Kia Sorento
Submitted: Sunday, Nov 18, 2012 at 15:52
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Robyn R4
After watching Pat Callinan's Mr4X4 tv adventures in a Sorento one year we decided that it would be a decent 4WD for the 2 of us and our budget...not too big or thirsty (my husband clocks up a lot of work k's), dual range etc.
We love it, and it's just taken us very capably from the
Gold Coast to
Cameron Corner, up to
Birdsville and home again. About a quarter of this was on dirt/gravel/Sturts Stony Desert etc.
The shockies have been upgraded from standard, it's been lifted and decent off-road tyres bought. But 4WD magazines say nothing about Sorentos and we have big troubles trying to find the parts we need and people who have modified theirs.
Our next "thought" is a
snorkel but Kia doesn't do snorkels.
Is there anyone out there who's modified their Sorento in any way and has words of wisdom for us?
Reply By: Member - Rod N (QLD) - Sunday, Nov 18, 2012 at 17:01
Sunday, Nov 18, 2012 at 17:01
G'day Robyn.
What model is your Sorento? I have a 2008 BL. Is yours the same or the new XM? I have an OME
suspension modification. I primarily tow my 2000kg caravan with it, which it does quite easily.
There is a
snorkel available for it.
Airflow Snorkel
Have a look at
Australia4WD Forum for discussions on the Sorento.
AnswerID:
498719
Reply By: mikehzz - Sunday, Nov 18, 2012 at 19:15
Sunday, Nov 18, 2012 at 19:15
Unfortunately, Kia drastically changed the Sorento into a full blown soft roader by ditching the low range. The new ones have a decent engine and look stylish too. The 4wd mags aren't much interested in that class.
AnswerID:
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Reply By: Robyn R4 - Sunday, Nov 18, 2012 at 20:01
Sunday, Nov 18, 2012 at 20:01
Big thanks to both of you!
Hubby went crook on me for not stating that it was a 2008 EX model!
Terrific car for what we want to do (not into doing
sand dunes over the
Simpson Desert but we do like to explore the other tracks...)
Pity they tweeked it into a less talented model!
Hubby said he saw a Kia with a
snorkel a month or so ago in northern NSW, but he was on his motorbike and thought the Kia driver would probably freak out if a biker tried to wave him over so he lost that chance to ask!
We've learned interesting things from our 2 year subscription to the 4WD mag, but yeh...unless you own one of the common 'big' 4WD, they don't entertain the thought that you could possibly exist.
Every time we want to do something, it's a major exercise in finding someone who can tell us what car's parts we can fit. Here's hoping the Australia4WDforum has others like us.
Thanks again.
AnswerID:
498733
Reply By: makemyday - Monday, Nov 19, 2012 at 08:40
Monday, Nov 19, 2012 at 08:40
Hi, We have a Hyundai Santa Fe 2011 soft roader sister car to
Sorrento and are extremely happy with it. This year we did
Melbourne to
Darwin /
Broome including the GRR,
Cape Leveque, Bungles towing a Jayco Eagle OB. In total 17000kms without a problem including no punctures with standard tyres. Just drove to road conditions and dropped tyre pressures. Common sense with a bit of luck and had a fantastic trip with no ill effects on car or camper.
AnswerID:
498756
Follow Up By: Robyn R4 - Monday, Nov 19, 2012 at 20:37
Monday, Nov 19, 2012 at 20:37
Australia4WDforum is so helpful...full of people like us with a minority car that needs just a bit of tweeking (even down to the bloke who removed the front handles from his 50litre car fridge so it'd fit in the boot...oops-we put a small dent in the boot interior while bouncing up the Strezlecki track! Wish we'd read that one before!).
"Common sense and a bit of luck" is what it's all about, eh? Prepare as much as you can and then cross the fingers. We did some soft sandy tracks on lowered tyre pressure, and increased the tyre pressure in other spots (to raise the tyre wall away from the sharp rocks).
Not a problem. And I'd honestly expected at least one flat on those tracks.
Someone's post on Australia4WDforum commented about the cost of the Kia vs the more popular 4WDs. We Kia owners simply smile because we can fairly
well do much the same stuff and we still have $20,000 in our pockets after our purchase!!
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Follow Up By: Member - Rod N (QLD) - Monday, Nov 19, 2012 at 21:36
Monday, Nov 19, 2012 at 21:36
I removed my front handle of the fridge too. I put a folding handle on
mine so it could still be carried when out of the car.
If you see the posts on Australia4WDforum about overheating and the subsequent reprogramming of the engine computer, my car was the test rig for that. Since then I have had no problems.
FollowupID:
774808