Mazda 5 vs. Kia Rondo - Which is Which?

The two vehicles are stunningly similar. However, they are different right down to the sharp-edged flashing on the glove box door. Seating constitutes the most visible similarity, wherein the Mazda5 has six in a 2+2+2 configuration, while the middle row of Kia has a seventh spot.

Both cars also yield huge flexibility as well as cargo capacity. However, Kia’s headrests in the second row have to be removed first when the middle and third rows flat need to be folded. As regards the cars’ cargo-carrying capacity, Mazda Motor and Kia Motor used different ways to compute the available relative space.

When the third row is moved down, the space produced is almost four times the original. When the centre row is flat, the Rondo is made available up to 73.4 cubic feet. Visually, the Mazda 5 has almost the same space as the Rondo, but its overall height may be slighted affected by its roofline.

As far as accommodations are concerned, both cars have a close fight. Kia has considerably more legroom, knee room and headroom spaces in the third row. The Mazda 5 also has a hard plastic trim piece on the headroom. However, this car has seats that are higher off the floor (270 millimetres compared to the Kia's 230 mm), which makes it quite more comfortable than the other car.

On both cars’ second row, seats are comfortable and can be moved back and forth. When the third row is vacant, the back seat can be moved and the middle-row seats can be pulled forward, which means more stretch-out space.

While the Mazda has few nice touches like a storage bin under the left middle seat and a handy tray/net under the right, Kia counters those with functional roof rails.

Up front, there are minimal differences between the two. The cars’ driving positions are good, visibility is also good (both feature triangular windows at the A-pillar that reduces what would be a bad blind spot) and the entire layouts are logically conceptualized. Both have air conditioning (a $1,100 option on the Mazda5), great audio packages and power locks, windows, mirrors and sunroofs. The only noticeable difference is the manual adjustment for Mazda’s cloth seats and the power adjusters for the Kia's heated leather buckets.

The doors also depict differences. The Rondo comes with four conventionally hinged doors while Mazda 5 is available with sliding rear doors. Therefore, the Mazda is easier to load when one is parked in a tight area. The sliding doors deter access to the third row on the down side due to the eating of the leading edge into the way of entry.

By Kraig Johanssen

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The All New and Restyled Kia Optima

The recently introduced second-generation Kia Optima follows much the same playbook. The Kia Optima's cabin is spacious, and the interior materials as a whole give an impression of quality. Because of their mechanical similarity, the Kia Optima has comparable reliability to Hyundai Sonatas of the same model year. The Kia Optima's cabin is spacious, and the interior materials as a whole give an impression of quality.

In its third model year (2003), the Optima's front end was restyled, which gave it a more upscale European look. In addition, Kia began to offer Sportmatic manual-shift capability on four-cylinder automatic Kia Optimas. The biggest improvement of the new Kia Optima is its exterior look. Unlike the previous generation of Optima's, this vehicle is actually based on the Hyundai Elantra HD (2007-) platform. Like the Sonata, the Optima is also longer and taller than the previous model and has a longer wheelbase. The differences between the Optima and Sonata are mostly in styling details, though the Kia is priced at $500 less.

Kia has emphasized the safety features on the Optima, claiming that it comes standard with many safety features and received a crash test rating of 5-stars from the NHTSA[1] and 4-stars from Euro NCAP[2]. Surprisingly, while other cars are adding power with model-changeovers, Optima's optional V6 only makes 185 hp (138 kW), which is seriously lacking compared to a lot of other models. Though not known to be a competitor in any road racing events, the Optima has proven to be an acceptable rally racing machine.

The Kia Optima (Magentis) raced in several amateur rally events (2003-2004) and, although it never claimed a victory, proved to be a close competitor to the rally machines in its class. From its sparing use of chrome to its plain Jane wheels, the Optima is deeply, wildly inoffensive. Measured against the '07 Accord EX V6, the Optima LX comes up short in acceleration, mileage and toys. But the Kia Optima is a nice car for the price. The Kia Optima is priced below competing models and typically represent a good value when taking into consideration their high feature content. Four years down the road a used Optima will be a steal compared to a used Camry or Accord. With that said, your eyes will have no problem telling the difference between the LX and higher-priced merchandise. The vehicle's "Expected" cost of ownership is based on statistical models that correlate the price of a vehicle with cost of ownership within each of the 34 segments that comprise all vehicles.

By Jim E. Harris