The ambitious Korean car brands of Hyundai and Kia suffered something of a setback of late with the arrest of their chairman over allegations of political bribery. Yet, according to company officials, both the parent brand and its partner Kia are still on target to be a top-five global car firm by 2010.
The plan is for Kia to gradually become the more sporting youthful brand while Hyundai moves slightly upmarket and becomes more family orientated. That's hardly apparent from either line-up at present and it will seemingly take years before the move becomes obvious to buyers.
For now the two brands are working on increasing sales of their big sellers. For Kia that means keeping up the momentum for the likes of the Sorento SUV. This Korean entrant has been one of Kia's hottest models on the Irish market, a well-priced SUV that offered decent off-road capabilities, a relatively good specification and all at a competitive price. The biggest problem with Sorento in the early days after its launch seemed to be with getting delivery.
Now a facelifted version is on offer, the most significant change being a new light cluster on the front and some internal changes to the specification. The Sorento always looked a tough and well-proportioned offering and this latest version loses none of its muscular appeal.
While external changes are minor, the 2.5-litre diesel engine gets a 21 per cent increase in power output, to 170bhp, while torque is increased 14 per cent to 343Nm. The end result remains the same: the Sorento manages to combat tough off-road conditions with aplomb, even if it does wallow a bit on the road. While we were impressed with the current model, the biggest failing was in its handling characteristics on motorways and the like. Over 100km/h the steering feels too light and imprecise and this issue has, unfortunately, not been addressed in the revised model.
When it arrives this autumn only a nominal price increase is expected.
Kia's new slogan is "the power to surprise". The revised Sorento doesn't meet that criterion - and that's a good thing. The current version is a worthy contender in the SUV market and doesn't need to surprise. Kia management are no doubt hoping there are no more surprises in the boardroom either.