Motoring

Kia Niro is a small SUV that’s available in two effcient FWD electrifed powertrains, the Hybrid Electric (HEV) and full Electric (EV). The previous Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) has been dropped with the latest (MY23) update which arrived here in April 2022.

Niro is a fairly large vehicle for its class, indeed it’s not far short of being a medium sized model. The wheelbase is a lengthy 4.72 metres. It is 4.42 metres long, 1.83 metres wide and has a height of 1.55 metres.

Kia has an impressive seven-year unlimited distance warranty on all its models. It continues to surprise us that very few other marques have followed this lead. Surely it isn’t because they have doubts about the ability of their vehicles to last seven years without problems?

STYLING

The Niro S HEV gets the latest iteration of the Kia Tiger grille with halogen headlights and LED daytime running lights and taillights. The GT-Line variants get LED headlights. The S HEV runs on 16-inch alloy wheels, the two EV models on 17-inch and the S GTline on 18s.

The gloss-black roof rails are a nice touch and add an upmarket look to the Niro.

INTERIOR

Niro has pretty good interior space for its class and the styling is attractive with a relatively modern look.

The Niro Hybrid has 425 litres of boot space with the rear seats up, or 1419 litres with the second row folded. To achieve this volume there’s a space-saver spare under the boot foor.

INFOTAINMENT

The model we tested has a 10.25-inch central screen as well as a 10.25-inch instrument display. These sit in a wide panel that stretches across most of the front of the dash area.

The quality is high and it’s easy to read them at a quick glance. This is an important safety feature as, despite my best intentions, I do tend to look at the centre screen to change radio stations or for other reasons.

ENGINES / TRANSMISSIONS

Niro has a 1.6-litre fourcylinder petrol engine producing 77kW of power and 144Nm of torque. It combines with a 32kW 170Nm electric motor to produce 104 kW and 265 Nm.

SAFETY

Kia Niro has autonomous emergency braking including car, pedestrian, cyclist and intersection intervention.

Lane-keep and lanefollow assist is handy for driver who aren’t paying full attention and tend to wander about from time to time.

Blind-spot and rear crosstraffc alert and avoidance is ftted to all models of the Niro.

Our test car had safeexit assist to prevent opening the door into an approaching car or cyclist. Reverse parking collision avoidance is handy as it can be all but impossible to see others vehicles, or people on foot when revising in tight carparks.

DRIVING

Performance is very good with the usual instantaneous response from the accelerator that’s such a delightful part of any vehicle with electricity as part, or all, of its powertrain.

It’s a comparatively heavy vehicle so it doesn’t have a huge amount of get up and go that we like in our vehicles. Those using it in a normal manner will almost certainly fnd it more than adequate.

Handling is good as Niro and other Kia models are specially set up to suit the needs and desires of Australian drivers. It turns in promptly and holds the road at speeds that aren’t likely to be used by drivers of family cars.

There is a head-up display for the driver, but as happens all too often it doesn’t work well if you’re wearing polarising sunglasses - as I do. Some carmakers have prevented this problem by angling the display in a slightly different direction. Kia may care to try this in an update - here’s hoping.

The front seats are a good size and we found them comfortable even after several long drives we did as part of our road test reviews.

The squared off rear end mean that the getting in and out of the back part of the cabin is easy. Rear seat passengers also have space but if those in the front set their seats back a long way some in the back may fnd their legroom is tight. It makes sense to take people who are going to be sitting in these seats to come along to the showroom and try them out for size. This may mean you not buying this model and perhaps trying a larger Kia, or perhaps going to look at rival cars.

There are air vents in the back of the centre console so the passengers have an even more pleasant ride.

Hyundai says the hybrid models have combined fuel usage of 4.0L/100km for the hybrid. We used three to four litres per hundred during open road driving and fve to seven litres per hundred kilometres in city and suburban running.

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SUMMING UP

Kia Niro hybrid is an exceptional vehicle in many ways, it has minimal fuel consumption if driven correctly and is still pretty economical if you push hard. It’s attractively styled and practical. Combined with that very impressive warranty it’s certainly one to be added to your list of vehicles under consideration in its class.

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Sleek Porsche hatchback cuts through the air with a minimum of fuss 2022 PORSCHE TAYCAN GTS

By EWAN KENNEDY

Porsche Taycan is a full electric fve-door hatchback aimed at those who want a practical family vehicle with plenty of performance, and that does minimal harm to the environment.

That’s right – it’s a family hatch, but there’s a lot more to it than carrying you and the kids around. This is a full-on sports machine that can be taken on track days – or to simply carve your way around your favourite section of country road very early in the morning when there’s nobody else about.

Like all Porsches with GTS badges, it’s a midrange model. There are faster, much more expensive Taycan variants with added performance, but the standard model is relatively affordable starting at just $158,100 for a two-wheel-drive working on the rear wheels.

Prices can go sky high up to $283,000 if you go the whole hog with extra power in the so-called Turbo models. Obviously, the latter don’t have a turbocharger, but we guess that adding a lot of extra grunt does sort-of justify the Turbo tag (your thoughts?)

The warranty is three years and unlimited distance which is on the low side these days. Many vehicles are now covered for fve years and no distance limit. Surely Porsche has enough faith in its cars to cover them for fve years?

STYLING

Taycan carries a decent resemblance to the famed 911 which isn’t easy to do in a practical family car. We like the shape, as did all of our friends and neighbours who popped around to check it out. Well done the stylists!

The Taycan GTS variant has blacked-out styling elements within the front bar, headlights, door mirrors, side sills and window trim.

INTERIOR

The driver gets a 16.8inch curved display easy to see at a glance. You can customise it, it’s beautifully laid out and easy to read in all light conditions.

Luggage space is useful, too, with 84 litres in the small front ‘boot’, sometimes tagged as being a ‘frunk’ a shortened version of front trunk … or a ‘froot’. There are 366 litres of space under the rear hatch and it’s easy to load.

INFOTAINMENT

A high-quality Bose audio system is standard. The high-resolution 10.9-inch touchscreen is clear to see in any light and is easy to use.

POWERTRAIN

Power is produced by two permanent magnet synchronous motors. There’s a two-speed transmission at the rear, the front axle has a single-speed.

The Porsche GTS model has 380 kW of power. But if you use ‘overboost’ there’s 440 kW and 850 Nm sent to all four wheels.

The Performance Battery Plus system gives you a 93.4 kWh battery pack with a claimed range of 485 km.

During our 340 km week of driving, we averaged 19.8 kWh per 100 kilometres, which is less than the estimates given by Porsche. Perhaps because I tend to be an economical driver in all cars (and have a Guinness Book of Records entry to prove it). The Porsche Taycan GTS hasn’t been rated by Australasian NCAP. It does score well on the Euro NCAP testing program, gaining the maximum of fve stars in 2019

It has an active bonnet system, a full suite of airbags including curtain ‘bags along the entire roof frame and side window sections, and with rollover detection.

There’s lane-change assist and lane-keep assist with corrective steering should the driver not paying attention.

In addition, there’s active lane-keep assist with traffc jam assist and emergency assist, crossroad assist, collision and brake assist rear cross-traffc alert and exit warning.

DRIVING

The zero to 100 km/h time claimed by Porsche is 3.7 seconds. That’s right 3.7 seconds, not that many years back anything under six seconds was considered to be rocketship acceleration, the ultralow time of the Taycan was due not only to its instantaneous reaction to fooring the right pedal but also the huge torque that’s there from one rpm.

Three driving modes allow you to select Normal, Sport and Sport Plus. The full 440kW comes in when you select launch-control. The 380kW still offers plenty of grunt.

Driver and three passenger get comfortable seats, with a bit of a squeeze in a centre seat in the back. The driver and front passenger have 18-way electric adjustable seats.

There’s a head-up display, which is easy to read even in sunlight.

RATINGS:

Looks: 8/10 Performance: 10/10 Safety: 8/10 Thirst: 7/10 Practicality: 6/10 (mainly because of the short fuel range) Comfort: 8/10 Tech: 9/10 Value: 8/10

AT A GLANCE

MODEL RANGE

Taycan RWD: $158,100 Taycan 4S AWD: $197,200 Taycan GTS AWD: $240,300 Taycan Turbo AWD: $280,300 Taycan Turbo S AWD: $351,000 Taycan Cross 4 Turismo: $178,800 Taycan Cross 4S Turismo: $208,000 Taycan Cross Turbo Turismo: $283,000 Note: These prices do not include government or dealer delivery charges. Contact your local Porsche dealer for drive-away prices.

SPECIFICATIONS

(Porsche Taycan GTS AWD EV Coupe)

ENGINE:

Capacity: NA Confguration: NA Maximum Power: 460 kW Maximum Torque: 850 Nm @ rpm Fuel Type: NA Combined Fuel Cycle (ADR 81/02): L/100km CO2 Emissions: Nil

DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND

CAPACITIES: Length: 4963 mm Wheelbase: 2900 mm Width: 1966 mm Height: 1381 mm Turning Circle: 11.2 metres Kerb Mass: 2295 kg Fuel Tank Capacity: NA

BRAKES:

Front: Ventilated disc Rear: Ventilated disc

STANDARD WARRANTY:

Three years / unlimited kilometres