Kia Optima

The black interior trim makes the cabin look plusher and the additional red stitching on the GT trim infuse a sporty flair to it. Contrary to the Si grade featuring cloth fabric seat covers, GT gets sports tubular leather-appointed seats with contrast stitching & GT logo. Rear seats with 60:40 split fold-flat function allow expanding luggage storage space. Besides, the standard kit includes a rear centre armrest, height-adjustable headrests, and front seatbelts. Features specific to the top grade include an IMS driver’s seat with 2 seating position memory & easy access function and 8-way power adjusting driver’s seat with 4-way lumbar support. While the Si comes with a 7-inch touchscreen LCD unit, the GT sports a larger, 8-inch screen. Both units are supported by Android Auto and Apple CarPlay with voice recognition. Steering mounted audio controls, Bluetooth connectivity, speed-dependent volume control, AUX/USB input, etc. are standard across line-up. The carline also features a dual-zone climate control air-conditioner, in-audio screen climate control, auto defog system, rear air vents, heated front seats among various others. The cargo space on the sedan is quite spacious at 510-litre, besides, it gets multiple storage points within cabin including cup-holders, bottle holders, glovebox, centre console storage box with bucket tray, etc.

Sporting large proportions, Kia Optima sedan measures 4,855 mm long, 1,860 mm wide and 1,465 mm wide. Both Si and GT variants in the Optima carline feature dusk-sensing automatic headlamps, LED fog lamps in front and LED daytime running lights. The LED headlamps with auto levelling, smart boot and LED rear combination lamps come with the top-spec grade, however the base Si receives dual projector headlamps. While adaptive front lighting system and a special Sports package are reserved only for the top-sec GT grade. There is a chrome-accented grille in front, while bumpers and outside door mirrors are coloured in body paint. Other bits, such as rain-sensing front wipers, heated electric door mirrors with integrated signals and power-folding function are standard. Smart boot with auto-release has been left out in the base Si trim while solar glass, windscreen with sun-band and dual chrome tip rear muffler are available across the line-up. 

Fitted with McPherson strut units at the front and multi-link rear units, the Optima GT has a slightly stiffer suspension. There is still some room for improvement as far as ride & handling go. The steering wheel comes with heated function and seems to be just adequate in terms of response.

The mechanical set-up on the Optima sedan consists of a base 2.4-litre GDI petrol engine and a 2.0-litre T-GDI unit that powers top-spec GT trim. In terms of power, the four-cylinder 2.4-litre unit makes top power of 138 kW at 6,000 rpm against 241 Nm torque at 4,000 rpm. The 2.0-litre GDI unit puts out 42kW more power as compared to the 2.4-litre engine. That said, it generates 180Kw at 6,000 rpm along with 350Nm torque between 1,350 to 4,000 rpm. Both engines are paired to a six-speed automatic gearbox, missing out on a manual unit. 

The front axle features 320 mm ventilated disc, while the rear gets 284 mm solid discs. As for the list of safety tech, dual front SRS, front side SRS and curtain SRS airbags are standard. Also, ABS with EBD and brake assist, electronic stability control with TCS, vehicle stability management, hill start assist control, emergency stop signal, rearview camera with in-audio screen display & dynamic parking guidelines are all part of the regular kit. Other bits such as blind-spot detection, lane change assist, lane-keeping assist and adaptive front lighting system are reserved for the GT grade. 

There isn’t much difference in terms of tech between the base Si and the top-spec GT. Even though there is ample feature loaded on the sedan, it lacks in some of the departments.