When you think of luxury vehicles KIA may not be the first car maker that comes to mind, but KIA is changing that. KIA is looking to be a huge name for luxury cars by 2017, and they have started with the Cadenza.
At first glance it doesn't necessarily look like a luxury car, all those details are on the inside. Once you sit on the Napa leather seats and enjoy the amazing endless legroom there is no debating it's status. The Cadenza really lives up to what you would expect from a luxury vehicle. The ride is incredibly smooth and really comfortable. The Cadenza is a vehicle you almost don't want to ever get out of.
With an impressive 293 horsepower it has more than a little "get up and go". The acceleration of the Cadenza was way more than I was expecting, making it also feel really sporty. Having a full sized vehicle that feels sporty is a rarity worth a lot.
I am in love with all the safety features of the Cadenza,
:: backing Camera
:: blind spot monitoring
:: eight air bags
:: lane departure warning
The lane departure feature is great for long drives, sensors will warn you when you are drifting from you lane. A great indicator that you need to pull over and rest. There are also lights on the mirrors that will let you know when someone is in your blind spot. If you feel those two features are more of an annoyance than a help for some reason you can easily turn them off as well. We live in a neighborhood with a lot of little kids so the backing camera is a lifesaver. Who wouldn't love a little more assurance that everything is ok?
Speaking of children I'm not sure if I would actually recommend the Cadenza for those with little kids. The inside of the vehicle is so nice that I spent a lot of time worrying about the kids messing it up. I seriously had my kids take off their shoes inside the car. lol This is a car for the grownups, one that you want to take friends in. It's a vehicle that adults can appreciate too. Our friends loved the over sized moon roof and the legroom in the backseat makes it a great car to be shuttled around in.
With a 10-year, 100,000-mile warranty KIA is prepared to really back up their cars. Something you won't find with a lot of other makers. This is a huge bonus for me, and a definite must have. What does it say when car makers won't even offer this kid of warranty? If you want to feel like you have someone on your side even once you leave the car lot, you want to go with KIA.
KIA made sure that the dash on the Cadenza was sleek and beautiful and has all the tech stuff you could possibly need.
Once feature that I first found odd on the Cadenza was the Auto Hold. Push the Auto Hold button and every time you come to a complete stop you can let go of the brake and the car won't move. I thought this was a really pointless feature at first, but after trying it a few times it became really nice not to always have to have my foot on the brake at stop lights and restaurant drive-throughs.
It's winter here right now so we made good use of the heated seats including the heated seats in the back seat. You also have cooled seats for the driver. I was disappointed that none of the other seats can be cooled, I believe at a 40k price tag all the seats should have cooling as well. Nobody likes getting stuck to leather seats in the summer.
If you are in the market for a large sedan or a luxury vehicle be sure to keep your eye on KIA.
