- :
- 2008 Mazda5 5MT Sport w/ Popular Package
For the veterans in the forums, you might remember this car 
. It seems that the next gen will make it to Canada after all. Compared to the current generation, this actually looks very decent. Still, no sliding doors, booh 
. I think KIA has come a long way since. Now, 6 Manual transmission? I believe it when I see it...
2014 Kia Rondo
The 2014 Rondo is a refresh of the model that has been in Kias line-up since 1999, while the Cadenza full-size sedan is an all-new addition to the family.
Well get to the Cadenza later, but the 14 Rondo is the car that really turned the heads of the journos on-hand at media preview day in the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Aside from the low-volume Sedona minivan, the Rondo Urban Utility Vehicle (UUV) was the last vehicle in Kias line-up to not have benefited from the firms new styling direction. Indeed, the old model was not a sight for sore eyes, looking more like it had been designed with an eye for necessity as opposed to one for any real stylistic interest at all.
The new car, on the other hand, is a vast departure and does well to make use of the new grille shape, available high-intensity discharge headlights (that feature massive lenses) and handsome lines found throughout the line-up.
Youd be hard-pressed to associate the old car with the new one by looking at it from the outside; inside, however, the optional three row seating, broad view out and high seating position from the previous model remain.
It is and has always been a truly unique car, the Rondo, one that has very few direct competitors this side of a Mazda5. Actually, the new car seems to even have a little in common with the new Mercedes-Benz B-Class, a testament to Kias awareness of the fact that even for people-movers like the Rondo, styling is important, especially when the vehicle is aimed at young, urban families as the Rondo surely is.
Power comes from a single engine option, and thats a two-litre, four-cylinder gasoline-direct injection mill that makes 165 horsepower and 156 pound-feet of torque; thats slightly more power than whats made by the Mazda5, but down a little on torque to its Japanese competitor.
Like the 5, however, youll be able to spec the Rondo with either a six-speed manual or automatic transmission; people moving with a manual box? Thats a rare thing, and a testament to the sporty intentions of the new Rondo. We like.
In addition to the three-row seating (whose second and third rows fold completely flat), the rest of the interior benefits from Schreyers touch in the same way many other Kias have; nice lighting, quality materials and comfortable seats. The car on display in Toronto was top-spec, but having driven Kias with lower trim levels before, Im sure the Rondo will do just fine.
Look for the 14 Rondo to hit dealerships later this year.
[
]
. It seems that the next gen will make it to Canada after all. Compared to the current generation, this actually looks very decent. Still, no sliding doors, booh . I think KIA has come a long way since. Now, 6 Manual transmission? I believe it when I see it...2014 Kia Rondo
The 2014 Rondo is a refresh of the model that has been in Kias line-up since 1999, while the Cadenza full-size sedan is an all-new addition to the family.
Well get to the Cadenza later, but the 14 Rondo is the car that really turned the heads of the journos on-hand at media preview day in the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Aside from the low-volume Sedona minivan, the Rondo Urban Utility Vehicle (UUV) was the last vehicle in Kias line-up to not have benefited from the firms new styling direction. Indeed, the old model was not a sight for sore eyes, looking more like it had been designed with an eye for necessity as opposed to one for any real stylistic interest at all.
The new car, on the other hand, is a vast departure and does well to make use of the new grille shape, available high-intensity discharge headlights (that feature massive lenses) and handsome lines found throughout the line-up.
Youd be hard-pressed to associate the old car with the new one by looking at it from the outside; inside, however, the optional three row seating, broad view out and high seating position from the previous model remain.
It is and has always been a truly unique car, the Rondo, one that has very few direct competitors this side of a Mazda5. Actually, the new car seems to even have a little in common with the new Mercedes-Benz B-Class, a testament to Kias awareness of the fact that even for people-movers like the Rondo, styling is important, especially when the vehicle is aimed at young, urban families as the Rondo surely is.
Power comes from a single engine option, and thats a two-litre, four-cylinder gasoline-direct injection mill that makes 165 horsepower and 156 pound-feet of torque; thats slightly more power than whats made by the Mazda5, but down a little on torque to its Japanese competitor.
Like the 5, however, youll be able to spec the Rondo with either a six-speed manual or automatic transmission; people moving with a manual box? Thats a rare thing, and a testament to the sporty intentions of the new Rondo. We like.
In addition to the three-row seating (whose second and third rows fold completely flat), the rest of the interior benefits from Schreyers touch in the same way many other Kias have; nice lighting, quality materials and comfortable seats. The car on display in Toronto was top-spec, but having driven Kias with lower trim levels before, Im sure the Rondo will do just fine.
Look for the 14 Rondo to hit dealerships later this year.
[
