2021 Kia K5 very first drive: Name games water down a fine follow-up act
The sedan previously called the Kia Optima obtains a makeover this year, however the change rarely stops at the body. It obtains a new name too.

The question we still have, after hundreds of miles invested in it-- is the mid-size 2021 Kia K5 different adequate to gain the brand-new K5 badge?

The Optima and also K5 have as much or more alike than just about any various other pair of generation-changing vehicles. They vary mostly at the margins. [honda odyssey sliding door]The Optima tapped 4-cylinder engines and also transmissions for performance, while the K5 goes turbo-only and also provides four-wheel drive to boot. The Optima seated as much as 5 people, exact same for the K5 with a bit a lot more rear-seat space. The Optima came with hybrid and also plug-in crossbreed options; thus far, the K5's turbo-4 just. If the name has you puzzled, well ... same.
Whether it's a base LX or LXS, among the duo I drove (GT-Line and also EX-SPOUSE), or the coming high-output GT, the 2021 Kia K5 gets it, from a designing viewpoint. Call it tense and also sharp, or perhaps predatorial-- the K5's new front end rakes ahead with a hawklike gaze blunted by an electric-razor grille as well as billed by lightning-bolt LED signature lights. It streams right into a chrome strip that cruises down its overstated roofline, where it still echoes the Optima, as well as ends in a strip of taillights that wouldn't look out of put on a Charger. Pick a GT-Line with blacked-out trim as well as wheels, flat grey paint, and you'll look for a Dodge badge.

That impression stop inside where the red synthetic natural leather insets in GT-Line vehicles couple with some tough plastic door panels. I was attracted promptly towards the GT-Line's exterior, however the K5 Ex Lover won me over in less than a minute with its more significant coatings, like woodgrain trim as well as thin fillets of chrome. It's a business-class look on a budget of regarding $30,000-- like a well-tailored off-the-rack suit.

With identical drivetrains and just a little various tuning, the K5 GT-Line and also EX I drove can rarely be differentiated from each other. That's not to claim they're undistinguished: The K5's big separation from the Optima comes in its road manners. A tough brand-new structure, a typical 8-speed automated with impeccable timing, and also a base 1.6-liter turbo-4 with 180 horsepower tack with a performance wind. Say goodbye to normally aspirated sighs as it progressively builds to speed up; the turbo-4's anxious throttle draws the K5 to highway limits quickly.
Kia's refined the trip in the K5, as well as while it's far better than that of the Optima I last drove, it's not as utterly composed as a Subaru Tradition at low rates. The K5 enters into its own in the mid-range, where the mix of 18-inch wheels and also independent suspension filter off the low-speed bumps and also thumps that can be damped better, to amplify its deluxe tilt. [this one]The guiding's something of a one-note affair, without much feeling at any kind of angle of input however with much response, like a high-school band's cymbalist.

The K5's cabin specs out with even more area, yet some specifications get greater than others. The pole positions on both automobiles I drove had the thick bolsters and also solid paddings motivated by the German cars of an additional era. Just do not tick the cooled-seats alternative: It makes the seat bottoms difficult and also much less comfy for lengthy journeys. I fit conveniently into the rear seat without issue, and all my cargo located a residence in the trunk's 16.0-cubic-foot area.

Household four-doors are so well-done as a course, they can mist the brains of new-car consumers. The K5 might not have the low-set stance of the Honda Accord, or the sky-high mileage of a Toyota Camry Crossbreed-- yet in functions, it wipes out those opponents. Every 2021 K5 obtains automated emergency braking, 5 years or 60,000 miles of service warranty insurance coverage, and an 8.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Vehicle compatibility. We wouldn't spend a lot more, however Kia offers a broader touchscreen, premium audio, a breathtaking roofing, as well as flexible cruise ship control.

We provide the 2021 Kia K5 a TCC Ranking of 7.2 out of 10. (Find out more regarding exactly how we rate vehicles.) Our choice: the EX, with its fancy cockpit and also no-excuses attributes. Regardless of which model you select, there's a great deal gone right with the 2021 Kia K5, and also really little gone wrong.

On that particular note, one of minority things failed is the name. It's a mistake. This would certainly have been a perfectly great successor to the last Optima-- and alphanumeric names seem cold and unsociable, while "Optima" bristles with the hope sorely doing not have currently.

The K5 bristles with personality, too. It should have a name that has one.