Just had a 3-day test drive in a Kia Cee'd - I can't remember now where I saw the advertisement but although it's not my size (we need one car bigger, one smaller) I thought it might be fun. It was.
GOOD
- 1.6 petrol engine gives out 120 bhp - pretty healthy for a Golf-size car.
- Very good quick response to the accelerator - plenty of shove straight away. This was perhaps the most obvious, and welcome, contrast with my diesel B-class.
- More room in the back than a Golf, and the rear seats fold flat. I got a full-size music keyboard in there yesterday.
- Handling not as sharp as a Focus, but sharper than a Golf.
NOT SO GOOD
- Infuriating stalks the wrong way round: fine if you don't have another car I suppose.
- Silly name, and why the apostrophe?
- the stylist has been allowed to win with the door mirrors which are a silly shape and hioner visibility of things overtaking you.
- you have to remove the headrests to fold down the back seat
- rear vision not great - again the stylist has decreed one of those silly little 'sixth light' windows, as on the Jazz and Colt.
In sum it was fun to drive and reasonably practical. I'll wait for the estate which is to come later this year with the option of a 2.0 diesel. Our vicar has a Sportage 2.0 dlesel and says it's very well soundproofed (incldentally he tows a caravan and the Kia is the best towing car he's ever had).
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- Infuriating stalks the wrong way round
Techincally, the right way round. :oP
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>> - Infuriating stalks the wrong way round Techincally, the right way round. :oP
Absolutely correct, and I have to say the fact that the Primera's stalks are on the left is driving me equally mad, having been used to a Sunny and an Accent with them on the right.
Stalks on the left may seem a good idea, until you're changing gear with full-beam on and someone comes the other way... plus with stalks on the right, I could switch the lights on as I was getting into the car. A little thing, but one that I'm missing now.
Anyway I thought Kia were going to "fix" this "problem with the Cee'd?
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The indicators always used to be on the right, when that was the only stalk you got. But since the late 1970s I've driven cars with indicators on the left, and even before I had automatics I never found the need to indicate or change headlight beam at the same time as changing gear.
Kia should accept the way of the rest of the world.
At least horn pushes are mostly now where they should be - the steering wheel boss (I bet that one gets some indignant replies!).
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My 306 had it on the left stalk - push in.
Handy when indulging in some 'stress relief' as the 'hornee' (oo-er) normally got the full works of horn and flashing due to the fact that was also on that stalk.
The French - always innovating! Must leave the other hand free for their fag...
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In the Autoexpress review it said Kia will be correcting the stalks for the UK market on cars sold to customers.
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Kia should accept the way of the rest of the world.
No, Britain should accept the way of the rest of the world :P
In Japan, and Australia and New Zealand and South Africa and India (the main RHD regions), the stalk is on the right.
Stalk on the left is a LHD drive thing, the reason why we have it the other way round is because almost all cars sold here are LHD cars with RHD conversion, and manufacturers were too lazy to change the stalks over, and over time it became a de-facto "standard". But that don't make it right.
These Kias are based on Japanese designs, and large numbers are sold in the RHD regions with the stalk on the right. Brit cars are the oddballs, not the other way around.
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A nice review Avant, thanks. I'm going to get my dad to look at the Kia instead of having another Corolla/Auris, for me the Cee'd is a good simple package where as Toyota and Honda have gone to much for style over substance recently. Cee'd looks so much like a slightly more curved last generation Corolla its untrue and hopefully they will be picking up a lot of customers due to that. Hyundai i30 is vitually identical car and I wonder what the price of that will be. The petrol engines not being chain cam and no remote central locking is on the S spec seem to let it down but apart from thats it looks a good.
From what I've read the 1.4 petrol is the best engine, anyone tried on of those ?
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Couldn't handle indicator stalks on the right. BTW, all modern VW group cars in S Africa have indicator on left (the correct way0. I can't imagine that other makers' cars are different.
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There is no "correct" or "right way" for indicator stalks. There is no right way or wrong way for the headlamp dipping switch either. It makes not a jot of difference.
------------------------------
TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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until you wash your windscreen at someone!
That was me getting out of my Ford & driving my Dad's Vauxhall.
JH
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According to Russell Bray, who also very much liked the Cee'd, the name is said to have been formed by combining the initials of the Community of Europe with ED - the name of Kia's German European Design Centre.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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I agree it is infuriating to have the indicators on the right. How are you supposed to program the tomtom, or text and indicate at the same time! Is it so surprising there are so many accidents.
I have two cars, one with the indicators on the right, and one with indicators on the left, what I have done to overcome this problem is to learn how to drive both!
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Enjoyed the review Avant.
Do you wish you´d tried one before you got the B-class now :-)
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First car I had with the indicator stalk on the left was a 1971 NSU 1000C. It never caused me any bother switching from this to another car with the stalk on the right.
What has caused me bother, is having the horn on one car on a stalk and then another with it on the steering wheel.
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I learned to drive in a Nissan Micra (instructor's) with the indicators on the right, and a Ford Sierra (dad's) with the indicators on the left. Can't say it causes me a problem.
I agree with Machika - moving the horn press around causes much more difficulty. The number of times I've thumped the steering wheel uselessly or washed my windscreen in response to an idiot carving me up or pulling out.
Cheers
DP
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I miss the headlamp dip switch that used to be on the floor to left of brake pedal on my old auto Zodiac and big chrome horn ring on steering wheel - being an older driver I am used to indicators on right - I still indicate to wash windscreen occasionally
Dave
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