Review and photos by
Jil McIntosh, CanadianDriver.com
Despite the rising popularity of SUVs and CUVs, and the discontinuation of minivans by a few manufacturers, I might well paraphrase Mark Twain in that any reports of their demise are far from accurate. Honda, Nissan and Toyota have all released redesigns of their vans, while my tester, the Kia Sedona, undergoes numerous changes for 2011.
2011 Kia Sedona EX Luxury
The most noticeable one is a new engine, a 3.5-litre V6 that replaces the previous 3.8-litre V6. Horsepower rises significantly, while torque falls slightly: the new engine produces 271 horsepower in place of the previous 244, and torque is now 248 lb.-ft., versus the 253 lb.-ft. of the 3.8-litre. As is usual these days, fuel economy improves despite the rise in pony-power. The new engine is rated at 11.5 L/100 km (25 mpg Imp) in the city and 8.0 (35) on the highway; in combined winter driving, I averaged 12.3 (23).
Other changes include stability and traction control now standard on all models – these used to be unavailable on the base trim line – along with a new grille, standard Bluetooth connectivity (but don’t drive and talk anyway), and new standard features on the various trims. Pricing starts at $27,995 for the base LX model, while my top-line tester, the EX-Luxury, was $39,995. A navigation system, which can only be added to the EX-Luxury, is an additional $1,000. (more…)
