Kia Cadenza test drive review

I test drove the Kia Cadenza this past Saturday. For the most part, I liked it. Like the Avalon and Azera, it's a step down from the Genesis, so I'm going to directly compare it to the first two rather than the Genesis.

It's got a decent looking exterior, although I prefer the Avalon and Azera exteriors. As far as the interior goes, I like it better than the Avalon's. The console is much more logically laid out in my opinion, and doesn't look nearly as funky--looks quite classy. Plenty of storage space, although the cupholders are the non-adjustable kind. Very comfy seats, although I'd have to play around some more with the adjustments, since the seating position felt just a little bit off and I wasn't able to fix that in the 10 seconds I spent fiddling with the seat. Good visibility all the way around, although there is a blind spot off the front right of the car, with the pillar and side mirror blocking a fairly large swathe of scenery. Plenty of room front and back--even with the front seat pushed all the way back, I had at least 3-4 inches of knee room sitting in the back.

Under way, I was a little bit disappointed. The engine seems very revvy, and didn't have as much insulation as the Avalon. There was also a tad bit more wind noise at speed, although it's well within my tolerance level. Along with being revvy, the engine shifted gears a lot, and though it didn't cause any jerkiness or anything like that, it is kind of odd to hear the engine change pitch that much in a near-luxury car. I could definitely get used to it, but it just struck me as odd and a bit out of place. Acceleration was good and the ride was smooth enough for my liking. It would make a good highway cruiser, as well as being quite tolerable when sitting in the 395/495 parking lot going to and from work. Nice level of amenities inside: upgraded stereo, cooled seats, panoramic sunroof, etc. Only nitpick there is that the nav's street/guidance display looked very similar to nav displays I've seen in ~2009 era cars, not nearly as "new" as the other cars I've looked at.

All in all, it was ok. I'd rank it a bit above the Avalon in everything about the interior, but slight demerits for the nav display, wind/engine noise, and exterior styling. I think that puts it about tied with the Avalon, but definitely a step below the Genesis.