#Hassan. Posted December 7, 2021 Posted December 7, 2021 Our newly arrived plug-in hybrid SUV is big, but is it also clever? Let’s find out I’ve resisted the urge to ‘tip’ for over four months, but a recent clearout meant I could resist no longer. And it revealed a fault with the seats that had previously gone unnoticed: the offside middle won’t go flat, so it was even more of a feat of origami to fold all the rubbish into the remaining space. It’s booked into the dealer shortly, so a fix beckons. I’m not one to brag, but will you just look at that figure! The hypermiling tips that Mission Motorsport gave me (8 September) have massively paid off, as the Sorento managed 40 miles from a single charge. That’s a full five miles farther than officially claimed. Most impressively, it was on a mixed route of villages and flowing B-roads, not just a 15mph crawl. Mileage: 3765 Did our PHEV make it out of this unfamiliar setting in one piece? - 20 October 2021 As anyone with a vague memory of being five will know, curious minds are rewarded when buttons are pressed. And so it is that we find ourselves perched on top of what feels more like a cliff than a steep off-road slope, Kia Sorento primed to descend, with buttons being prodded and Terrain mode knobs being twirled. We’ve reached here entirely silently, creeping through a lower section of the quarry on electricity, with the only sound the crunch of rock under tyre and the occasional ‘bong’ from the car. The Sorento does like to announce itself with plenty of synthesised warning noises. Creep up the slope, watching where the nose and tyres head, as there are plenty of sharp boulders around and we’re most definitely not running on tough-sidewalled off-road tyres. Get to the top of the scree, with a great view out over the quarry and elements of the downhill section in front, the detail hidden underneath the Sorento’s bonnet. Hold it on the brake, wait for the guide to say I’m good to go... But let’s just pause a moment, as it’s worth an explanation as to why on earth a family-friendly plug-in hybrid Sorento is being subjected to far more than the school run. Truth be told, we mainly went to the quarry to recce the place for the road test team, to see if it might be suitable for the next hardcore off-road test. But it also seemed like too good an opportunity to pass up on testing all the systems the Kia has to offer, which is more than you would think. Although it’s on a monocoque chassis (like the Mk2 and Mk3 versions but unlike the first-gen model, which ran a more traditional off-road ladder- frame set-up), the PHEV comes as standard with Terrain mode and hill descent control, the former giving three options covering mud, snow and sand. It’s four-wheel drive as standard, albeit with the sort of set-up that means it runs in front- wheel drive most of the time. It’s only when the car detects slip that it switches drive to all four corners. Terrain mode works by adjusting engine torque and distribution, as well as the stability control parameters and the shift points of the six-speed automatic gearbox. Basically, they’re all tweaked as to the conditions, so ‘snow’ limits torque to try to rein in wheel spin, for instance. It’s not as comprehensive as Land Rover’s but, still, it’s far more than you would expect in a world of fake tailpipes and soft-roaders. Fair play to Kia for actually fitting the hardware to match the looks. Back to the action, then. Hill descent control engaged, terrain knob twizzled to mud mode, ease off the brakes. It wasn’t the most controlled of descents, as I did have to intervene and get on the brake rather than relying entirely on the hill descent, but it made it down. link : https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/kia/sorento/long-term-reviews/kia-sorento-plug-hybrid-2021-long-term-review
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