rbV5
Lifer
After 160,000 miles, I replaced my beloved '93 Isusu Trooper LS with a 2005 Kia Sorento EX last November ($3500 in incentives vs 2006 when I purchased) and Yesterday, we picked up a 2006 Hyundai Tiburon GT for the wife to replace her 2000 Ford Fucus w/ 100,000 miles.
I must say that I am very impressed with the build quality on the Kia (there was a day I SWORE I would NEVER buy a Kia...not today though🙂 It has been steller going on 5 months now. I was looking at Jeep Liberty and Ford Escape in addition to the Kia. We knew people that owned those models, and noted that the Kia(Sorento) owners would always rave about their rigs, but the Escape owners always bitched. The Jeep Liberty was pretty decent, but the Sorento EX was the better all aound rig to me, and just "felt" much more sturdy.
The Tiburon caught the wife's eye several months ago driving past a displayed model on her way home from work. had ever realy heard of one before, so I did a bit of research, which showed them in a favorable light, especially amoungst owners.
The Ford Focus we bought prior has been plagued by recalls, but despite that has been a decent car that we liked. We weren't considering another, but did have our eye on the Ford Fusion, which looks to be a great car.
The wife wanted something sporty though, she had had a Eagle Talon TSI AWD in the past that she dearly loved and wanted something more in that vein. We looked at Mitsubishi Eclipse, Scion TC and even the Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger. In the end, we decided on the Hyundai Tiburon GT, and went ahead and bought it yesterday after driving several models.
I'm 6'2" and the headroom is a bit tight for me. The cockpit feels great driving however, but without a sunroof, I might have a different view. The wife is 5'3", so no problem at all with her. The back seat is "forget it" small however. Fine for the 7 year old, but momma won't be dragging the teenagers around much (this is a bonus LOL). The hatchback has ample space however.
The red instrument lights make the dash very appealing at night, and its laid out very well IMO. Everything about the car seems solid, with the same sort of quality we've noticed in the Kia. In fact many of the design elements are similar, so getting use to the controls was easy after driving the Sorento for months now. The v6 and dual exhaust have a nice throaty sound, and performance is excellent. Visibility is also suprisingly good, the side view mirrors provide nice side views without being obtrusive, the view to the rear is a bit thin on the horizontal, but adequate. I have a long flag-lot driveway, and had no trouble at all navigating it in reverse.
We went with "Alpine White" to contrast the "Ebony Black" Sorento, and I must say, our driveway has NEVER looked so good. The styling on both rigs is outstanding IMO. For well under $50K for both, it sure "feels" like we got alot of value for the money, and with an excellent warranty on both rigs.
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Took a few shots last night, here's some:
1
2
3
I must say that I am very impressed with the build quality on the Kia (there was a day I SWORE I would NEVER buy a Kia...not today though🙂 It has been steller going on 5 months now. I was looking at Jeep Liberty and Ford Escape in addition to the Kia. We knew people that owned those models, and noted that the Kia(Sorento) owners would always rave about their rigs, but the Escape owners always bitched. The Jeep Liberty was pretty decent, but the Sorento EX was the better all aound rig to me, and just "felt" much more sturdy.
The Tiburon caught the wife's eye several months ago driving past a displayed model on her way home from work. had ever realy heard of one before, so I did a bit of research, which showed them in a favorable light, especially amoungst owners.
The Ford Focus we bought prior has been plagued by recalls, but despite that has been a decent car that we liked. We weren't considering another, but did have our eye on the Ford Fusion, which looks to be a great car.
The wife wanted something sporty though, she had had a Eagle Talon TSI AWD in the past that she dearly loved and wanted something more in that vein. We looked at Mitsubishi Eclipse, Scion TC and even the Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger. In the end, we decided on the Hyundai Tiburon GT, and went ahead and bought it yesterday after driving several models.
I'm 6'2" and the headroom is a bit tight for me. The cockpit feels great driving however, but without a sunroof, I might have a different view. The wife is 5'3", so no problem at all with her. The back seat is "forget it" small however. Fine for the 7 year old, but momma won't be dragging the teenagers around much (this is a bonus LOL). The hatchback has ample space however.
The red instrument lights make the dash very appealing at night, and its laid out very well IMO. Everything about the car seems solid, with the same sort of quality we've noticed in the Kia. In fact many of the design elements are similar, so getting use to the controls was easy after driving the Sorento for months now. The v6 and dual exhaust have a nice throaty sound, and performance is excellent. Visibility is also suprisingly good, the side view mirrors provide nice side views without being obtrusive, the view to the rear is a bit thin on the horizontal, but adequate. I have a long flag-lot driveway, and had no trouble at all navigating it in reverse.
We went with "Alpine White" to contrast the "Ebony Black" Sorento, and I must say, our driveway has NEVER looked so good. The styling on both rigs is outstanding IMO. For well under $50K for both, it sure "feels" like we got alot of value for the money, and with an excellent warranty on both rigs.
----------------------------------------------
Took a few shots last night, here's some:
1
2
3
