My first car Kia Sonet after 3 years. Would I be better off with an EV

TLDR: Would I buy the car again if I was given a second chance in 2021? Hell yes! Would I buy the car again (the 2024 version ICE) if I was given a chance in 2024? No.

BHPian Cayenne-8055 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

This is my first ever car review and I'm super glad to be sharing it an INCREDIBLE community of car enthusiasts!

We have owned our Kia Sonet for almost 3 years now and have clocked around 16k kms on it, I'm the only driver of the car and it was bought mainly to be used in the city as I migrated to a new state for my job.

Before I jump to my ownership experience, pros and cons, service center experience, I want to give a TLDR.

TLDR: Would I buy the car again if I was given a second chance in 2021? Hell yes!

Would I buy the car again (the 2024 version ICE) if I was given a chance in 2024? No.

Why no? While the car entirely delivers on our expectations and needs, I feel (and know) that an EV would much better suited for my commuting requirements. I have access to free charging at office and very rarely do 300 kms+ trips, and even if I do, I take breaks in between to stretch and stay hydrated and explore some nice viewpoint nearby. Hence, since ~90% of my commutes range in the 20-100kms range, I can easily get this out of an EV. Another thing which attracts me to EVs is the quick acceleration, I can't express my desire for having that instant pull at lower speeds to have a quick overtake on the roads. While throttling out does work somewhat, I don't like to revv the car(after 4k RPM) as I feel it makes too much sound and also drops the mileage. 2 of my prime demands are what EVs solve and hence, given an option I'd, no doubt, for a EV on the market today. Plus, its better for the environment, I know, there will be folks who say that the electricity for running the car comes from burning fossil fuels and so on, but I recommend them to watch this video by Nikhil Kamath where he discusses the future of EV in India with some prominent industry leaders and makes significants points to prove that EVs do result in lesser pollution overall.

Now let me talk about the pros and cons:

Pros:

1. No issues with any parts of the car till now other than the keyfob battery running out of charge! I was a first-time car buyer in 2021 and did not know about TeamBHP and hence did not even ask for a PDI. But nevertheless, it has passed all the quality checks and apart from the issue with the car key (which was minor and I was able to get it resolved in 30 mins at the shop), I've not faced a single failure in any of the components for which I've needed to take the car to the shop till now (Touch wood!)
2. The infotainment system works buttery smooth! I've used both wireless Android auto and Apple Carplay and both seamlessly connect automatically and load up within 5 seconds after I turn on the car! (Provided I have Bluetooth enabled on my phone, which I always keep on anyways)
3. The sound system. I did not get the top system available on Kia Sonet since I selected the HTK+ variant but I must say no complaints about the sound quality at all. It has something to do with the streaming provider too I think, as I've noticed better quality with Spotify than with the radio(probably because of the better bitrate? Not sure.)
4. The engine. The 1.0L Turbo Petrol engine packs a punch and definitely gets the job done. Its smooth and most importantly for me, is fairly quiet (from outside and on the inside the insulation is pretty good so I can't hear much at all unless I listen carefully).
5. The transmission. We got the DCT variant since there was a car in the showroom already available and this meant we could take delivery 1.5 weeks after booking. I didn't really prefer manual or automatic, but was led to presume from few folks I talked to that real men drive Manual transmission!. The transmission is smooth and the lag is minimal in shifting gears. It's not great and I feel it could be reduced but I can live with it.
6. The design. Boy, this is what I fell for. The car is a looker from the outside AND inside. In the price range, we were looking for(10-15L), the Kia Sonet blew the competition out of water (personal opinion, please don't take offence)
7. The brakes. Strong, sturdy and gives plenty of confidence.

Cons:

1. The transmission takes too long to shift-up at lower gears, it takes a solid 2-3 seconds for me to shift down to accelerate for a quick overtake in speeds between 15-40 kmph (when fully throttling down). Hence, I said I'd opt for EVs for satisfying this requirement.
2. The turbo doesn't kick in every time. It fails to activate sometimes (it will activate eventually but sometimes not at engine start) and at those times, the car feels underpowered.

Some more photos:

The service center experience

The after sales experience has been nothing short of remarkable till now! As a customer, I'm 100% satisfied with their level of expertise, politeness and way of dealing with customers. Kia India, if you're reading this, Kudos to you for nailing the customer experience! They treat customers with respect and properly listen to any woes if at all. (I speak from experience, after having to go through insurance claim process after a minor dent and the service center actively followed up with me and helped me through the process). Same goes with buying experience too, they actively helped me get the loan process completed, explained in detail the variants available, the features and made the delivery experience nothing short of glamorous. Both were done at different locations, and this instills confidence about the uniformity of dealing with customers very gracefully.

Signing off,

Cayenne-8055

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