2006 Kia Sportage EX 2.7L 6 cylinder from Korea

Summary:

I love my Sportage

Faults:

I have not had any problems with this vehicle.

General Comments:

I am very impressed with my '06 Sportage. It has a lot of features for the money. I love the leather and the sunroof options. It is fun to drive and the 6 cylinder is responsive. It is a fully loaded vehicle for a lot less money that its competitors. I am getting an average of 21 mpg so far and expect that to improve as more miles are put on the vehicle. I looked at several other options before deciding on a Sportage and have no regrets. The size is perfect for my needs, not too big nor too small. The brushed aluminum dash kit is a nice touch too.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th July, 2006

2006 Kia Sportage LX 2.0 from North America

Summary:

Great Value for the Price

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

The '06 Sportage is lightyears ahead of where the previous incarnations of the Sportage was.

We've had our Sportage for a few months now and can safely say that its everything Kia says it is and more. Its hard not to compare the new model Sportage to a CRV or Rav-4 as the Kia's have everything Honda and Toyota has with the exception of one thing: Price.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 26th June, 2006

2006 Kia Sportage LX 6 cylinder from North America

Faults:

The Kia is a great car for tall people. The low rise console allows the right knee to be bent without coming in contact with the console, unlike the Tucson. If you big and tall, it's one great car.

I bought one for $17,800. A V-6 auto, great price. People who paid 30k for a Tucson, are they nuts?

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 14th June, 2006

2006 Kia Sportage LX V6 from North America

Summary:

Best small SUV for the money

Faults:

Nothing has went wrong with it so far.

General Comments:

This car was no where near the top of my list when I started looking for a new small SUV. Let me just say I was very impressed with it when I took it for a test drive. The LX was pretty well loaded for its price range. I did want keyless entry and had to purchase it aftermarket as I did not want to pay the extra money to move up to the next model. This vehicle has a very smooth ride and looks great too. A lot of standard safety features lowered my insurance quite a bit and that was a big and pleasant surprise. The warranty is also impressive. The only thing I am really disappointed in is the gas mileage. It really hurts with the rising gas prices. Other than the gas mileage I am very pleased with my KIA Sportage.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 12th May, 2006

2006 Kia Sportage ex V6 from North America

Summary:

Great Value

Faults:

Gas mileage is only 19.0 average. Too low for a medium sized SUV.

General Comments:

Great value. Strong warranty, hope I do not have to use it. Good looks and safety considerations were key factor in purchase.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 22nd March, 2006

2006 Kia Sportage EX from North America

Summary:

We test drove the RAV4, CRV and Tucson, and are delighted we chose the Sportage

General Comments:

Our new KIA Sportage is a great around-town car. We have had it two months and we're getting 19.5 in the city.

I maneuver in and out of traffic with ease; parking is never a problem.

I love the safety features since I am still toting kids around.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 20th March, 2006

2006 Kia Sportage LX V6 AT 2.7 V6 from North America

Summary:

This is a great car within it's limits, despite the lousy mileage

Faults:

First impression here, nothing has gone wrong yet.

General Comments:

We love this car so far. It's sporty, very nicely finished, and very comfortable.

This vehicle has the best cruise control I've ever experienced.

We're getting 16.5 MPG, quite disappointing, but not unexpected.

The speedo is rather smallish, and is in 10 mph increments; this is annoying, but I knew that before I bought it. Another annoying, but minor flaw - the roof racks have stickers on them warning that they are limited to 100 lbs. You have got to be kidding, seriously, why bother putting them on?

I've had to drive it off-road for work a few times now - performed quite well on steep fire service roads to mountain tops, through snow and mud.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 13th February, 2006

13th Feb 2006, 12:45

I think most cars have 10mph increments on their speedometers!

13th Mar 2006, 12:01

The preceding comment is correct in that even those big beefy tubes on a Nissan X-Terra originally rated at only 75lbs.

It's not the strength of the bars, it's the total roof design load, and the fact that putting a lot of weight up there will change the car's handling characteristics and increase the chance of a rollover. The center of gravity becomes much higher with a full roof load.

Having said that, one of the reasons why I opted for the KIA was the beefy rails that are strongly attached to the roof. I carry a couple of windsurfers. While well within the weight limit (around 60 lbs tops) the wind acting on the boards can generate a lot of upward force. Rails can be pulled right out of the studs by such forces.

On the Sportage test drive, I stood on the rear bumper and yanked up as hard as I could on the rails. They did not deflect, but a few MM. By comparison, the roof rails on the Chevy HHR twisted and flexed alarmingly.

The Hyundai Tucson's roof rails (sister vehicle) are even stronger, having an additional reinforcer installed under the rails. Unfortunately, the min distance between the Hyundai load bars is compromised by this reinforcer, making the load bar spread a tad too narrow for longer sailboards. (The sailboards will "see-saw" in the wind). The Sportage also stands inch lower than the Tucson. Every inch matters when you're struggling to load a roof.

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