Autocar - long-term impressions of the Kia Niro

All Kia Niro related discussions
darrenmoss
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2017 8:23 am

Post by darrenmoss »

Hi everyone,

My name is Darren. I'm running a Kia Niro as part of Autocar magazine's long-term test fleet.

Our car is a '3' model, and I'm interested to hear the views of other Niro owners who've had their cars for a few months or more. I'd like to know how you're getting on with your cars, what you like (and dislike) and any problems that you've had.

If you post any responses below, I'll aim to get back to you as soon as possible. Your responses might also feature in upcoming long-term reports.

Many thanks,

Darren

MiguelG
Posts: 14
Joined: Sat Dec 31, 2016 3:00 pm

Post by MiguelG »

Niro is a great car, overall.
But owners are concerned about Coasting Guide Control and Predictive Energy Control. Those functionalities were widely published by Kia on mass media and we are still expecting it. Some say it won't be available for sold units, some say it will be applied by software upgrade someday. Kia gives no clear info about that
M. Irvine.
Posts: 15
Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2016 1:59 pm

Post by M. Irvine. »

I am very impressed and had no problems with my Niro 2. The fuel consumption on long journeys has been up to 72 mile/gall, and on short runs it varies from 52 to nearly 60 mile/gall, and it does everything I expected, and more. I especially like the quietness and refinement.

Initially I didnt like the foot operated parking brake, but have now got used to it.

My Kia agent (Dover Garage, Aldershot) is first class and have been great to deal with.

Well pleased!
djbobbins
Posts: 132
Joined: Fri Mar 03, 2017 7:57 pm

Post by djbobbins »

Mine has not yet been delivered (Niro "2" with ADAP scheduled for delivery late May / early June).

Pre-order experience was good (from local dealer) and not so good (from Kia UK - despite multiple requests from my company's fleet provider they never got around to arranging the demonstration vehicle and I ended up doing a short test drive via the local dealer).

The main disappointment up to now has been the lack of towpack option. At launch, it was widely reported that this would be available as an option from Q4 2016, yet Kia UK said when I enquired that this option is not going to be made available in the UK as there is not sufficient perceived demand. This came close to putting me off having the car.
darrenmoss
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2017 8:23 am

Post by darrenmoss »

MiguelG wrote:Niro is a great car, overall.
But owners are concerned about Coasting Guide Control and Predictive Energy Control. Those functionalities were widely published by Kia on mass media and we are still expecting it. Some say it won't be available for sold units, some say it will be applied by software upgrade someday. Kia gives no clear info about that
Hi MiguelG,

I must admit that's not a function I've heard about, or indeed one that I've seen Kia publicise in the UK - can you explain more?

Darren
darrenmoss
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2017 8:23 am

Post by darrenmoss »

M. Irvine. wrote:I am very impressed and had no problems with my Niro 2. The fuel consumption on long journeys has been up to 72 mile/gall, and on short runs it varies from 52 to nearly 60 mile/gall, and it does everything I expected, and more. I especially like the quietness and refinement.

Initially I didnt like the foot operated parking brake, but have now got used to it.

My Kia agent (Dover Garage, Aldershot) is first class and have been great to deal with.

Well pleased!
Hi M.Ivine,

Great to hear that you're getting on so well with your Niro. I must admit that I haven't yet seen the sort of fuel economy you've described. In fact, I can rarely see above 45mpg combined, and that's with a fairly light left foot. On the motorway, I don't see above 55mpg either.

Yes, the foot-operated brake does take some time to get used to. Can I ask what other cars you were looking at before you settled on the Niro?

Thanks,

Darren
darrenmoss
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2017 8:23 am

Post by darrenmoss »

djbobbins wrote:Mine has not yet been delivered (Niro "2" with ADAP scheduled for delivery late May / early June).

Pre-order experience was good (from local dealer) and not so good (from Kia UK - despite multiple requests from my company's fleet provider they never got around to arranging the demonstration vehicle and I ended up doing a short test drive via the local dealer).

The main disappointment up to now has been the lack of towpack option. At launch, it was widely reported that this would be available as an option from Q4 2016, yet Kia UK said when I enquired that this option is not going to be made available in the UK as there is not sufficient perceived demand. This came close to putting me off having the car.
Hi djbobbins,

Thanks for your response. That's interesting to hear that you had a mixed experience with ordering your Niro. With regards to towing, I wonder how many owners would consider a petrol-electric hybrid for this purpose (a conventional diesel SUV might be more suited?) so I can see why Kia would hesitate to offer such an option in this country.

Thanks,

Darren
djbobbins
Posts: 132
Joined: Fri Mar 03, 2017 7:57 pm

Post by djbobbins »

darrenmoss wrote:
djbobbins wrote:Mine has not yet been delivered (Niro "2" with ADAP scheduled for delivery late May / early June).

Pre-order experience was good (from local dealer) and not so good (from Kia UK - despite multiple requests from my company's fleet provider they never got around to arranging the demonstration vehicle and I ended up doing a short test drive via the local dealer).

The main disappointment up to now has been the lack of towpack option. At launch, it was widely reported that this would be available as an option from Q4 2016, yet Kia UK said when I enquired that this option is not going to be made available in the UK as there is not sufficient perceived demand. This came close to putting me off having the car.
Hi djbobbins,

Thanks for your response. That's interesting to hear that you had a mixed experience with ordering your Niro. With regards to towing, I wonder how many owners would consider a petrol-electric hybrid for this purpose (a conventional diesel SUV might be more suited?) so I can see why Kia would hesitate to offer such an option in this country.

Thanks,

Darren
The ordering experience itself has been fine up to now (via Lex), although the car is still yet to arrive! It was the lack of response from Kia UK to request for a demonstration car which was the issue (by comparison, the arrangements for Skoda Superb that I had as a demonstrator were made by Skoda UK within about 2 days of the request being placed, with the 48 hour demo actually taking place within a few weeks). The same couldn't be said for Kia UK - I never received a response to the request for a demo vehicle, despite multiple chases to Lex.

From my own perspective I mainly use a towbar for mounting a bicycle carrier as I don't want to have to put bikes on the roof and prefer to maintain rear window visibility, so am not a fan of the cycle carriers which hang off the boot lid / door. I also occasionally tow a light trailer, normally for shortish distances and only with a total axle weight of perhaps 500kg maximum. As such I'd have no qualms about using a non-diesel or larger capacity petrol engined vehicle to do this. We will probably end up getting a towbar fitted to my wife's 1.6l petrol Vauxhall Zafira for these purposes, itself not exactly the most overpowered of vehicles. My disappointment is therefore relative, I guess - had towing never been mentioned in relation to the Niro, I'd probably not have had an expectation on being able to get a towpack as an option. However, with the Q4 2016 availability of a towpack being feted at the model's launch, and still actively promoted on main dealer websites to this day (see link), I'm a bit galled by the non-availability!! http://www.delgarthmotorgroup.co.uk/new/kia/niro
MiguelG
Posts: 14
Joined: Sat Dec 31, 2016 3:00 pm

Post by MiguelG »

darrenmoss wrote:
MiguelG wrote:Niro is a great car, overall.
But owners are concerned about Coasting Guide Control and Predictive Energy Control. Those functionalities were widely published by Kia on mass media and we are still expecting it. Some say it won't be available for sold units, some say it will be applied by software upgrade someday. Kia gives no clear info about that
Hi MiguelG,

I must admit that's not a function I've heard about, or indeed one that I've seen Kia publicise in the UK - can you explain more?

Darren

All-new Eco-DAS(Driver Assistance System) features Kia’s first application of Coasting Guide and Predictive Energy Control, which use the navigation system and analysis of the driver’s route to improve efficiency. The Coasting Guide aims at maximizing fuel economy by coaching the driver on when to coast and brake. Predictive Energy Control anticipates topographical changes on the road ahead to actively manage energy flow, seamlessly determining when its best to recharge the battery and when its best to expend stored energy to optimize overall efficiency. Similar systems have been seen on German luxury makes, but it Kia’s is the first system to monitor and adjust for both ascending and descending scenarios

http://www.kiamedia.com/us/es/models/niro/2017
geffren67
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Mar 29, 2017 5:04 pm

Post by geffren67 »

Hi my model 2 is now 7 months old. My previous car was a model 2 Sportage.
My experience of KIA and the local dealer has been very good. This is my first Hybrid and Automatic car, and it was quite an eye opener.

My maximum mpg so far is 76.3, that was a 100 mile trip across the country last weekend, using A/B roads and through small towns. I find the mpg is very temperature dependent, its now creeping up as its getting warmer, during the winter my lowest was 55 on my daily work run, now its 62. Hopefully this will continue to increase. I have also measured the fuel used, when I fill up and that tallies approximately with my daily figures. When the weather improves I will do the same for the longer trips.

The start up sequence caught me out on occasion, the foot handbrake took a little getting used to. I have tried the most of the functions on the dash board, including Android Auto. Very pleased with the displays and functionality. My only issue is that lack of a car microphone, at least I can't find one. It forces you to use the phones mic. You don't normally have a good conversation when the phones in your pocket!

Driving the automatic and hybrid, on that 100 mile drive, you get in to the habit of watching the mpg and trying to find the sweet spot where the engine either is at 75 mpg or its in electric mode. You start to groan when you drive up a hill, as the mpg figures drop and drop.

I am very impressed with the Niro, I would not hesitate to buy another KIA .
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