Kia Cerato 1.6 EX
In a market with established brands, how does one become a player? Entering the market with a cheap and cheerful product works at first; Value through price. That soon becomes unsustainable with new entrants into the marketplace and soon we need to find value elsewhere in the proposition. The next step is usually adding standard features that the established brands charge for. The last bastion is improving quality and perceived quality with the newcomer having to try harder than the established brands for a piece of the consumers mindshare.
This is exactly the path that Kia is following in South Africa. The Koreans are particularly determined to carve a niche for themselves in our marketplace. The Cerato hits our market with a solid value proposition.
Fancy LED running lights, six speed gearboxes and alloy wheels are de rigueur at this level. For R185 995 we expect a lot from a car. To this they throw in a 5 year/ 100 000 Km warranty and a 4 year / 90 000 Km service plan. As an aside, it is worth noting the 90,000 service plans now advertised, not 100,000, and this is because of our new consumer act, which has you having to give that which you offer. These cars are serviced at 90, and again at 105, so 100 cannot be offered. Nice clarity that, don't you think?
At this level they need to deliver more and they do. Great ride, decent performance with their so called "gamma" engine putting out 91kW and a respectable 156 Nm of torque, producing a 0-100 time of 10.3 seconds. Low levels of NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) and a claimed fuel consumption of 6.6 litres per 100km's which in testing seemed achievable. That is pretty close to what the little diesels achieve. The car feels well damped and solid on the road. Of course one also needs gadgets and gizmos at this level, and you do get a trip computer, electric power steering, chromatic dimming rear view mirror, iPod connectivity with a steering wheel controllable 6 speaker sound-system, keyless entry, air-con and the like. It is in safety that it pulls out some extra stops with, unusually in this league, besides front and side airbags, even side curtain bags. ABS and EBD safety systems round out a very competent package.
Overall the car comes recommended and is building a solid following with a high quality feel that seems, from my brief test, to have some durability to it. Perhaps the car lacks a funky coolness that some other players are trying to build into their offerings. This one seems to appeal more to common sense and practicality. As such it succeeds and looks the part. Sensible really.
