I had a very brief test drive of a low mileage used 2015 Kia Cadenza Premium. I'll quickly mention the things I didn't like.
I didn't think the suspension handled really bad road surfaces quite as well as I'd hoped. It did a good job of smoothing out the potholes but I think my Camry is slightly better at it. It didn't jump around too much, which was nice to see. Also, I thought the body rolled a bit more than I was expecting but it was much better than my car, so that's a positive improvement. Handling seemed decent enough; nothing negative jumped out at me.
Despite the multi way adjustment of the driver's seat, I struggled to get comfortable. I loved the thigh extender though. But the end of the test drive I think I had the seat adjusted and I was more comfortable, but it took a while. I think the seat neede a little bit more support where the base and back meet. But it was decent.
It was easy to drive; the power was nice to have in reserve but it drove well at slower speeds. The accelerator wasn't too sensitive and the transmission did its job and kept to the background. I had a short trip on the highway but the sales guy had verbal diarrhoea so I couldn't pay too much attention to the car but it was comfortable at 110km/h. Though the suspension could have been better over large bumps and potholes at that speed.
Obviously the heated seats and wheel were great though I don't think the wooden part of the wheel heated up. Visibility was decent although the backup camera was dirty from the slush and dirt from the roads and revering was harder than it should be.
I could hear a small creak from somewhere in the cabin but I don't know if it was the car or maybe some ice that had stuck to the body somewhere. Not too annoying as my current car has tons of rattles and creaks. The interior was quiet although road noise was much louder than I had hoped. I guess that must be the OEM tyres.
I don't care about the sunroof (maybe that was creaking) so I won't comment on it. I didn't play with it.
The steering wheel doesn't quite telescope out enough for me, another inch or two would be better. Otherwise I like the driving position and I like the simple centre console controls. I like the touchscreen interface, which is less fiddly than some I've used. It was quick and responsive and fairly intuitive.
I like the simplistic yet stylish design in and out. I hate some cars these days (Toyota, Lexus and Nissan, I'm looking at you!) because they put too many silly lines and curves, when simple I think works better. It's tasteful and says "I'm comfortable with myself", unlike other cars that scream "look at me!!". I know I'm preaching to the choir!
Ultimately it's a few inches bigger on the outside than I'm looking for. I used to have a Ford Five Hundred, which is about 5" longer and I sold that because I got tired to trying to drive it in the suburbs that are forever getting more and more cramped. I don't need the V6 although I like the power. I had to drive it as I wanted to see how comfortable it was. Which it is. But now I need to decide if the Cadenza remains in my list of possible cars to buy or not!
I think the Cadenza is a few small changes from a great car and I can't wait to see what they do with the next version.
(Apologies for the rambling thoughts.)
I didn't think the suspension handled really bad road surfaces quite as well as I'd hoped. It did a good job of smoothing out the potholes but I think my Camry is slightly better at it. It didn't jump around too much, which was nice to see. Also, I thought the body rolled a bit more than I was expecting but it was much better than my car, so that's a positive improvement. Handling seemed decent enough; nothing negative jumped out at me.
Despite the multi way adjustment of the driver's seat, I struggled to get comfortable. I loved the thigh extender though. But the end of the test drive I think I had the seat adjusted and I was more comfortable, but it took a while. I think the seat neede a little bit more support where the base and back meet. But it was decent.
It was easy to drive; the power was nice to have in reserve but it drove well at slower speeds. The accelerator wasn't too sensitive and the transmission did its job and kept to the background. I had a short trip on the highway but the sales guy had verbal diarrhoea so I couldn't pay too much attention to the car but it was comfortable at 110km/h. Though the suspension could have been better over large bumps and potholes at that speed.
Obviously the heated seats and wheel were great though I don't think the wooden part of the wheel heated up. Visibility was decent although the backup camera was dirty from the slush and dirt from the roads and revering was harder than it should be.
I could hear a small creak from somewhere in the cabin but I don't know if it was the car or maybe some ice that had stuck to the body somewhere. Not too annoying as my current car has tons of rattles and creaks. The interior was quiet although road noise was much louder than I had hoped. I guess that must be the OEM tyres.
I don't care about the sunroof (maybe that was creaking) so I won't comment on it. I didn't play with it.
The steering wheel doesn't quite telescope out enough for me, another inch or two would be better. Otherwise I like the driving position and I like the simple centre console controls. I like the touchscreen interface, which is less fiddly than some I've used. It was quick and responsive and fairly intuitive.
I like the simplistic yet stylish design in and out. I hate some cars these days (Toyota, Lexus and Nissan, I'm looking at you!) because they put too many silly lines and curves, when simple I think works better. It's tasteful and says "I'm comfortable with myself", unlike other cars that scream "look at me!!". I know I'm preaching to the choir!
Ultimately it's a few inches bigger on the outside than I'm looking for. I used to have a Ford Five Hundred, which is about 5" longer and I sold that because I got tired to trying to drive it in the suburbs that are forever getting more and more cramped. I don't need the V6 although I like the power. I had to drive it as I wanted to see how comfortable it was. Which it is. But now I need to decide if the Cadenza remains in my list of possible cars to buy or not!
I think the Cadenza is a few small changes from a great car and I can't wait to see what they do with the next version.
(Apologies for the rambling thoughts.)
