2014 Kia Rio Lx on 2040-cars

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2014 Kia Sorento

For most new car shoppers, three-row crossovers are little more than a way for the family-minded to avoid succumbing to the minivan stigma. Admit it - the only things that differentiate most larger CUVs from minivans are their lack of sliding side doors and - on most of them - the option of all-wheel drive. Having blossomed into a popular segment with thicker profit margins, though, automakers have plenty of incentive to keep their offerings fresh, and that's exactly why Kia is presenting its 2014 Sorento so soon.
At first glance, the crisply styled utility vehicle seen here appears to be nothing more than a mid-cycle refresh - and not a particularly extensive one, at that. But that's not the case at all. Despite looking very similar to the second-generation vehicle that came on the scene for the 2010 model year, this is an all-new Sorento. Or, more precisely, it's about 80-percent new. Kia says less than 20 percent of the parts have been carried over from the 2013 Sorento, and that's a pretty typical amount for an 'all-new' vehicle generation.
Since we've yet to spend quality time with the "Made in the USA" Sorento for more than a short First Drive in Arizona last February, we snagged the keys to a 2014 model in the all-new SX Limited trim level for a lengthy backroad sojourn from Florida to South Carolina.

2018 Kia Stinger GT AWD Review: A 1,400-mile grand tour in Kia's grand tourer

They call the 2018 Kia Stinger a GT. It's powerful and sleek with a low-slung seating position, quick steering and, even with all-wheel drive, a tail-happy nature. It looks killer in red. And with its V6-powered engine, the letters GT are even festooned upon its liftgate. Well, that's nice, but how does it actually deliver on the grand-tourer formula of rapid, comfortable and stylish transportation? Well, to find out, I put the Stinger GT to a grand-touring test. Starting in the western Rockies and the remote ski town of Crested Butte, Colo., my destination would be home in Portland, Ore. The Google-suggested way is 18 hours on mostly Interstates 70, 15 and 84. However, interstates are boring and are better suited to a perfectly capable but utterly soulless family transportation appliance. A proper grand tour should include two-lane highways and scenic detours, so that's exactly what I'd do. It would add hours and miles, but also, most hopefully, a vastly more memorable experience. Well, as my photos will attest, the scenery didn't disappoint. And, as you'll see in the videos, neither did the Stinger. Episode 1: Setting Off Episode 2: It's a hatchback! Crested Butte, Colo., to Moab, Utah Crested Butte is way off the beaten path, a charming mountain village deep in the western Colorado Rockies mostly free from the usual uber-commercial, Disney-like feel of ritzier, easier-accessed ski towns. Its main street thoroughfare, authentically Western rather than engineered to be so, is surrounded by scattered subdivisions and majestic mountains beyond. It had been buried in 9 feet of snow just a few weeks prior. The local citizenry didn't seem particularly bothered by that. Though most of that 9 feet had melted, the ground was still very much white, requiring the Stinger GT to shed its usual summer rubber in favor of Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 winter tires. These are specifically intended for performance car applications like the Stinger, sacrificing just a smidge of icy traction in favor of superior handling and steering feel when on dry pavement. There's no need to delay the verdict here: after 1,400 miles, the Stinger felt just as generally compelling and dynamic on the Alpins as when I drove it last November in Southern California on summer tires. The other half of the Stinger's snow defense is the GT's optional all-wheel-drive system, which adds $2,000 to its price tag (as-tested $52,300).

2014 Kia Soul SUV Styling Pack adds some aggression

Last month, Kia released a few photos of the European-market 2014 Soul ahead of its Frankfurt Motor Show reveal, and we happened to notice that the hamster box looked a bit different - a bit tougher. That's because Kia is adding an SUV Styling Pack to the car's options list, which includes the blacked-out lower fascias, wheel arches, side skirts and painted roof seen here.
At the time, we polled Autoblog readers if they thought bringing the optional visuals to SUV-happy North America was a good idea, and the voting split 70.3 percent in favor, 21.4 percent against, and 8.3 percent undecided.
At the present time, Kia representatives tell us that it has no plans to offer the SUV Styling Pack in our market, so you'll have to take a better look at it with our new gallery to decide whether its absence from North American order sheets is a tragedy or not.