Escape from the city / KIA test drives

Escape from the City

From the very beginning, I caught myself mentally comparing this car to the Sorento equipped with a 2.2-liter turbodiesel. Of course, I realize these are machines from different worlds: one is a typical crossover, the other is a true body-on-frame SUV. Nevertheless, the Mohave doesn't demonstrate the same ease of acceleration, and this is felt both in city traffic and on the highway. Don't get me wrong: the three-liter turbodiesel has sufficient torque, and the dynamics are decent. But that sparkle that the Sorento with the 2.2 engine has is missing here. Although, if you think sensibly, for a body-on-frame design, the ability to accelerate quickly is far from its main asset.

Now let's look inside the cabin. The trim materials are a solid four out of five. They fall short of what we see in the Discovery 4 or the new Prado, but there are no complaints about quality. What surprised me most was the third row of seats. Usually, only children can fit there, but here adult passengers will be quite comfortable. However, I won't delve into details — I'm sure Sergey Krasikov will thoroughly cover all the nuances of the interior and trim levels, especially since he's looking at a similar car for himself. I'll just note that there's climate control with separate vents for rear passengers — both at the top and bottom.

Now I'll share my impressions from a passenger's perspective. On our city roads, which are a continuous "patchwork quilt" of repairs, it shakes considerably. It's hard to talk about comfort in such conditions. But as soon as you get onto smooth asphalt, you understand that you could just keep driving — everything is so smooth and good! The body-on-frame design, with all its off-road advantages, turns out to be not the best solution in the city. On a country road, unpleasant jolts and rocking also periodically broke through. But you quickly get used to it: let it shake, but there's confidence that we'll get where we need to go.

Speaking of getting anywhere on any dirt road. Sergey suggested driving to his "cordon" on the Volga bank — where just a week ago the road resembled more of a mud bath. It would have been awkward to refuse, especially since on a body-on-frame SUV it's shameful not to go where even regular crossovers manage. On the way to Orlovka, there are sections with winding asphalt where I usually enjoy myself in a passenger car, "diving" into corners. The Mohave immediately made it clear: such entertainment is not for it. In bends, it leaned noticeably and reluctantly held the line. However, this was expected. But on the dirt road, it showed its best side. When the mud reaches the sills and you're calmly driving in standard mode without even manually engaging off-road systems — that commands respect. True, there was one moment when on wet clay the car struggled. We started to complain about the "highway" tires, but it turned out the issue was something else. As soon as we turned off the traction control system, the car easily got out of the trap. That was truly impressive.

The turbodiesel version is equipped with a six-speed automatic transmission. Considering that peak power comes at 3800 rpm, its characteristics are comparable to the nine-speed automatic on the gasoline engine. To put it simply — it's impossible to fault this automatic's operation: everything is precise, timely, without delays. Surprisingly, the gasoline 3.8-liter engine has a five-speed gearbox, which is a bit insufficient. Although, in my opinion, a real SUV should be diesel.

Sergey Krasikov, photographer, drives a KIA Sorento

I first got acquainted with the KIA MOHAVE at the Moscow Auto Show in 2008 — I studied its characteristics and looked into the cabin then. Our test vehicle was in the near-top trim, priced at 1,840,000 rubles, and it was equipped with a spring suspension and leather interior.

Let me list the drawbacks right away:

no rear tow hook, which looks strange for a body-on-frame jeep with a low-range gear;
no cargo cover, although competitors have it;
immobilizer is absent in all diesel versions except the top one;
for the 3.8 engine (275 hp), the tax is "unattractive";
the price is not crisis-friendly, especially considering Russian assembly.

That's probably all.

We hit the road — the engine is torquey, the interior is solid, but the suspension seemed a bit stiff to me. Although we didn't check tire pressure, so the assessment is preliminary.

Gear shifts were absolutely imperceptible — six gears for a three-liter turbodiesel is optimal.

If comparing with competitors, the closest in spirit is the Nissan Pathfinder: similar dimensions (4740x1850x1783), same drivetrain, seven seats, and a comparable price. The second rival is the Mitsubishi Pajero 4. If its price is comparable to our hero, then in terms of drivetrain capabilities, the Pajero is clearly ahead: the center differential and rear locking differential are worth a lot.

Now about seating: the driver's seat is spacious, and the seat adjustments will suit most drivers. The rear row also pleased — the seats move on rails, backrests recline, the central tunnel barely gets in the way, and there's separate climate control. The third row is quite spacious — a passenger up to 185 cm tall in summer clothing will fit comfortably. Perhaps the sixth and seventh seats here are the best among competitors, although in the Pajero they are easily removable, while the MOHAVE can't boast such an option. The seats are upholstered in quality perforated leather, but we never found floor mats in the cabin.

A few words about the drivetrain. The main mode is rear-wheel drive, which saves fuel and reduces drivetrain noise. The second mode is all-wheel drive for difficult sections (not recommended for constant driving). And the third is with the low-range gear engaged. We tested the last two on light off-road. On slippery surfaces, highway tires don't allow the engine's full potential to be unleashed, and electronic aids like the traction control system are better turned off when stuck.

With the arrival of the KIA MOHAVE, the market for large all-wheel-drive SUVs will become more crowded. The rivals here are renowned: Honda Pilot, Jeep Commander, Discovery 4, Toyota Prado, Ford Explorer, VW Touareg, Hyundai ix55, Subaru Tribeca, Volvo xc90. All of them have history and image. I hope the Kaliningrad assembly won't spoil KIA's reputation, and dealers will help the MOHAVE find its place in this lineup.

The short test-drive period doesn't allow a full assessment of all the car's intelligent systems. We can only hope that KIA MOHAVE owners will share details on forums.

We've reached the point: another model originally designed for the States is now officially coming to us. The Russian car market, as I've said, digests everything — from cheap subcompacts to ultra-expensive monsters. This car is already selling in the US and, without major modifications, is delivered to Russia with all the ensuing nuances, which I'll discuss further. Personally, I'm a bit "lost" from my own impressions. I remember when I first saw the car in person, touched the plastic, sat in the seat — a feeling of cheap trim typical of "Americans." North Americans, who spend half their lives in cars — driving to work, going on picnics with family and dogs, snacking on the go — don't care much about the quality of surfaces. The main thing is that it's spacious and full of cupholders. That's the case here, and materials and design are secondary. But the test-drive example no longer seemed as cheap as at first meeting. What a trick of perception! Inside, it's quite decent: American-style huge adjustment ranges for seats, steering wheel, everything electric, and even the gas pedal adjusts — imagine that! The instrument panel with bright red backlighting reads perfectly, and that's a point of pride for KIA. Also, rear air suspension is claimed, but empirically (by looking under the car), we found that our vehicle doesn't have it. And no loss — it's only needed for convenient trunk loading. So, before us is an American steed of Asian origin with Russian assembly.

The smoothness of the ride translates into longitudinal rocking. Honestly, I expected worse, but nervousness let me down: vibrations are transmitted both to the steering wheel and to rear passengers. This is the price for the body-on-frame design — the rigid frame gives strength, but all irregularities go further. But on the highway, the car flies, holds its course clearly, doesn't wander, except it squats at the rear when you sharply press the gas. Diesel torque easily carries the car past a hundred. No, it's not a racing machine, maybe the figures aren't record-breaking, but for such a huge, spacious, and comfortable car — it's more than enough. No complaints about the 6-speed automatic: the unit calmly handles the power with minimal delays. Shifts are smooth and almost imperceptible. In manual mode, there's protection: it won't downshift at high revs, and it will upshift itself near the red zone. Manual mode is so-so, "not quite honest," but I'm sure no one will use it. The car brakes excellently with the engine when you lift off the gas and accelerates easily. What more do you need? In normal mode, torque is distributed as 90% to the rear axle and 10% to the front, which saves fuel.

If the wheels spin, the automatic system instantly distributes the torque 50:50. You can also manually lock the center differential — 4H mode, and there is a low range 4L. On dirt roads, the car behaves predictably, and a deep puddle that we boldly conquered only spurred us on. We flew into it and didn't hit anything, never scraped the body. On slippery surfaces, the lack of a clear "zero" in the steering doesn't spoil the picture: when driving, you understand where the wheels are turned. But when spinning in place, disorientation occurs. The rear-view camera is built into the interior mirror — like on the Honda Pilot, very convenient, even without trajectory markings. Talking about the hill descent control is already boring: it's a standard option, works the same for everyone. But I liked how its activation is shown on the instrument cluster — the pictogram changes color, very clear.

As the proverb about a pig and mud goes, I found it here too. I showed myself as persistent and capable as possible, which led to the expected success — I got stuck! The gearbox allows slight rocking, which helped, but weakly. The other test participants, standing outside, couldn't believe their eyes and blamed it all on poor road tires. Yeah, sure, the tires are to blame, and my stupidity has nothing to do with it! I forgot to turn off the traction control system. A light press of a button sometimes works wonders in modern cars, and this time it did. One — and the car, without any lockers (I deliberately turned off 4H), confidently climbed out of the mud bath. Not bad for a family car (by American standards), otherwise why so many seats. The third row here is real, adult, not child-sized, I see this for the first time. True, you have to sit quite low and won't go far, but that's the only drawback, besides the lack of separate doors and longitudinal adjustments that the second row has. If the third row isn't needed, the seats fold into a flat cargo floor. I'll separately note the climate control: control is available to second-row passengers, which is nice. Because of the air ducts in the ceiling, there's a constant draft in the cabin, even at low power. I even started sneezing, had to lower the temperature and close the vents. The huge cabin cools quickly and efficiently. But how will it heat in winter? There's no additional heater in the trim, and the engine is diesel.

There are many questions about the trims, and some unclear points I attributed to the fact that the car is still tailored for the American market. What's the bottom line? A car for a large active company that will take it off the asphalt into the forest wilderness. And another conclusion: the body-on-frame construction and 4L are not without reason. This is for towing a trailer with a boat, ATV, or jet ski. That's probably its purpose, otherwise a "crossover" with a locking clutch would suffice. And one more important point: the car turned out to be surprisingly economical. With my mud bath where I spun the wheels, the total consumption was about 13.8 liters. The dealership mechanic was right at the beginning: he was puzzled by our desire to refuel. "The diesel will be enough," he said, and I didn't believe him. And in vain.