 2008 Kia Spectra5 SX. Click image to enlarge |
|
Related articles on CanadianDriver
First Drives
2005 Kia Spectra, by Paul Williams Test Drives
2005 Kia Spectra sedan, by Jil McIntosh Manufacturer’s web site |
Review and photos by Jil McIntosh
Discuss this story in the forum at CarTalkCanada
Find this vehicle in CanadianDriver’s Classified Ads
Photo Gallery:
2008 Kia Spectra
Oshawa, Ontario - Although station wagons have never gained back the popularity they held in the 1960s and 1970s, there’s no denying the appeal of hatchbacks, especially in the Canadian market. We snap them up in both the subcompact and compact segment, which includes vehicles like the Kia Spectra5.
So named because the company calls the hatch a “fifth door”, the Spectra5 is also available as the Spectra four-door sedan. It’s fun to drive, it’s quite roomy and it’s a comfortable car overall, although it loses points for safety items that are either missing or not available on all models.
The 2008 Spectra5 comes in three trim lines: the base LX, which starts at $16,495; the mid-range LX Convenience, at $18,695; and my tester, the SX, which starts at $21,175. Instead of the standard five-speed manual transmission, my tester was optioned with a four-speed automatic, which adds $1,200 to each trim line. It’s the only add-on available, as each trim increases the list of features, instead of a base model that can be optioned with items.
   2008 Kia Spectra5 SX. Click image to enlarge |
All use a 2.0-litre four-cylinder, shared with the Hyundai Elantra. Putting out 138 horsepower and 136 lb-ft of torque, it’s not the most powerful in the class, but for an everyday commuter runabout, it works fine. It’s also fairly quiet for the segment, getting noisy only when it’s called on for hard acceleration - which is pretty much common among all four-cylinder compacts in the class. In combined driving, I averaged 8.2 L/100 km, against its published rate of 8.5 in the city and 6.2 on the highway; that’s pretty much in line with its competition.
Unique to the SX, and unavailable in the sedan version, is a sport-tuned suspension, along with SX-only 17-inch alloy wheels (all others, including all levels of the sedan, use 15-inch steelies). It’s well-done, and while it doesn’t rival cars like the Mazda3 or Honda Fit, it makes this Spectra5 fun to drive; steering response is quick, the turning radius is tight, and on the highway it feels more firmly planted and is less likely to be guided by truck ruts than its lesser-equipped siblings. There’s some torque-steer, but not so much that it turns me off the driving experience. Wind and road noise are kept under control, and it’s a fairly quiet vehicle overall.
Inside, Kia gives it a more spacious look by shortening the seat cushions; those with long legs will bemoan the lack of support, but otherwise, the seats are comfortable. Oddly, while the smaller and less-expensive Rio5 offers heated seats, the Spectra5 does not. Plastics are soft-touch or textured, and the car is put together quite well, with even gaps and attractive styling. The green backlighting looks dated, but almost all controls are illuminated. I like the climate control settings, which are big, easy-to-use push-and-turn dials.
 2008 Kia Spectra5 SX. Click image to enlarge |
I’m less impressed with the stereo, which is operated by numerous tiny buttons, and which sounds tinny, even with my tester’s unique six-speaker system. It’s also odd that the music player input jack is a mini-plug, which will probably require you to buy a converter; this is the first car I’ve driven with an input that wouldn’t accept the standard cable on my iPod. The hole is covered by a tiny rubber plug that mimics the stereo buttons, and will be the first thing lost on the car.
As mentioned, each trim line of the Spectra5 increases the features, and the base LX is just that, with no a/c, and with crank windows, manual door locks and mirrors, and disc-and-drum brakes. The LX Convenience adds air conditioning, heated power mirrors, power locks with keyless entry, and power windows with one-touch-down on the driver’s window. The SX further adds a sport body kit, power sunroof, sport-cloth seats, leather-wrapped wheel, and metal pedals, which can be very slippery if your sneakers are wet.
   2008 Kia Spectra5 SX. Click image to enlarge |
The SX is also the only model, along with the LX Premium sedan, to offer anti-lock brakes, along with four-wheel discs; this safety feature can’t be added to the others. But no model comes with anything other than the mandatory driver and passenger front airbags, and this is the oddest thing of all: when the Spectra was redesigned for 2005, it had six airbags, but when it received a mild facelift in 2007, the seat side and curtain airbags were discontinued. In a market where consumers spend a lot of time looking up crash-test results and often buy their vehicles based on them, it’s almost inconceivable that an automaker would actually go backwards with its safety features.
Being a practical hatchback, the Spectra5 offers a cargo length of 80 cm when the rear seats are in place; they fold in 60/40 configuration, without removing the head-restraints, to produce a not-quite-flat floor that’s 155 cm long. A hard tonneau cover keeps valuables out of sight. The practicality continues with the warranty, which is the company’s standard five years or 100,000 km on just about everything, and with roadside assistance for the duration.
The warranty, along with the Spectra5’s performance, makes this a good little car for those who want fairly inexpensive wheels to get them around town.
But Kia’s going to have to come up with a new model with a better range of protection features if it’s going to be a full contender in a marketplace where safety sells, and with many consumers, can make or break a purchase.
|
Pricing: 2008 Kia Spectra5 SX
Base price: $21,175 Freight: $1,455
Specifications
Related articles on CanadianDriver
First Drives
2005 Kia Spectra, by Paul Williams Test Drives
2005 Kia Spectra sedan, by Jil McIntosh
Competitors
Manufacturer’s web site
|