Hello everyone -- I just put in an order today for the Cadenza in Smokey Blue, beige leather, no packages. Should take 6-8 weeks, I'm told.
Up until now, I had not seen anything to replace my '99 Mitsubishi Diamante, which I have owned since new. However, Mitsubishi has discontinued the car for several years and parts are getting hard to find. A couple of years ago, a stone thrown up from the highway cracked my windshield, and it took 2 weeks to source a replacement.
So time for a new car. To make a long story short, I started doing my research and came across the K7 in reviews in the foreign press. It sounded like a good car, and I was hoping Kia would sell it in the US -- Edmunds has had a listing for it for a few years. Once it debuted here, the US automotive press gave it mostly favorable reviews, and that's all I needed to get to a Kia dealer for a test drive. I really liked it!
But I needed to compare it to other cars, so I also test drove the Toyota Avalon, Chevy Impala, and Ford Fusion hybrid. Interestingly, I test drove the Avalon when I bought the Diamante, and my reasons for rejecting it then were the same as now -- not as much fun to drive, and a lack of decent standard features for the base car.
The Ford Fusion was a nice car, and green, and I don't have anything really negative to say about it, but nothing grabbed me, either. It didn't help that I had already driven the Cadenza.
The 2014 Chevy Impala was the only car that gave me second thoughts about the Cadenza. I tested it only because Car and Driver and Consumer Reports rated it highly. I wasn't expecting much -- my experience with GM cars was a balky and rusted-out Nova I drove briefly for a job when I was in college. It was a pleasant surprise to discover the new Impala is a really loaded car for the money, strong engine, and a cavernous trunk with seats that fold down. Great acceleration, but the steering just wasn't as crisp as the Cadenza, although it wasn't floaty, either. And its major redesign makes it essentially a first-year model, and that tipped my choice to the Cadenza, since it's been around for a few years outside the US -- enough time to work out any kinks.
When I bought the Diamante, I was drawn to its smooth acceleration and tight steering, its large number of luxury features without the luxury price tag, and its good looks.
The reason I've ordered the Cadenza is for its smooth acceleration and tight steering, its large number of luxury features without the luxury price tag, and its good looks.
I'd say there's a pattern here...
Up until now, I had not seen anything to replace my '99 Mitsubishi Diamante, which I have owned since new. However, Mitsubishi has discontinued the car for several years and parts are getting hard to find. A couple of years ago, a stone thrown up from the highway cracked my windshield, and it took 2 weeks to source a replacement.
So time for a new car. To make a long story short, I started doing my research and came across the K7 in reviews in the foreign press. It sounded like a good car, and I was hoping Kia would sell it in the US -- Edmunds has had a listing for it for a few years. Once it debuted here, the US automotive press gave it mostly favorable reviews, and that's all I needed to get to a Kia dealer for a test drive. I really liked it!
But I needed to compare it to other cars, so I also test drove the Toyota Avalon, Chevy Impala, and Ford Fusion hybrid. Interestingly, I test drove the Avalon when I bought the Diamante, and my reasons for rejecting it then were the same as now -- not as much fun to drive, and a lack of decent standard features for the base car.
The Ford Fusion was a nice car, and green, and I don't have anything really negative to say about it, but nothing grabbed me, either. It didn't help that I had already driven the Cadenza.
The 2014 Chevy Impala was the only car that gave me second thoughts about the Cadenza. I tested it only because Car and Driver and Consumer Reports rated it highly. I wasn't expecting much -- my experience with GM cars was a balky and rusted-out Nova I drove briefly for a job when I was in college. It was a pleasant surprise to discover the new Impala is a really loaded car for the money, strong engine, and a cavernous trunk with seats that fold down. Great acceleration, but the steering just wasn't as crisp as the Cadenza, although it wasn't floaty, either. And its major redesign makes it essentially a first-year model, and that tipped my choice to the Cadenza, since it's been around for a few years outside the US -- enough time to work out any kinks.
When I bought the Diamante, I was drawn to its smooth acceleration and tight steering, its large number of luxury features without the luxury price tag, and its good looks.
The reason I've ordered the Cadenza is for its smooth acceleration and tight steering, its large number of luxury features without the luxury price tag, and its good looks.
I'd say there's a pattern here...
