Kia Sonet petrol DCT: Observations after 18 months & 25000 kms

The 1.0 litre turbo petrol engine and the unknown crash test rating remain the weak links in the Sonet. I cannot state this enough.

BHPian Coyote recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

As a result of a few highway runs, I have managed to cross the 25k mark about 18 months after bringing the Sonet home.

Here are my long-term observations, in no particular order:

• On highway drives, the FE returned is better than the FE displayed by about 2 kmpl. I have measured this tank to tank across multiple runs.
• The fuel efficiency is consistent at between 9-13 in city drives and 15-22 on highway drives (if driven sedately). The worst highway FE I have encountered is 12 kmpl but that was with aggressive driving at agressive speeds and remains the only occasion where the Sonet has returned such low figures.
• The 1.0 litre turbo petrol engine and the unknown crash test rating remain the weak links in the Sonet. I cannot state this enough - the Sonet DCT returns best FE at 85 - 95 / 7th gear at around 2000 rpm. Increase throttle response and you have diminishing returns. I really wish this car came with a 1.4 litre turbo petrol.
• Paddle shifters are sorely missed, especially when you want to use the Sport mode to enjoy the full offering, encounter obstacles, and the car aggressively downshifts. I find myself having to engage manual to upshift every time this happens as (i) I dislike the 'roar' of the weak 3 cylinder engine; and (ii) I do not see the point in revving the small engine so high.
• The black plastic bumpers / side cladding are starting to fade and the disparity between the plastic finish and the paino black / shiny black is starting to become evident.

The fade is evident in these pictures:

• Hard braking activates the hazard lights - I found this out inadvertently on a highway run thanks to a motorcycle ahead of me. Neat.
• I presently run the stock MRF Wanderer tyres. I look forward to upgrading my tyres once they cross 45/50k mark as the grip and braking with said grip is downright poor if there is any amount of gravel on the road. I found this out the hard way on a highway run.
• There is no provision to store trips on the MID. At least not one I have discovered, yet. The MID readings are (i) Drive information; and (ii) Accumulated information. The Drive information generally counts trips earlier in the day as well. The Drive information and Accumulated info can both be manually reset. However, the Drive information generally resets itself and starts at 0 every morning. Thus, for a proper trip reading, you will need to reset Accumulated info. However, do this and you lose out on the average FE data since the last reset. This brings up the next point.

• Accumulated Info on the MID resets at every 10k mark. Thus, it will reset when you hit 10k, 20k, and so on.
• The Kia Connect App underwent an update (which logged me out and left me scratching my head trying to remember the damn password) and looks neater. I did not see any change in the functionality / features offered.
• When the DTE counts down to 0, you are displayed '_ _' on the MID, and the fuel tank reading is slightly below E. However, you still have 3 litres of fuel in reserve. To calculate fuel tank capacity and the DTE, the Sonet only counts the 42litres of the 45 litre fuel tank. I got curious one day.
• Cruise Control, Ventilated Seats, and Connected Car features are a bliss and regularly used. Sunroof is being used on a semi-regular basis.
• The battery in the key fob is starting to drain, and I am having incidents of the keyless entry button not recognising the key fob / the car not recognising the key fob being inside the car. The former is more frequent and the latter has happened 2-3 times. It asks you to touch the key fob to the start button to start the car.
• The DCT still gets confused at low speeds, sometimes picking up significant speed in D2 with no throttle inputs and at times being too slow in D2 with slight throttle inputs. This comes into play when you want to go slow while say, looking out for a parking spot.
• Rear seat comfort on long drives is just adequate.
• The piano black finish on the interior is a dust magnet and I find myself reaching for a duster to remove fine dust fairly regularly.
• I have not had to use the spare wheel yet. However, it is a space saver and thus, a negative for the Sonet.
• I have found that the 1.0 litre turbo does need time to get going on cold starts and it is best to idle for a minute post engine start for the best engine response. This is easily observable in the engine performance as well as the engine noise. I have started using that time to set the temperature on the climate control, belt up, wipe the console, etc.
• I had previously reported that the climate control does not auto adjust the blower speed when footwell ventilation is activated. I am pleased to state that this is incorrect and while the 'auto' light goes off, the blower speeds are indeed automatically set if you reduce or increase the temperature.
• Physical buttons to navigate the massive infotainment are sorely missed. It is a hassle to navigate the whole screen using only touch, especially when you are driving. I would have loved a dial near the gear lever that controlled the screen.
• I am not an audiophile and yet, to me, the audio system is decent. Not great, not bad, just decent.
• Finally, costs. I have spent about 13,500/- till date on service related expenses. However, of this amount, about 1,500/- has been spent trying to rectifying a botched wheel alignment / incorrect steering wheel calibration, and about 2,000/- has been spent on an underbody coating. Thus, about 10,000/- is the actual cost incurred on service and spares (wipers for the new season).

Having driven over 25k kms in the Sonet in 18 months, I am quite satisfied with the car. It has served me well and has handled everything I have asked of it.

What driving the Sonet has also done is to provide me with a list of must-haves in my future cars. Some because the Sonet has them, and some because it lacks them (looking at you 1.0 litre engine).

However, that is for the distant future. In the present, I am quite content and hope to put many more miles on the ODO.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.