2009 Kia Borrego Review

Overview

Kia Motors America (KMA) gets one more feather in its crown by introducing the all-new Kia Borrego for 2009. The all-new Borrego midsize SUV offers sophistication, convenience, quality and impressive power capabilities for an unbeatable price. Perfectly amalgamation of luxury, refinement and safety, the Kia Borrego is extremely competitive in the midsize SUV segment. It runs on regular unleaded gasoline and offers class-leading fuel economy, unlike most other vehicles of its type which need premium unleaded gasoline

Power and performance

The Borrego comes with two engine choices. As standard, it is powered by Kia's 3.8-liter V6 engine delivering 276-horsepower and 267 pound-feet of torque. It is also available with new 4.6-liter V8 engine, which puts out 337-horsepower and 323 pound-feet of torque. Coupled with an electronically controlled ZF six-speed automatic transmission with overdrive, the Borrego displayed smooth pulling power through a variety of surfaces like the mountains. With the four-wheel-drive system, the 4.6-liter manages to eke out 15 mpg in the city and 20 mpg on the highway.

Body and styling

The Borrego features crisp sidelines, bulging fenders and lots of chrome to impart a feeling of luxury. A muscular front end makes for a bold entrance, crowned by a large chrome grille reminds viewers of certain Chrysler products. Contemporary headlight surrounds show that Kia is serious about their recent design changes. The space in the Kia Borrego is quite large enough to accommodate as many as seven passengers. It also offers decent headroom, driver's knee airbag and legroom besides a vast cargo area. The perforated leather seats with single-stitch tailoring throughout sets the scene, which leads into the leather-wrapped steering wheel with redundant controls. Three rows of seating are standard for a capacity of seven passengers. The sliding second-row seat allows easier access to the third row, and both the second and third rows fold flat for optimized cargo space.

Safety Features

Kia puts a lot of emphasis on safety, offering six standard airbags, electronic stability and traction control, ABS and brake assist across the line. It also offers downhill assist control (DAC) and hill assist control (HAC), which help maintain stability on steep slopes.