cost on the LX. He said $600. That means an LX automatic with all the safety features I want would be under $19k--about $2500 less than what a Sonata GLS with power seat would list for.
However, I found out when I got home and checked kia.com that the LX I4 is not available with ABS and ESC--you have to get the LX V6 or the EX. The option (have to get them together) is $600 like the rep said. So the minimum price for an Optima for me would be about $20,500--not any savings over the Sonata given the rebates on the Sonata.
I am hoping that for 2007 Kia will make ABS and ESC at least an option on the LX I4, as it really has all the features I need otherwise.
Look great, can't wait to see one on the street!!
http://www.kia.com/06optima/
http://lotze.kia.co.kr/lotze_cinema.htm
Watch the movie!! Action packed and great fun to watch!!
Lots of special effects! I'm surprised they put this much of a budget on a ad-type movie.
He now has decent transportation at a very low price. And now you can't even tell that it had hail damage.
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drives/FirstDrives/articleId=109941
It's interesting that they are beginning to differentiate the cars rather than just simply putting on different end clips. I think Kia made a good move in trying to emphasize 4 cylinder engines. This will further differentiate it in the market from the Sonata.
The front seats don’t travel back far enough in the track for taller people, and they feel a size too small – narrow, with short cushions. Making matters worse, they offer virtually no bolstering, a shame given the Optima’s capable suspension, steering, braking, and optional 17-inch tires.
Finally, the driver’s seat height adjusts, but the higher it goes, the flatter the bottom cushion gets, removing what little thigh support there is to begin with. Kia definitely needs to go back to the drawing board with these seats, though it must be noted that a female companion for the drive back to Los Angeles from San Francisco had no complaints about seat comfort. Whether the driver or front passenger, I just couldn’t get comfortable. Bigger seats with better thigh support and more seat track travel are a must-have, in my book.
Kia might be positioning the new Optima as a sporty four-cylinder value proposition, but this V6 has got to go. It’s adequate at best, and stands out as the lame duck mechanically.
Getting a 2006.5 Optima four-cylinder with a stick and the 17-inch wheels would make for a fun, affordable sedan, but Kia doesn’t offer that combination. Those interested in a softer ride and a quieter interior should check out the standard 16-inch wheels and tires, which deliver on both counts but not at the expense of the Optima’s capable handling characteristics and road feel.
As a long distance road tripper, the 2006.5 Kia Optima needs work. The front seats don’t leave occupants refreshed, there’s wind noise at speeds above 70 mph, and while the Optima was quiet on the grooved and sectioned concrete of L.A’s network of freeways, traveling the various surfaces of Interstate 5 through California’s central valley showed that the cabin is hushed only on the smoothest blacktop. Plus, we didn’t get near the fuel economy the EPA says we should have on this trip.
I was going to print the Autobytel report out for her but she called and said she preferred the Sonata because the Optima (w/power seat) seat cushions felt too short. She liked the Optima interior better.
She noticed it and she knows nothing about cars except she compared two vehicles.
Bought her the Sonata LX which was $2,200 less ($2,000 rebate + below invoice) than the Optima would have been.
Anyone know what the alleged mechanical issues with the prior generation V6 are?
Ex- the smaller 2.5L Toyota V6 puts out more hp and torque due to dual variable valve timing, and thanks to a 6A, is also able to acheive strong EPA ratings, and strong ratings in the real world- CR managed 24 MPG overall in their 3400 lb Lexus IS.... I REALLY wish Toyota used this engine more.
~alpha
Also, I read that the Optima looks like the Spectra, but the Pontiac G6 looks more like a bigger Chevy Cobalt than the Kias. The tail lights are at least different and the headlights are too. The cobalt looks like a baby G6 with the same tail lights and body. The Spectra's E and F pillers resemble the Camry's E and F pillars. Furthermore, Korean vehicels interiors are different unlike GM and Ford. The Ford 500 looks like that Lincoln sedan. The Escape was cloned three times; nonetheless, the Sportage looks nothing like the Tuscan. The Sportage is longer. The Dodge Charger looks like the Chrysler 300's body, yet the Amanti's body looks nothing like the Azera.
If people are complaining about Kia's looking like Hyundai's turn to GM and Ford first because they have clones. :confuse:
For those wishing to peruse KIA's online shop manual, here's the url:
http://www.kiatechinfo.com/
The new model KIA Optima is designated as "MG" when accessing the online shop manual.
New 2.7L V6: Mu engine
They test drove the Manual and automatic 4 cylinder, and seemed to like both.
One is now with Hyundai, and yes, they tend to have less models on the lot than Hyundai.
The other is on a lot with Hyundai, Toyota, and Chevy, and have a lot less space for their vehicles.
The 3rd is across the street from a Honda, Nissan, Mazda dealership(they just closed their Suzuki dealership of 10+ years), same owner, but it is really sad.
The building is big enough to have 4 vehicles in it, 3 desks, and a "garage"(service center) where one car can fit in it at a time, and one mechanic, and one sales person(On a Saturday!).
When i went to the Honda dealership, after looking to test drive a Rio5(lady said'maybe next visit you can test drive one!?), they had 6 sales persons vying to help me out!
There were maybe 75 cars on the Kia lot.
There used to be one on a Nissan, Buick, GMC, Kia lot, but that place folded a few years ago.
Another Kia dealership closed a year ago.... they were on a lot with VW, BMW, and Volvo. Shared a building with VW.
They had a lot of models, but when I went there, they seemed to try to push the more pricey VW's on you.
They tended not to push the Kia's, thus, they did not do well.
What ya gonna do?
This says a new platform will bring a sedan(the 07 elantra?) and 2 other vehicles, a 5 and 3 door car(s)....on another thread on future vehicles(see the Kia Coupe, and has another sketch of 5 door that looks a lot like a modified Spectra5, and info)says Kia will have the 5 and 3 doors(for Europe).
hard to say what will happen with HyunKia.
As for are Optima and Sonata on different platforms? Dunno.
All I know is that the old XG350 and Sonata(last generation) shared the same platform, yet one was larger, more HP,etc.
Take Care/Not Offense.
I'm very curious to see what the gas mileage is like for the new 4-cylinder engine in the Optima.
I hope that it this engine has been engineered to not only run well, but to get decent mileage too....a common KIA bug-a-boo.
-SM
MagMax
P.S. the Verona is a Korean Chevrolet (or Suzuki depending on where you live).
Interior conspiracy? The thing is I would be all right with a 2007 Kia Optima with a black interior. Especially an all-white '07 Optima.
BTW, the first '07 Kia Optima I've seen on the street was a white one, not Pearl White, more like a Polar White. I couldn't really tell but I think it had a black interior. It was whipping down one of the main streets in Jackson, WY, the other day. Looked really nice.
My wife and I took the Sportage 4x4 to Yellowstone Park and the Grand Tetons and then down to Jackson, WY.
The Bison have been real busy last winter..there's Bison babies running all over Yellowstone National Park now!
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
I hate to say it but..... b-o-r-i-n-g.
Granted it was a white one with hubcaps, but I really think KIA should have gone more radical/dramatic in the styling department.
The interiors of them are nice, AND the build quality looks really good too.
But to an average schmo, it could have been a prev-gen Chevy Malibu.
Anyone who purchases one had BETTER get the EX in a darker color, and some nicely done dual-tone painted pinstripes (like my Spectra) to add a little personality!
-SM
I also don't understand why they require black leather with the extra aluminum interior trim, or why they have the two trim packages ($1300 and $1500) where you must take the combination of equipment from one or the other, but you can't get, say, aluminum trim with heated seats, etc.
MagMax
0-60 8.9 secs with the inline 4 5 speed auto....not bad....