Topic: Day-by-Day Review: 2012 Kia Rio Sedan; Day 1

[Autos_Editor]

This week, James discovers whether it really is more fun to drive a slow car fast, than a fast car slowly.
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[Ontariodriver]

Lets see if it's true. Nicely equip. Not that great to drive.

[dirtyjeffer]

not that great to drive?...compared to a Porsche, sure...but i would say it is quite competitive against other sub $20k cars.

[jyarkony]

not that great to drive?...compared to a Porsche, sure...but i would say it is quite competitive against other sub $20k cars.

Yeah, agreed, this is a fun car relative to other subcompacts... Although I find most small cars relatively fun, unless they're annoyingly loud and uncomfortable like the tuned iQ mike had... The Rio also is great value and has features you won't find on a lot of used compact and mid-size cars just a few years old. It's one of those cars that could easily sway someone to buy new over used.

[Jaeger]

Looking forward to this one.  That is a very good-looking and nicely-equipped subcompact for the money.

[tortoise]

not that great to drive?...compared to a Porsche, sure...but i would say it is quite competitive against other sub $20k cars.

Did James change his article?

I can't find where he said it wasn't fun to drive.

[safristi]

Remember Wing it's compulsory now to wring the snot out of all testers @ Calaboogie! Racetrack......you started it buddy........

[Weels]

Hah... anytime I see a Rio, I can't help but think of the Kia abuse fun I had on the Forza Competition Top Gear Track:   




http://www.autos.ca/forum/index.php/topic,77378.0.html

[Jaeger]

not that great to drive?...compared to a Porsche, sure...but i would say it is quite competitive against other sub $20k cars.

Did James change his article?

I can't find where he said it wasn't fun to drive.

I'm guessing that was a response to Ontariodriver.  James generally doesn't get to the details of the driving experience until day 3.

[Factger]

I am quite interested in the fuel economy also. They say the rio does not get the same fuel economy as the accent (low 7s vs mid 6s). There is a really good lease rate on this car right now. I may be interested and turf the maxima.

[sacrat]

I am quite interested in the fuel economy also. They say the rio does not get the same fuel economy as the accent (low 7s vs mid 6s). There is a really good lease rate on this car right now. I may be interested and turf the maxima.

I wouldn't necessarily judge gas mileage by this test. Our very new Accent gets poor mileage so far, but dirtyjeffer's Rio has improved with break in. Generally Hyundai/Kias posted mileage figures are rather optimistic anyway.
Surprisingly my 09 Sonata has done much better this summer with 85km on the clock (low 9's/100km). Now that's what I call a LOOOONG break in period

[Factger]

You are correct but you also has to give wing some credit because he has already tested the Mazda2, Fiesta, Accent and the Yaris(where is the sonic LOL).  So his real world  fuel economy numbers may not represent the number you and I get but they are comparable to the numbers from the other models he has already driven. It is not exact but it is still pretty informative.

[carcrazed]

Sat in one of these for a short period of time when rental car place had to drive me to their other location.  It felt like the car had pretty decent interior and it was more spacious than I had thought.
Suspension was on the firm side and little body roll on turns.  The engine, however, was noisy and struggled to pull us up a small hill.  The driver had to floor the car to get up the hill at an acceptable pace.

[Blueprint]

A co-worker had a Rio5 EX manual on order, but after 3-4 weeks he gave up and got a slushbox... It seems the dealers aren't ordering many of these with a stick 

Wing, your loaded + sedan + stick seems to be a rare example, but just the one we want to read about!  Most US test drives are of loaded SX automatics.

---

New Ody, in break-in period, 9.2 l/100km on the way down to Boston, loaded with family and luggage, 120 km/h.  Range above 800km.  Happy customer 

[dutch]

That is really nicely equipped for the $$$.

[Ontariodriver]

not that great to drive?...compared to a Porsche, sure...but i would say it is quite competitive against other sub $20k cars.

A porsche. You're having a laugh. Compared to Fiesta, Sonic, Mazda 2 and the Yaris. all 4 are drive better. Maybe the Yaris is stretching it.

To be honest, I’m not sure why anyone would buy a sedan over a hatchback

Well in NA for some odd reason you have to pay more for the hatch than the sedan. This is not too bad. Only few hundred bucks more. This KIA is really ugly in boot form IMO. Plus with the boot it's great for out of sight out of mind. I still hate the badge. Screams cheap motor. But it really isn't. I still would never buy one. Hatch is so much better looking IMO. If a bit SEAT from the back.

[dirtyjeffer]

A porsche. You're having a laugh. Compared to Fiesta, Sonic, Mazda 2 and the Yaris. all 4 are drive better. Maybe the Yaris is stretching it.

i never drove the 2, the Yaris or the Sonic, but i did drive the Fiesta, and i disagree...not that there was anything wrong with the ride in the Fiesta, but i didn't find it any better...i found the transmission in the Rio better (and could possible end up being more reliable) and pick up was much better...as well, the Fiesta is skinny...it felt smaller inside than the smart fortwo i drove a few years ago...the Rio is about the same size as the previous gen Focus and not much smaller than the current one (it is a fair amount larger than the Fiesta).

[dirtyjeffer]

Sat in one of these for a short period of time when rental car place had to drive me to their other location.  It felt like the car had pretty decent interior and it was more spacious than I had thought.
Suspension was on the firm side and little body roll on turns.  The engine, however, was noisy and struggled to pull us up a small hill.  The driver had to floor the car to get up the hill at an acceptable pace.

all trims have the same engine/transmission, so the ride can feel different depending on the trim...i wonder if the one you drove in had the ActiveECO enabled...it really does suck the life out of the car...i don't use it and have no problems with power/acceleration...no, it isn't a turbo GTI, but still decent...if it was a dog, i wouldn't have bought it.

[dougjp]

Sedan vs. hatch, the reasons for some people to prefer a sedan are;

- they think its better looking, preferring a slope and smooth contours at the back vs. the cutoff slab look.
- less expensive
- don't need elongated trunk space, or have another vehicle that has large carrying capacity, or use the back seat to carry large objects
- don't care about visibility when backing up 
- have bad experiences from the 'old days', when hatchbacks did nothing but rattle.

[Blueprint]

James, looks like you got booted from the main page