Kia Sorento

lok888

brebh - Sounds fair. The MSRP for the car and all the add-ons that you want is $27125 with $495 destination fee. And that's about $1225 below MSRP. However, there is no invoice price shown for the add-ons, according to edmunds. I got quote from Quirk Kia $23600 for EX 4WD with no add-ons or options, MSRP is $24500 (that's what they told). That's $900 below MSRP. I think they can do much more better. Other Kia dealers are not willing to give quote by email until they see you in person. Boch Kia mentioned some dealers charge $1000-$2000 over MSRP. I think he is lying. So, Ragsdale is properly my dealer.

lok888

I hope to see Kia or those aftermarket has the custom made rubber mats for this Sorento.

mikesf

Paisan is right about not going strictly with the numbers. As I mentioned in my previous post I was able to compare by loading the same stuff (cleaning and maintenance materials - 1 fairly large plastic bin and 1 duffel bag) that I lugged around in my V and noticed less free space in my Sorento. This gave me a good idea of what I could or could not haul in the back of the SUV.

I just got back from a visit to my dealer and was told that Montreal will be hosting it's annual car show from the 22nd of November thru to the 1st of December. The reason why I mention this is because one of the sales reps mentioned that they fixed up a Sorento with extras (side runners, etc..). He wanted to show me the vehicle but it had already been shipped to the exposition hall. I'm going to attend the show and snap some pics for everyone's enjoyment. I'll be away on training with the military again so it will be during the last week of November.

Cheers!

lok888

I agree with Paisan. Cargo space in Sorento is just a perfect size for me. It is much more easy to load and unload items with the rear lifegate than the side-swing (CR-V, RAV4) or two pieces tailgate (X5, LX470). Is anyone find it difficult to put the spare tire back? My salesman show me how to get the spare tire by using a metal bar (supplied) to unlock it. Anyway, who's care? We can just call the roadside assistance.

anonymous02

#799 of 805 Also by paisan
"Don't go strickly by the #s. Make sure items you plan on carrying can actually fit in there. I found that my Trooper with it's boxy design was far more useful than the MDX both have similar storage on paper, but try putting boxes in the curvy MDX..."

You mean everybody doesn't carry ping pong balls, or 2x2 foam cubes?

That's why I mentioned the dogs. Try 3 or 4 dogs in a CRV, then a Sorento.

paisan

When I went to look at a durango the dealer looked at me like I was crazy walking in with 2 empty 17" monitor boxes!

-mike

Jason5

Hey gang! Damn--I didn't log on for a week and there are 130 messages. I had a voicemail waiting from our local Kia Dealer (Keystone Dodge/Kia ) that they were "ready to deal." Initially I had spoken to them and they were selling all Sorentos at sticker. However, they have not exactly flown off the lot. Not clear how much "dealing" they are ready to do...just FYI.

lok888

Just learned Kia offers financial services. Is it compatible with most banks, credit unions and People First?

brebh

If you have $4500 to put down it's $16667, they will match it. $3500 for an EX, but I think I got a better deal because the sticker was 30K with the market adjustment, which is what they start with for the matching deal.

bigelm

it was a waste of time. After they had me there for 2 hrs., test drive included. They said they couldn't get me the Ruby Red w/Grey int. because they don't know what Kia will be allocating to their location.

Is it me or was that a crack of bull.... I am willing to wait for one, but don't tell me you don't know what you have coming but then you claim to be the "largest Kia dealer in this region."

My advice..... DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME THERE!!!

PS- I went through the No-Hassle internet program, and they had the audasity to offer $1000 over invoice. I just had to laugh in their face...

saber86

It sounds like they are lying. Back in september i stopped by one local kia dealer here in dallas and asked the sales person when the sorentos might be coming in. The sales guy says he had no idea when they would be coming in. Maybe in two week or so.

Just out of curiosity, i asked the sales person if people were putting deposits down to get the first crack. He said he was not sure and asks another sales person. The other sales person walks over and introduces me to the sales manager. The sales manager opens the file and he had a entire inventory list of what he had coming in for his first allocation. The sales manager also says at that point they would be here in few days and he had all the info trim level, color, options etc etc.

sedanman2

ONCE AGAIN KIA MOTORS HAS A GREAT PRODUCT , JUST LIKE THEY DID WITH THE OPTIMA, SHOWING COMMERCIALS IN PRIME TIME SLOTS , DURING SUNDAYS GAMES, PEOPLE ARE STARTING TO FINALLY NOTICE THEM , AND TALK ABOUT THEM. JUST LIKE THEY DID WITH THE OPTIMA - THEY ARE DROPPING THE BALL! THE TRUCKS SHOULD BE LINED UP FOR PURCHASE AT DEALERS, ALL COLORS , ALL OPTIONS,THE DEALERS ARE REALLY SHOWING THEIR CLASS DIFFERENCE BY ADDING ON TO MSRP.UNFORTUNATLY FOR KIA BY THE TIME THEY FINALLY GET THE SORRENTOS INTO THE DEALERSHIPS THE PUBLIC WILL HAVE WENT OUT AND BOUGHT THE ESCAPES AND CRVS AND THE SORRENTOS WILL BE YESTERDAYS NEWS--- JUST LIKE THE OPTIMAS!!

stever

Did your caps lock key get stuck? You used to not shout around here. It hurts the eyes to read....

Steve, Host

carspy01

Must be an "Expedition"-keyboard... everything's bigger... :-)

iluvmysephia1

Ford really does have an impact on us Americans, don't they, like it or not? =:)

lok888

brebh - I also got a quote from Long Kia in Framingham, MA for the Sorento EX 4WD with Luxury Package, ABS, Cargo tray and spoiler. They quoted $25,960. That's pretty close to yours. Maybe I asked for the cargo tray. Anyway, this seems to be a price for most dealers, at least for MA. I still waiting for Quirk Kia for response. They seem to be nice. These two dealers didn't mind to give a quote online. Others are trying get you to the dealer first. By the way, delivery for this fully loaded Sorento (I prefer silver or beige) should be until mid-December. I still need another test drive for EX. I drove LX and don't quite like it.

daveghh

Drove by a parked Sorento today. To me the cargo area does not look larger then the CRV's.

lok888

daveghh - Max. cargo capacity and luggage capacity for Sorento: 66 cu. ft. and 31.4 cu ft. For CR-V: 72 and 33.5 There are many features which two can't compare. I first looked at the CR-V and RAV4. RAV4 is too small for my family. And I can't pay MSRP for the CR-V. The features and price of Sorento caught my attention.

daveghh

lok888,

I know it is hard to pay MSRP, but the resale on the CRV's have been historically very high, near the top. That would certainly compensate paying MSRP for a CRV.

I think the Sorento looks like a great vehicle. I have yet to drive one. Personally I would be hesitant buying a Kia due to past reliability problems of Kia.

94_octane

I think the Sorrento is the best looking SUV on the market right now.

lok888

daveghh - I agree. I still don't make my decision yet. It is just a month old in US. I saw some negative posting about the Sportage with near 0 on customer ratings... from the plastic screws on front bumper, window can't roll up, broken cup holders to poor resale value. Is that how they car cheap? I can't believe they use plastic screws. However, Sedona rated high with only few complaints. Hope to see some Editor's ratings.

daveghh

lok888,

I am sure the Sorento has better quality then the Sportage. I think the Sorento is a very attractive vehicle as well. I must say I really feel that the CRV is a very well built machine.

lok888

Just looked at the edmunds reviews for the Sorento (dated 10/17/02) about the "guilt" advertising campaign: "You could buy the Lexus or Benz, or you could buy the all-new Sorento and said send your kid to college." I can't wait to see the TV commericals!

tidester

...or you could buy the all-new Sorento and said send your kid to college.

Apparently our writer hasn't priced college tuition lately! On the other hand, if you're only sending your kid to school for one semester ... ;-)

tidester, host

brebh

lok888 - Just talked to the sales guy, said he found a silver/gray load. It's a demo with 1900 miles. He said he would have more info for me on Mon. I told him he needed to take something off, we'll see what happens.

lok888

brebh - I thought you have a deal for fully loaded brand new EX with lux., ABS and spoiler for $25600. According to my research, Long Kia has the lowest price of $25900. Peter Fuller Kia was unacceptable with only $310 under MSRP. Boch Kia won't even talk about it unless they see you in person. Let's see what I can find next week. I am still waiting for few more for response. Good luck!

lok888

What other people doing in other part of the country? Finding any good deal yet?

saber86

The dealers here still want msrp or above. Their response. We don't have any problem moving this vehicle with zero discount so why would we need to discount them. Gees for a moment I thought i was talking to a honda salesguy *L*

sorento

I have had my Sorento for 5 weeks now - still extremely happy with it. I am looking to add a ski rack - has anyone on this list added a ski rack to the factory rack on the Sorento?

Also, has anyone seen the running boards - optional didn't get them but thinking of adding them.

steve_on

I find it interesting that KIA's Optima is discounted to the tune of $500 BELOW invoice.

Is this because the Optima is a dog? No

Is this because the Optima is overpriced? No

So why is the price of the Optima so low?

IMHO, it's the resale and question in consumers mind over the reliability of the KIA brand. The Optima is a pretty good car, not of the same quality as Honda or even Hyundai, go figure.

What's this got to do with the Kia Sorento? My guess, and hope is that the Kia Sorento street price will follow, time will tell. At ~$25,000 the Sorento is somewhat of a gamble, at or below invoice ~$23,000 or so, the odds change.

jrdowney

I'm concerned with the KIA Sorento's resale value as well. Based on the other models KIA sells it will likely be in the 25% range after 4 years. Now assuming it actually holds up reliability wise that would make a great used vehicle buy (but a poor new car purchase).

carspy01

I have been "an old nut" here on the Sorento board as well as on the "Kia BL" board, which was the concept leading to the Sorento.
Since day one, I was impressed about the features and goodies - when I "spied" them or the information was realayed to me by other means. You have top suppliers for this vehicle, from Borg-Warner over Bosch and Siemens to the Porsche-tuned suspension (engineered at the Porsche R and D center in Weissach, Germany). People often do not realize what they get for their money. And I am getting more and more impressed with the vehicle and the package every day.
What really ruins the business aspect for me right now are the dealers here who take every little chance to bite the customers b**t. This is by increasing the prices like crazy and presenting a "take it or leave it" attitude, which was unheard of and unthinkeable for Kia even 5 months ago. Of course, this is beyond influence of Kia in Korea, or Kia US or Canada. However, I guess those rip-off tactics leave a very bad taste in the consumer's mouth, and for the sake of a "new and modernized Kia" I just wish the importer structure would take some measures into their hands to stop this behaviour.

iluvmysephia1

might be the American consumer who just "has to have" the beautiful new mid-size SUV entry from Kia RIGHT NOW! Not a good platform to go shopping for the 2nd largest purchase in most of our shopping lives, eh? It would be good to wait it out a bit. Dealers who are doing this "price-lifting" are lacking in brainpower IMHO. This is not the Kia way-remember, dealers? Value is the name of the Kia game. They have what looks to be a big consumer base interested in their product but it is a consumer base that is busy educating theirselves on price and product. Has anyone heard of any early Sorento production problems of any kind? Even seat belt anchor problems.. or anything? I haven't yet and this is a good sign.

jeepster4

Buy us some..we're sold out of 2003's and waiting for more. Perhaps some of the dealers with left over 2002's are giving up 1/2 of the $1000 dealer cash and accepting a skinny little $500 deal.

steve_on

Buy us some..we're sold out of 2003's and waiting for more.

OK. I can broker the deal for you from Cars Direct, they will deliver or so they claim.

Out here on the "Left" Coast, lots of dealers have Optima's sitting, including 2002, go figure. Of course CA is a bit more status related than the middle of the country....LOL.

Cheers

mikesf

I got my first opportunity to drive the Sorento in the snow. We're in the midst of the first Fall blizzard ;-) here and was able to see how the Sorento handles in the snow. The test was made even better by the lack of snow removal crews (Ye Haa!)

To put it mildly I was impresed. I switched her into 4wd and took off. No troubles, no hesitation, no slippage. I felt the 4wd grip the road and the stock Hankook tires worked like champs. I wanted to get Michelin winter tires but there is an absolute dearth of after market accessories here that they don't even have steel rims for the Sorento yet. I might just tough it out with the 4 seasons. It kills me to use the mags in winter though. She may be leased but if the love affair continues I'll be buying her when the lease is up so I don't mind investing now.

In any case, I was riding along with the MDXs, X5s, Pathfinders etc... . It's funny how I still get looks from the drivers of those other vehicles when I zoom by.

Cheers!

schip1

On the California coast, we don't get any snow. In a recent high-wind rain storm, our Sorento drove very well on Michelin Cross Terrain Radial X. I'm disappointed I haven't seen another Sorento on the road yet, but lots of RX300's, now that I'm more aware of them! It's like you said, steve_on...CA is more concerned with image than rest of country.

#834 - iluvmysephia1: haven't heard or read or experienced any problems yet, not even minor ones that Consumer Reports loves to write about. I continue to find small little things that impress me about how much value KIA put into the Sorento. Just the other day, I finally noticed the headliner is some sort of soft, woven fabric, not hard plastic shell or cheap solid, thin plastic sheet!

#832 - rdowney: regarding resale value...I guess it sort of depends on how long you think you're gonna keep it. I hope to keep mine 10+ years. My guess is that as more people find out what a gread bargin the Sorento is, it is going to maintain its resale value, 'cause demand will drive up cost of new ones in future.

#830 - 'sorento': where did you find running boards for the Sorento? Are they a KIA option? I know what you mean when you said, "...still extremely happy with it". I think you, mikesf, and I are having a serious love affair with our Sorentos! Any suggestions on type of wax to put on this SUV?

nrooks

For my zip code, carsdirect has Sorento's at $600 over invoice. What about in other areas?

loyalone

mikesf - i am a new reader to this forum, so i ampologize now if you have already stated this. which model do you have? i plan on test driving one soon and would like to know if it matters which version of 4wd i get.

lok888

The video from edmunds said there are two type of 4WD on Sorento, one part-time (2Lo, 4Lo & 4 Hi) and one full-time (Sport and Winter mode). Isn't it true? I think it's just one Shift-on-fly type. here is a switch on the dash for the one I test drove.

anonymous02

http://4x4abc.com/4WD101/ABS_offroad.html

hciaffa

There ar two types of 4WD offered on the Sorento the regular 4WD is a shift on the fly as I mentioned in a earlier post and the other is what would be a full time 4WD alsmost what many small car based SUV types have like the CRV and even the Escape The 4wd auto is mostly rear wheel drive until slippage is detected then the front wheels are engaged ( all four wheels). There is a switch to 'lock' the diferentials to give it 4WD in low to help out in driving in snow and mud. Hope this helps.

paisan

It's the same unit used in the Isuzu Trooper and Axiom.

Basically what happens is over 5mph it puts 85% power to the rear, and 15% to the front, and then varies it up to 50/50. Under 5mph it is 0/100 split unless there is slippage then it varies as need be. This can be used on dry pavement and 24x7. There is also a "low range" on the TOD unit that locks it into 4wd 50/50 split with low-range gears for getting through the real tough stuff.

The sport and winter modes don't have anything to do with the 4wd units. Sport mode shifts the tranny @ redline, winter mode starts the vehicle in 2nd or 3rd gear to eliminate wheelspin when starting out on snow/ice covered roads.

-mike

stever

Sorento selected the best-priced and best-quality sports utility vehicle by the Seattle-based Northwest Automotive Press Association.

link (JoongAng Ilbo)

Steve, Host

lok888

Still new to 4WD. Still don't know which type I should get. I want to get the luxury package which includes the TOD.

paisan

It's the best of both worlds. You take a <1mpg hit on milage of the TOD-AWD v. RWD(Part-time 4wd) yet it gives you significantly more safety, and handling (even on dry) With the 4wd Lo on the TOD you still get the good-old style 50-50lock of the part-time 4wd when you need it. (I sound like a commercial!)

-mike

rgross

I think ppl misunderstood my first post ... I was in 2WD when I noticed that the transmission shifted rough from 3rd to 4th gear. I was NOT in 4WD at the time. Has anybody else experienced this problem?

Thanks!

ins0mniac

I looked at a Kia on the weekened. Probably one of the worst sales experiences I've dealt with. They were actually quite busy, and the salesman had only been there 4 days. Didnt have any problems though until the price part. The Sorento's not priced too bad (EX Model) but there was about 1200 in 'extras' including PDI, cleaning, mud flaps, floor mats, undercoating, rust proofing..etc etc....and I dont think that included documentation fees...(Usually about 250)

That puts it at well over $35K CDN dollars, which seems alot for a new and relatively untested vehicle in Canada... Considering a nicly loaded Pathfinder is about $36k.

Will have to check it out again when they arent soo busy. They gave me some numbers on payments, but wouldnt give me the 'work sheet' they did up. I had to write it down myself...

mikesf

Schip1, I heven't seen many Sorentos here (in Montreal) either but that's attriubuted to the fact that so few were delivered to the dealers in the first place. My sales rep at the dealership told me there is now a 4 month waiting list for Sorentos!! BTW, the de-icers (back, front windshields and side-view mirrors were just fantastic and worked rapidly).

Loyalone, I drive a Diamond Silver LX.

Cheers!

lok888

rgross - I hope this is not a real problem or some road condition. I think I saw some posting about the slippery shifting.