Kia Rio 1.1 CRDi EcoDynamics

"MPG difference is less significant, 88mpg is probably more like 65 real world,"

Seems you are right

On a trip from Manchester to Swansea and back - down along the M6/M5 and back up the A483 - I averaged 67mpg on the motorways and 58mpg on the A-road return journey

Which makes me wonder how and why they have a standard measure that everyone knows isn't repeated in the real world. Is it actually useful for anyone?

Maybe you're not a very good driver ?

See title.

Wretched, styleless cars...

The latter shape Hyundai Coupe begs to differ with you on that, and that was released 10 years ago (not the one that looked like it melted).

Great Review compared to Fifth Gear

Great review, I'm glad to see it's getting close to it's rated MPG and you've taken the time to look at all the various practicalities of the car apart from just pure speed and acceleration

Compare that to a recent episode of Fifth Gear recently where they claimed to be trying to get close to the rated MPG figure but just seemed to give up and absolutely horse the thing, then complain they got less than half the MPG they were 'supposed' to get. Too much time driving Ferraris I feel.

I've had a curiosity about this car for some time and this review has been a good read.

Quiet French Diesels?

If my french Diesel is anything to go by, the only reason it's quiet is because a butterfly in China flapped its wings so it spontanously dumped all its oil and welded itself solid.

French Diesels are great. When they're not blowing Turbos, manifolds, injectors, heads or bottom ends.

One question

Is Kia still building cars with a suspension that can be damaged by running over a nightcrawler?

Recent Kia OK

I had a Pro Cee'd 1.6 CRDi for over three years with no real issues. It was "3" spec so it sat on stiff suspension and big alloys that didn't help the ride, but the interior was pretty much unmarked after three years, and it looks very similar to the Rio interior. Couldn't really complain about build quality or the 7 year warranty...

...but it was so very, very dull to drive. Traded it in for a Renault Wind, even though I know that I'll probably have issues with it, it actually likes to go round corners and gives feedback to the driver.

Why on Earth are El Reg now reviewing depressing little hatchbacks? Seriously, a Kia.....with a 1.1 litre diesel engine......I cannot think of anything I would want to drive less. It's quite tragic that the great unwashed have got it into their heads that they MUST buy a more economical car, when they fail to realise fuel is only a very small part of the bill for running a car, which means manufacturers are released utter tedium like this.

The number of times I have had the conversation with people who have spent 10k+ on a new diesel to save £200 a year in fuel beggars belief. Or the ones who do 3,000 miles a year and insist on going diesel, when a petrol would work out far cheaper. Idiots the lot of them.

Mine's the one with the keys to a 15 year old BM in it. Cheaper to run than a BlueEcoMotiveMotionHybridSynergyDynamics and 1000x more fun too.

Nicely sited

oil filter - v accessible and practical (says he still sore from trying to get to the filter on his peugeot)

Kia comes with a Rio that gets a decent number of miles per gallon. And Ford adds a start/stop thingie to a Focus, and advertise it as the best thing since sliced bread. Yes, it's all very new and exciting and totally awesome. Assuming you're not familiar with the Volkswagen Lupo 3L.

The moment there is a diesel that gets more than 100mpg I might get excited, but this car doesn't really warrant this amount of coverage.

German Styling

"partly styled at Kia’s German studio" indeed. It screams GM at me. The Vauxhall Insignia scallop in the side, the preposterous high shoulder line, the wilfully bland rear quarters and the uber-retro honeycomb pattern fake diffuser. I mean, 16" wheels? That thing looks almost as big as the current generation Corsa (i.e. roughly the same as a 90's Ford Granada). I bet these don't sell well in the home market.

Nice

A decent little review that strikes a fair balance between tech, driving experience and practicality. I don't usually read car reviews but the Reg's are the exception. Good work, credit where due etc

Junky tires, and a nice car.

@Ian Stephenson, yep these kinds of tires are rubbish, they allow for a (slightly) higher MPG rating while compromising handling, braking, (maybe) acceleration, and safety. @armyknife, one aspect of being a good driver is keeping your vehicle in safe condition. These tires I'm sure are technically legal, but they really are not remotely safe tires. I've been in several vehicles with these types of tires, and they don't corner worth a damn, don't stop worth a damn, and don't give any warning they are getting ready to let loose. So, if someone stops short in front of you and there's a drop of rain on the road, you WILL ram into them. My friend got rid of his after he got stuck because *1* out of 4 tires was in about 2 inches of snow (with the other 3 tires on dry pavement.) That was too much for it!

That said, I wish they'd sell some cars like that here in the states. They are starting to pay *some* attention, finally within the last year or two more 40MPG (that is 48MPG in your British gallons..) cars have come out than just the Prius and a few inflated-MPG Honda Hybrids, whereas before... well... you could either get some car with a nice torquey V6, where they'd pull out the stops for MPG and get 30MPG (that's 36 UK MPG), or a little 4-cylinder that they instead tuned and geared strictly for power, so it'd still be far slower than the V6 but also get about 30MPG. (This is why us US'ians had this apparent obsession with V6s and V8s btw... the car companies were supplying 4 cylinders with no mileage advantage over the 6, so why buy it?) But over 75 (US) MPG? Yeah, I'd be interested in that.

A good effort, but I'd rather have a Fiesta Econetic with the 1.6 lump. I just get the feeling that engine would last longer.

@jungle_jim, or the cnuts that fit the bulbs incorrectly so they're angled into your optic nerve!

Or the planks that think it's 'cool' to have the front fog lights on, or the tossers that buy 30% brighter bulbs, or the wankers that sell 30% brighter bulbs, or the regulator who thought it would be sensible to sell 30% brighter bulbs, I mean, WTF, sure it's got the same beam pattern, but overall, there are more photons for chrissakes!

Finally, the selfish, arrogant, bloody-minded knuckle-draggers who use full beam regardless.

lighter cars

i would love them to re release a few old school cars with modern engines.

i would PAY for a brand new MK1 escort with the only difference being it had a modern engine up front.

ok, so aerodynamics would be an issue, but i still reckon the urban MPG would be competitive!

and off the lights would give lots of stuff a good run for their money!

i will have to publish my MPG when my ghetto MK2 tina with modernish engine is done (800kg from the factory)