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Mazda 5 vs Kia Rondo

859 messages,  Last post on Aug 22, 2010 at 8:13 PM

You are in the Kia Rondo Forum.

What is this discussion about? Mazda MAZDA5, Kia Rondo, Car Comparisons, Car Buying, Wagon

Messages Page 85 of 87

#835 of 859 Re: Driver Seat comfort [driversherri] by ofionnachta

Feb 24, 2010 (6:32 am)

Replying to: driversherri (Jan 29, 2010 4:41 am)
Driversherri--
 
We bought an '09 Rondo just bef Christmas. I am 5'3" and DH is 6'2." I'll be the primary driver, so the comfort etc for me counted most in choice--although he has to be able to sit in it too!
 
The driver's seat has 3 adjustment controls--you can push a ratchet-lever that makes it higher, you can push another one that changes the angle of the seat back, and there is the usual bar under the seat that slides it back & forth. I make the seat as high as possible--DH finds that too high & changes it. There is plenty of head room no matter who is driving.
 
I slide the seat forward more than he does, but you can keep from being right on top of the steering wheel. I also angle the seat back a bit -- I really do not like the way the head protector bumps the back of my head. But I can fix that with adjustment of seat angle.
 
We chose the cloth seats (not liking leather in summer), and I sprayed them 3x with Scotchgard before using them. It had snowed heavily 2 dys before we picked it up, so we brought beach towels to put on the seats before we drove it home! I also Scotchgarded the carpeted back deck. I don't know why they put carpet back there--no one is going to sit on it. Plastic would have been better imo. No I did not get the cargo tray--the dealership was a bunch of crooks and we were not going to get anything we did not have to from them. I'll buy one from that place someone else recommended, and I can get it to match the car color there, too.
 
As far as comfort goes--I feel fine. I had been driving a Grand Caravan, so this one is a bit less plush than I am accustomed to. But I haven't had a problem on long drives. If I really wanted more softness under my heiny I suppose I wd get a cushion, but so far, it's not an issue.
 
I have to say though, that when I scoot up the seat, the console is left behind. I have never driven resting my arm on those things, so this is not an issue for me. In a Rondo the console has 2 "decks," one for items and the other is where the iPod docks, and where you shd stash small stealables. Ours is getting plenty of use from DD. One compartment covers the lower, and the top one has a slightly padded lid.
 
If armrests and cushy seats and lumbar support matters so much to you, and mpg does not, have you thought of a Honda Odyssey? Those things are like driving living rooms! Very reliable and safe too.

#836 of 859 I-Start by bobw3

Feb 24, 2010 (11:48 am)

I wonder if the I-Start technology replaces the starter for cold-starts??

#837 of 859 After a year w/our '08 Rondo LX V-6 we're happy w/it. by smoothsailin

Feb 24, 2010 (1:16 pm)

We have put about 10.5k miles on our Rondo and so far have not had a single problem w/it. Fuel economy has been a bit disappointing, but whenever my wife will be the primary driver I've come to expect subpar results from any vehicle. Part of the problem is that we only live about three miles from where she works. As a result she tends to to make a lot of short trips and especially in winter I've come to realize that short trips can murder any vehicle's average fuel economy results.
 
Note that for the first 2k miles I was the primary driver of our Rondo so that I could be sure it was driven carefully during the break-in period. While I was doing most of the driving most of the initial tank averages fell in the 24-to-29 mpg. However, since my wife took over as primary driver it's been fairly rare for her to top 20 mpg/per tank except when she's driven the car to visit family members living 60-80 miles from our home.
 
Except for (my wife's) fuel economy results we've both been very happy with our first Kia. The Rondo appears to be a well-built, reasonably comfortable, fairly quiet, suprisingly roomy, reliable and versatile vehicle (ours is equipped w/the third-row seat).
 
I'll mention that I also own a '05 Mazda 3i which has also been totally problem-free as the car's 5-year anniversary approaches with just over 71k miles on the odometer. With conservative driving so far I've averaged 38.8 mpg with my 3i (2.0L w/5-speed manual) with most of the miles accumulated while commuting between home and my office ~55 miles/day. Note that this average is based on all miles driven and gallons purchased since I brought the car home from the dealership on 3/1/05.
 
While I admittedly like the looks of the Mazda 5 somewhat better than that of our Rondo, I have no regrets over our decision to purchase our Rondo vs. a Mazda 5 due to the better deal we were able to negotiate. We ended up paying 15.1k for our '08 LX V-6 before taxes and fees. MSRP per the window sticker including options for our LX V6 was ~ $22k.

#838 of 859 Re: I-Start [bobw3] by 9394

Feb 24, 2010 (9:17 pm)

Replying to: bobw3 (Feb 24, 2010 11:48 am)
i don't think I-Start will work very well on a cold engine, in freezing winter.
 
.

#840 of 859 Where are the '10 Rondos? by irritatrix

Apr 14, 2010 (10:50 am)

Did KIA even produce a 2010 Rondo? My local dealers all have only '09s. I have a Sedona minivan which is just too large for my current needs, so I've been looking at the M5 and the Rondo. I've been extremely pleased with the Sedona and would buy a new KIA again without hesitation, though I'm not nuts about the front end appearance of the Rondo - it looks like a Pixar car. <---- or like that icon. I find it funny that CR gave the Mazda5 the most points for large wagons, and yet the reliability rating they gave it is just average - and is worse than the Rondo's.

#841 of 859 No... by iluvmysephia1

Apr 14, 2010 (3:18 pm)

Kia doesn't make a 2010 Rondo. They stopped and several have pointed to the 2011 Kia Sorento as a likely replacement for it.

#842 of 859 Re: Where are the '10 Rondos? [irritatrix] by coolmazda5

Apr 14, 2010 (8:33 pm)

Replying to: irritatrix (Apr 14, 2010 10:50 am)
Yup, if you live in the US it seems that the '10 Rondo model never made it. Only Canadians got it for North America.
 
Brand new '09 Rondos are still for sale I believe, run while they last

#843 of 859 sorento vs Mazda 5 Cost by bobw3

Apr 15, 2010 (8:50 am)

The Sorento can cost between $22-29K depending on options. That seems too high compared to a Mazda 5.

#844 of 859 Re: sorento vs Mazda 5 Cost [bobw3] by coolmazda5

Apr 15, 2010 (9:53 am)

Replying to: bobw3 (Apr 15, 2010 8:50 am)
Apart from the cost, the Sorento is an SUV, completely different type of car IMO (I never looked at the Mazda CX-7 nor the Mazda CX-9 when comparing with the Mazda5 as an example)...

Messages Page 85 of 87

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