Launching the space shuttle

Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds; to seek out new life and new civilizations; to boldly go where no man has gone before!

It has to be one of the most iconic opening few lines of any film or television series ever, spoken by Captain James T Kirk.

Here’s a handy question for when you’re next at the pub. What does the letter T stand for? The answer is Tiberius.

Beyond the minibus

It wasn’t too long ago if you were looking for a 7-seater, you’d need to buy a minibus. Clever engineering has now, however, allowed manufacturers to juggle interiors and create more space under the bonnet, with front wheel drive, and the arrival of transverse engines (facing side to side rather than back to front) also allowed for shorter bonnets and bigger cabins.

The development of SUVs gave a hint as to what could be done, so much so that it was possible to create a car that could cope with seven people. Some are a bit tight in the third row, but others, like this Kia Sorento, can actually accommodate seven adults…as long as they’re not all built like a prop forward.

Kia has been steadily updating its entire range and the Sorento is the latest to come under the microscope.

Variety of engine choices

The engines all now come with some sort of hybrid assistance. You can have self-charging, PHEV and, yikes, there’s even a diesel. No matter which one you go for you’ll get an automatic gearbox and all-wheel drive. Petrol engines are all 1.6 litre units. The diesel gets a 2.2 lump, which will be ideal for anyone who tows or regularly does seriously long journeys with a full load. Yep, believe it or not, there’s still a place for much maligned diesel power.

Most people will go for the normal self-charging Sorento Hybrid, with prices starting at a whisker under £43,000. If you are a business user, then it would be worth looking at the plug-in PHEV model. You’ll need to add a further £4k or so to the purchase price but it might be cheaper overall, especially if you have access to a free charger at work. Do the sums.

What are the trim levels?

The trim levels are pretty straightforward: 2, 3 and 4.

Entry level 2 trim is perfectly acceptable. It has excellent LED headlights, roof rails, heated front seats, heated steering wheel, front and rear air con, central 12.3-inch touchscreen which includes sat nav, front and rear parking sensors and a whole host of passive and active driving gadgets. The touchscreen works well and, thankfully, Kia has kept faith with some traditional buttons and knobs for the radio and heating.

Moving up to something like level 3 trim brings you leather upholstery, tinted rear windows, powered front seats, powered tailgate, 12.3-inch driver display (level 2 trim gets a smaller unit), terrific Bose audio, 19-inch alloys, 360 degree monitor and wireless charging, All of this adds around £4200 to the price.

How is the performance and dynamics?

Out on the road the self-charging hybrid which develops 212 bhp is sufficiently powerful to get you up to 60 mph in 9.7 seconds. It’s a quiet cruiser too. The PHEV version gets a bigger battery which will allow the car to travel up to 34 miles on battery power alone. It also boosts the bhp to 248 and knocks a second off your 0-60 time, but I’d stick with the self-charging Sorento.

In terms of driving dynamics you need to remember what this car is all about. It’s designed to be a family holdall which means if you are looking for a car with sporty pretentions, forget it. View the Sorento as a car which will be ideal for holidays, shopping and school runs, trips to the tip and shifting some of Aunt Meg’s furniture to the other end of the country, it will be brilliant.

Premium standard but not Jogger prices

As family transportation goes, the Kia Sorento is one of the best 7-seater cars around. It’s not the cheapest (Dacia Jogger, I’m looking at you), but it is a genuinely premium standard car. It’ll seat seven people in comfort, has sufficient power and is well equipped in terms of goodies and safety gear. The interior also looks quality and the soft touch fabrics are excellent.

And you have the reassurance of Kia’s 7-year / 100,000-mile warranty. How’s that for confidence which, to be fair, is something you need when heading off to the continent for a month-long trip with the kids and the Labrador.

If you’ve not been inside the latest Kias, it’s worth popping into a dealer for a quick test drive. You’ll be pleasantly surprised. The brand produce a high quality product and will be giving the likes of Audi and Mercedes a few sleepless nights. Oh, and the Sorento looks good too.

This space shuttle will certainly fly.

words: Graham Courtney
pictures: Kia