Jump to content
News
Reviews
Discussons
Activity
Create New...
Close
  • William Maley
    William Maley

    By William Maley •

    Interactive Review: 2012 Kia Optima EX

    William Maley

    Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com

    July 5, 2012

    This week in the Cheers and Gears Detroit garage is the 2012 Kia Optima EX. This Optima is equipped with the base 2.4L DI inline-four delivering 200 HP and 186 lb-ft torque, and is equipped with a six-speed automatic.

    First Impressions so far:

    • Love the exterior and interior design
    • Headroom in the backseat is a bit tight
    • The amount of equipment for the price is very impressive
    • Average fuel economy so far: 27.2 MPG

    I will be updating with more thoughts about the Optima throughout its stay. Send in your questions in the meantime.

    Update #1: So far the Optima has been really impressing me. The 2.4L DI four is very smooth and has quite the punch. Average fuel economy has dropped to 25.3 MPG, but that's in line with the EPA rating for the city. I'm expecting that number rise over the weekend.

    As for complaints, I have one dealing with the back window. you can barely see anything out the back window due to the rakish design and large C-Pillars. Thankfully, the Optima has a rear view camera thanks to the optional Premium package.

    I'll another update coming either tomorrow or Monday with highway fuel economy numbers.

    Update #2: My time with the Optima is coming to close, as it will be heading back tomorrow. And, I'm sad to see it go.

    The Optima has really impressed my as a package. The powertrain, design, and features makes for a very formidable player in the midsize sedan market. It does have some problems, some I have talked about here and some that I will talk about in the review. But most are minor, maybe for the back window and not seeing out of it.

    As for highway fuel economy, the EPA rates the Optima 2.4L at 35 MPG. I got close to it, getting 33.5 MPG on my run. If I had gone further, I'm willing to bet I would have matched or even surpassed 35.

    William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.

    Go to articles

    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    smk4565

    I drove a Sonata and it was pretty quiet, pretty good for a low $20s midsizer. Never drove an Optima, but I agree with mudmonster about the styling, I like it. I like how the center console angles toward the drive also, give the interior more of a sporty feel, compared with the Sonata that has a generic layout.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    William Maley

    I'm interested in noise. How loud/quiet is it on the highway. Tire hum, tire slap, engine buzz.... and the like.

    Its pretty quiet. There isn't really a hum from the engine and tire noise was at a minimum

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    William Maley

    How Sporty is the overall feel of the car when you drive it?

    Somewhat sporty. The suspension does a good job of keeping car stable when you're having a bit of fun. I'm finding the steering to provide good feel, but its somewhat too heavy. If this was a sports car, I wouldn't mind it at all. This being a family sedan, I think Kia might want to dial it back some.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    ocnblu

    Hyundai/Kia styling has come ahead lightyears since the beginning here in the US. They have some good looking products. They seem to have hired some good people in key positions. But I still feel concerned that something might be missing in some areas of engineering. Perhaps it is brand snobbery, but some of the other reviews I've read seem to bear this out. Product development has moved along at a fast clip, but some important details are lacking. It's like uneven but rapid evolution. imo.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    William Maley

    What do you think of this Vs. the Sonata

    i much prefer the styling on this car.

    I prefer the Optima with Exterior and Interior styling. I can't say which I like better for driving (haven't driven a Sonata), but from a few people I have talked to who have driven both, the Sonata is softer, luxury model. The Optima takes the sporty role.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    daves87rs

    What do you think of this Vs. the Sonata

    i much prefer the styling on this car.

    I prefer the Optima with Exterior and Interior styling. I can't say which I like better for driving (haven't driven a Sonata), but from a few people I have talked to who have driven both, the Sonata is softer, luxury model. The Optima takes the sporty role.

    What I;ve heard too...and agree.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites


    Join the conversation

    You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
    Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

    Guest
    Add a comment...

    ×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

      Only 75 emoji are allowed.

    ×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

    ×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

    ×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

    ×

  • google-news-icon.png



  • google-news-icon.png

  • Subscribe to Cheers & Gears

    Cheers and Gears Logo

    Since 2001 we've brought you real content and honest opinions, not AI-generated stuff with no feeling or opinions influenced by the manufacturers.

    Please consider subscribing. Subscriptions can be as little as $1.75 a month, and a paid subscription drops most ads.*
     

    You can view subscription options here.

    *a very limited number of ads contain special coupon deals for our members and will show

  • Similar Content

  • Posts

    • oldshurst442
      Beautiful Cars Appreciation Thread

      By oldshurst442 · Posted

    • oldshurst442
      Airplanes

      By oldshurst442 · Posted

      ^^^  I think the last pic is an AI generated picture.    YUCK!!! I mean, if it is one, its a GREAT image, the technology is both awesome and scary. Very real. But fake...and that is the yuck part of it all.  The fakeness.  I like REALITY.  
    • oldshurst442
      Random Thoughts Thread

      By oldshurst442 · Posted

      I became a hater when I realized Toyota is just another same ole same ole corporate greed company like any other and when I realized that they had sheeple followers that they had brainwashed thinking that Toyota can never do any harm.  It wasnt a right away hatred either.  It took time. I first noticed something was off about Toyota with the aforementioned engine sludge thing.  And it took years after that when I started questioning folk that drove Toyotas and then incident after incident happened and yet nobody ever was pissed about Toyota's failures.  It all came to a boiling point with me with the unintended acceleration debacle and had it NOT for Toyota settling out of court of billions of dollars, I myself would have chucked it to stupid drivers, but Toyota plead guilty quietly and paid that tremendous fine.  And it peeved me more to see that AMERICAN media kept that quiet also, but also downplyed the WHOLE thing by them ALSO blaming the American driver coming up with excuse after excuse defending Toyota.  And then I read (call it a consipracy theory if you want to) a report (not on the internet) that Japanese automakers convinced the American buyer to perform their regular maintenance at the dealerships and when their was a problem akin to catastrophic failure with the vehicle, the dealership would repair the problem without the owner knowing about the problem and all that was also subsidized by the Japanese government and the WORST offenders of this were Nissan, Toyota, Mitsubishi and Subaru in the 1980s.  Another reason why I dont like this company is that they stopped producing cars for the enthusiast for a little while.  Boring appliance after boring appliance made especially for dumb people that would be better off using public transportation. And in more recent times, better calling an Uber.   I like some cars of theirs. I have pointed this out plenty of times.  No need for me to justify what cars and trucks I like from them.  But you did mention the Lexus LC500 and yeah!  THAT would be one awesome creation.  Id take mine in coupe form though. But if I was doing this car MY way, Id LS/LT swap it.  Nothing crazy done to the engine, just with enough HP and torque to best Lexus' original efforts.  500HP and 500ft/lbs.  In HP, its not much more than what Lexus done, but its the torque figures that make the difference in my make belief dream LC 500. 
    • surreal1272
      Chevrolet News:Offering up to 492 Miles of Range the 2025 Chevrolet Silverado EV is here.

      By surreal1272 · Posted

      I actually like the look but at near 9,000 lbs., holy smokes! Instant pot hole maker lol..
    • surreal1272
      Random Thoughts Thread

      By surreal1272 · Posted

      The LC500 is just a damn fine looking car, regardless of who makes it. Lexus mucks up a lot of exteriors (and not just with the "predator" grill) but the LC500 is not one of them.   I feel you on that. A year ago, it was my right hip (post surgery) and I was doing the same thing as you for a few weeks lol. Rest and recover.

  • Who's Online (See full list)

    • There are no registered users currently online

  • My Clubs

×
×
  • Create New...

Hey there, we noticed you're using an ad-blocker. We're a small site that is supported by ads or subscriptions. We rely on these to pay for server costs and vehicle reviews.  Please consider whitelisting us in your ad-blocker, or if you really like what you see, you can pick up one of our subscriptions for just $1.75 a month or $15 a year. It may not seem like a lot, but it goes a long way to help support real, honest content, that isn't generated by an AI bot.

See you out there.

Drew
Editor-in-Chief

I've whitelisted
Continue without support

Write what you are looking for and press enter or click the search icon to begin your search