Kia Rondo

yep, I got the pleasure of driving a Kia Rondo. It made me wonder why anyone would actually buy one, after sitting it in, let alone drive it. it was awful, not the worst car I have ever driven, but close. The worst was the Dodge Caliber, that one was king of the dung pile, that one was the worst driving experience of my life, and I have had some pretty crappy rental cars.

I better start the story off the right way, I deserved this. I had a chance to bail out, kinda. I had a business trip to Alabama yesterday, my monthly, no twice a month trip, and when i got to the Avis desk, the lady informed me that they were out of the segment car that I had reserved, she had three options, a minivan, a Pontiac Solstice, and a compact. No way I was driving a minivan, and I feared that showing up to a jobsite, on the beach, in a drop top, might make the owner just a tad unhappy, he might think I am having fun at his expense, even though there would have been o upgrade fee on the vert. The third car, she did not know what it was, it had just been returned, and all she had was the ID number. I took the option behind door number three. I get out to the garage, she hands me the key, and tell me it is in slot 3...convenient. I look to slot 3, and in horor, realize I will be tooling around in a Kia Rondo. I almost went back and got the Solstice. But, judgment told me not to. Remind me not to listen to judgment in times like that.

I proceeded to try and get situated in this car, which was not going to happen. I could not find a seat position that worked, nothing that was comfortable, and nothing that would make me want to sit in that thing ever again. I am used to my hair touching the roof of my car, it gives me a sense of security, while most people would probably feel claustrophobic. Not me. This car, had a good 10-12 inches of headroom, ABOVE my head, and I am fairly tall. I felt like I was 4 feet tall. Sight lines out of the car were dreadful, thankfully I know how to set up my mirrors correctly, thank you Ron Hale. The car had no acceleration, the springs were so soft, that under full throttle, it felt like the front tires were going to lift up like a drag car...and they are the drive wheels...so that means torque steer. yep, in gobs. Tons of it. The overall driving experience was one I would like to soon forget. The interior materials were really cheap, the stereo was really poor, bad ergon0mics on the buttons, I had to lean forward to get to the buttons, because they slope away from the driver, steeply. The ride was terrible, the center of gravity on this car was so high, it felt like it wanted to roll over in a simple lane change. at one point, I tried passing another car on a two lane, because they were going 15 mph under the posted limit, not because i wanted to go fast...I thought I was not going to make it. The hamsters in the engine bay could not peddle any faster. I think the other driver slowed down, to aid me, when he heard the little four banger working so hard. By the end of the 65 miles i put on the car, my legs hurt, and so did my back, the seats were that miserable. It reminds me how spoiled I am in my car. To make it worse, the fellas at the jobsite saw me pull in, and gave me a little ripping about it. I told them the story, and they unanimously said they would have gone the route of the Solstice.

Next time, if there are three options, and one is the convertible, I will come home with a little more color in my face.