I've posted before about my husband and I trying out some RDX competitors. The Lincoln MKC most recently.
In our search we got to the KIA Sorrento EX last week.
And after some haggling and hemming and hawing, we found a dealer willing to take our leased RDX 2013 base in a trade for a 2015 Sorrento EX.

Why did we switch? Comparison:
Montly payment about the same, tho KIA is a full tech upgrade while our RDX was base.
KIA EX includes Voice Nav with 8" touch screen. Upgraded Infinity surround system. Panoramic sun roof. Heated and cooled front seats. Side mirror monitoring, power lift gate, memory seating, tho passenger seat also does not go up and down, it is set higher into the car so you aren't in a hole.

It's a slightly larger and heavier vehicle, but not as large as the MDX from what I can tell. Not as nible as the RDX because it's heavier. This KIA is more heavy duty feeling. Larger hatch area (we did not get the 3rd row seating). Back seat space about the same tho vehicle is wider.

We enjoyed the RDX, it's a very nice vehicle, but it began to feel out of date, especially our base, and the passenger seat was always a pain.

So for the same monthly lease payment we got into a newer tech equipped, more spacious and smoother riding vehicle. We felt OK about checking out S. Korean vehicles as we've been very impressed with the quality of Samsung products we've bought and feel the S. Koreans are making big strides toward becoming true competitors to Japanese manufacturers.

All the above is just my opinion which I thought I'd share as people often ask about comparable vehicles.
So I'll say goodby now. Everyone here has been great, helpful with much good information to share.

 

nice!

I'm driving a '12 kia sportage and its an awesome vehicle.

 

KIA has come a long way to be sure. I have friends with the lesser Forte and Soul and they are a lot of car for the money. That said, I am a very loyal Honda guy and can't see myself switching. Enjoy it.

 

Good for you. I've had Hyundais for a while and I'm done with them. Everything looks good for few years then..... Crap. I'm not going there anytime soon now.

 

my family bought the '12 kia brand new!
Ive been working on it since.

it's so easy to work on and the parts will EASILY last for a while. just as long as my Acura TL.
maybe even longer because the Kia is so simple.

seriously, the brakes are easy to change and use the same design as the TL.
suspension is surprisingly set up well!
the car has 33k miles currently and I can see it lasting WAAAAAAAY past 100k miles.
of course, proper maintenance is required.

 

Kia / Hyundai's are good vehicles. I really like the Santa Fe Sport 2.0T.

Btw, a new Sorento is coming next year. Not too bad looking.
2016 Kia Sorento Unveiled in Paris » AutoGuide.com News

 

owned Hyundai's and had good luck with them. They went over 100K miles with no problems. Now own a 14 Kia Soul. Very quiet, well built vehicle with 11K miles.

 

Hey girlie, how have you been?
missed ya!

 

I guess this has now become the Kia Owners site.

 

KIA,..... Not in the same ball park as a Acura. Not even in the same solar system....


As Always... IMHO.

 

hey crabman-good and bad but going.

 

Sorry OP, I just don't understand how a Samsung product has made you consider buying a S. Korean vehicle. There is no relation... at all. Personally, I am not a fan of Kia or Hyundai regardless of how much tech they put in their vehicles. Knowing they will place airbags to pass safety standards rather than add steel does not sit well with me. Also, the resale for these companies is brutal. Of course the dealer took your RDX without much hassle... they know they can sell and make money on it within weeks.

 

Calling BS on this. IHS gave both 2014 rdx and santa fe the same ratings. So if you think you are more safe in your rdx because it may have a few extra pounds of steel then good for you.

In 70s, when Japan became famous for their quality products the high quality standards were reflected in electronic goods, automobiles and most of the other products. Perhaps this analogy can help you see the relation between a Korean product and a Korean vehicle.

 

Forgot to mention 2013 Sorento also has the same safety ratings as rdx. Have a great day

 

The Koreans have been building quality cars recently - but - fit and finish isn't up to state of the art vehicles.

While they may have gotten way more reliable of late, their reputation hasn't caught up and - like another poster said - resale suffers accordingly.

 

Let's see what we have here... a new member with 2 posts both praising Kia/Hyundai on an Acura Owners site.


Can anyone say "troll"?
Urban Dictionary: troll

 

Kia cars are a good value but the SUVs are a bit pricey. We cross-shopped the Sportage and Sorrento before we got the RDX. I couldn't believe the sticker prices on comparably equipped models. The salesmen were a bit snobby as well.

 

Troll no, but a long time lurker, yes. I have been around for some time now and couldnt resist responding to an argument with lack of evidence. Being an acura owner doesn't mean I should stop being objective. Thank you for your valuable comment

 

Member since Oct 2014 = troll
One who posts a deliberately provocative message to a newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument

 

So my comment made you blow a gasket and finally register? Aww
Lack of evidence? I work in emergency services. I know who walks away from collisions and who doesn't/can't. Kia, in particular, have been known to add airbags to pass inspection. Specifically lower airbags for your legs. And yes I have witnessed this. There is no doubt, in 2014, both Kia and Hyundai have increased their quality. But at nearly the same price as Acura...easy decision, IMO

 

some you dont know when you are getting trolled and when you arent.

Im all for Kia and you all chose to pick on the other pro kia member...

remember, opinions and different points of view are what makes forums interesting. THAT doesnt mean you're getting trolled.

 

It's all good. No question he is a troll. He'll make his way to Off Topic and be banned in no time

 

The ever versatile Troll-Boy now rates the comments. Yawn...

 

^are you guise mad that Kia has the same crash ratings as your Acura?

 

Can we all guys take a deep breath and relax. This thread is taking a not so friendly turn. Let's keep this forum fun to read. And yes we do love all cars. Cheers.

 

Not me. I hate cars. Especially Kia and Acura.

 

Kia's are great in the beginning - lots of features, safety and technology for your money but you take it up the ass when it comes to resale. Kia is still that shitty car brand I remember growing up, it's hard to wrap my head around them actually making a decent product when not to long ago they were building the Sephia.. I guess the same can be said about Honda - my parents said when Honda came to North America their product wasn't anything to write home about and look at them now. Maybe when I'm their age I'll be buying Kia's instead of Honda's.

Congrats on the new Sorento, hopefully you enjoy it more than your Acura!

 

I have to admit that my Kia experience is rather limited. I drove a rental Sedona in May. Perhaps it was because it was a stable mule but it was easily the biggest POS I've ever been provided as a rental car....and I've been renting cars since the 70's. I know that rental car companies are keeping cars longer but this one only had 8,000 miles on it.

 

No, not at all. I have nothing against Kia's, or Hyundai's for that matter. It's certain posters with other agendas (not you) that bug me.

Comfy is correct, it is time to relax and ratchet things down.

 

I thought the Sorento was a good value for what you get, and you get quite a lot. An odd thing swayed me to Acura though. It seemed to me like the RDX had the more comfortable driver seat. I thought the Sorento seat was a bit too firm. Anyone else notice that? Maybe it was not so bad, but it just seemed almost like sitting on a wooden board from what I recall.

 

I own a 2012 TL SH-AWD. I rented a KIA Optima last year to drive down to Myrtle Beach from Maryland. Why? Because I didnt want to vacuum or brush sand out of my TL.

Yes, KIA vehicles are nice. I will be lying if I say I wasnt impressed by the Optima, but will I buy it to replace my TL? Not a chance. I can see myself driving an Optima as a daily commuter, but when I want to roll in style, I am rolling in my TL.

Just my .

OP >> Congrats on your purchase. I hope you enjoy your new ride. Its not about what others think, its about what you like. Afterall, it is your money. You buy what fits best for you.

 

Are you picky about seats? How did you like the Optima seat? Did it have the ventilated seat and if so what were your thoughts?

 

Yes, i sure am picky about the seats. The Optima seats were alright. I would still take TL's seats over Optima, but they were not bad. They were not as supportive as the TL's. During my 7 - 8 hrs drive, I did not feel any type of strain or discomfort in the Optima. But then again, since I was driving with some friends, we had to make 3 pit stops, so we got out of the our seats every 2 hours or so to straighten our legs.

The Optima had regular, non-vented seats, so I cannot comment on that.

 

I had rented a Kia optima recently and unfortunately my experience wasn't nice. I just didn't like the ride at all. The car only looks good from outside. But that's a start I guess.

 

Congrats Texdriver. I hope the Kia serves you well. I think the brand is doing a lot right these days in terms of design and content. Although not their best styling effort, the K900 is a pretty amazing car. It's hard not to be impressed if you can look at it objectively.

For whatever it's worth ...

Kia's brand perception still painfully lags behind reality - Autoblog

 

And for all of you chiming in with 'resale' 'resale' 'resale'...I have three thoughts: Lease lease lease

 

we are not worried about resale as we keep our vehicles for more than 100K miles. Our 06 tsx has 170K miles.

 

Resale value(or residual value) is a huge factor in lease pricing so it should be a consideration. The only time resale value wouldn't be a factor is if you buy and keep the vehicle for about 10 years or have some money to burn..

 

If the residual doesn't match the 'value' 3-4 years down the road, the consumer isn't on the hook. Resale at the end of the lease is meaningless if the consumer simply turns the vehicle in. Fortunately, open-end leases are as rare as dinosaurs. In theory, the 'resale value' should match or follow the residual, but that's not the consumer's concern.

It's not all black and white, but Texdriver said the payments were the same. Unless we don't know about some hidden down payment, it matters not what the back end numbers are. Heck, if all the safety and features are there AND the consumer is happy, it really doesn't matter what the MSRP is either.

 

I didn't realize that our buying a Kia would elicit all this pro and con. Just to give a little more info about the debated things, we have a 3 yr. lease, nothing down, 56% residual (generous but good for us as it kept the payment down). We don't care about the resale value as we will just give it back to the dealer. The vehicle is very nice, rides well, spacious and full of fun tech.

My post was not meant to sell Kia's vs. Acuras, we had leased Lexus RX350s for about 12 years and wanted something different, then the RDX, not as nice as a Lexus but less per month, and now the KIA, very nice and same monthly payment as the RDX. All good vehicles, variety is the spice of life. Coach Rick gets it, probably because he's a fellow Texan, go Cowboys! But anyway, everyone should get the vehicle they like and others should not get judgmental.