Owner Review: An Underrated C-Segment Sedan - My 2014 Kia Cerato K3 1.6 YD

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Basic information about my car

2014 Kia Cerato K3 1.6 YD

Reasons why I bought this car

The purpose of buying this car is because I want to provide the maximum comfort which I could afford for my family members when we are on road journey.

Car Selection Process

• I had a budget of RM 90,000

• Model(s) that I have considered include: Toyota Vios G Spec 2014 and Honda City V Spec 2014

Reasons why I chose this car:

The reason I chose this car is of mainly due to its comfort and safety features. Apart from this, its well-equipped sound system and its big screen (8-inch) head unit attrach me a lot because I am an audiophile. Plus, its exterior in overall looks luxurious and sporty. Most importantly, it worths the price when compared to other C-Segment cars back then. Lastly, the car price was RM92,000 due to Raya Promo of RM7,000 deduction and I did not mind forking out extra RM2,000 on it.

User Experience

• I have already done 114,000 km

Since the purchase, my thoughts about the car are: 

A little background of modern Kia design:

Since the launch of Kia Forte back in late 2000s, the design of all Kia models has huge improvement especially the launch of Kia Optima K5 during 2012 when the company first introduced the "tiger nose grille" which really attracted me the most during that time. Apart from this, the overall design of all Kia models is getting sportier than before. 

The Chief Design Officer of Kia and Hyundai between 2006 and 2018 was Peter Schreyer form Volkswagen Group but he was replaced by Luc Donckerwolke later then. 

Overall Outlook (Exterior):

Kia Cerato K3 YD (the successor of Kia Forte) is one of Schreyer's masterpieces. I like the car's streamlined design and of course its tiger nose grille cannot be missed out here!

When it comes to headlight, it has both welcome light (side mirrors) and escort light (door handles) where you cannot find it in other C-Segment cars during that time. However, it comes with halogen on the projector part and front foglamp. Its LED Day Running Light (DRL) is very beautiful and does not lose to Mercs C-Class's. 

As for the rear light part, it comes with full LED on high mounted stop lamp and rear combination lamp. To be honest, its rear light design will never be felt outdated after so many years of passing. The fun fact is, the rear light design of 2020 Mercs A-Class Hatchback is quite identical to this car.

Lastly, it comes with 17inch alloy rim.

Overall Outlook (Interior):

The car comes with keyless entry and push start button. Its dashboard meter is analog type. However, the dashboard center runs digitally where you can perform some car settings there from designated car steering wheels. Additionally, the air-conditioner panel runs digitally as well. 

The brake and accelerate pedals are steel made and look sporty too!

The material used on car seats is fabric type. So, no-no for drink spilling! 

The car also comes with armrest and rear air vent. 

All the door handles come with chromic material.

Hence, the interior design of this car in overall is just fine.

Overall Safety Feature:

The car comes with standard 6 airbags. 

The car has built in a rear-view auto dimming mirror and it will dim automatically when the cars behind put high beam on you. Furthermore, it comes with front (2) and rear sensors (4).

The car comes with road stability control which you will feel safe when you perform cornering especially on wet surface when it is enabled.

Overall Entertainment Feature:

The car comes with 8-inch head unit and 6 speakers. You can connect your phone to the head unit via Bluetooth for phone calling and music listening. If you are an audiophile like me, the head unit allows you to tweak the song quality based on your taste. It comes with 10-band EQ and music concentration positioning. There is an advanced function where you can tweak the song quality further. Furthermore, it comes with licensed SpeedNavi navigation map. 

The car steering comes with cruise control feature and pedal shift control as well.

Until now, I am still enjoying the built-in car entertainment on my ride each time!

Performance and Handling:

The car come with dual-C VVT Gamma 1.6CC MPI with 6 speed automatics. The max power of the car is 130PS and 150Nm of torque. So, K3 is not a performance and a turbo-charged engine car. Don't worry, the car still can go up to 180km/h easily and no issue going up to Genting. 

Fuel Consumption:

The fuel consumption of this car is quoted at average of 7.7 to 8.0L per 100KM. It could up to 5.4L per 100KM on highway drive but I want to emphasize that it is merely an indicator. I will do fuel refilling in average of 7 to 10 days depending on my travelling frequency. Currently I could get full tank at between RM75 to RM80 when the fuel indicator mentions the travel limit is below 100km.

For the first 4 years, the car consumed Shell Helix RON 97 and now refined Petronas Synthium RON 95.

In overall, the fuel consumption of the car is acceptable.
 
Maintenance:

Majority people are having the mindset of maintaining a kimchi car would cost huge bucks. Well, I somewhat agree but it is entirely depending on the driver's skill. Additionally, finding a reliable service center is also very important for owning a kimchi car because it can help you to save some pennies.

The car is with me for 6 years and 2 months now. For the 1st 5 years (during warranty period), I sent my car to Kia authorized service center on time. The minor service for this car is around RM400 – RM500 and its major service costs about RM1,200. It is just normal wear and tear just like every car does. The service center I went during warranty period is JD Auto in Kota Kemuning, Selangor. Their workmanship is superb and they will provide professional advice and seek your permission for any optional changes at all times. After the warranty ended, I bring my car for service at HNK Motor in Bandar Sunway, Selangor. HNK Motor is owned by a friendly Korean mechanic where offers a very professional service in a reasonable cost. For minor service, it costs less than RM400 but I am not sure about the major service because my car hasn't done any yet.

As for the tires, I changed them twice from the original Continental MC5, then to Hankook Ventus Concept V2 and now Bridgestone Dayton DT-30. 

As for the car battery, I changed them in every year. The car battery cost is at between RM380 and RM420. It drains battery very fast because it has too many features running background. However, the situation has changed after I start using Amaron until now which costs me RM320 and 18-month warranty.  Big thanks to Carput!

However, there are some spare parts which need to be aware of especially after warranty period such as arm bush, suspension, drive shaft, absorber, and catalytic converter. The total damage of changing arm bush, suspension, drive shaft, and absorber are about RM2,500 while the catalytic converter itself costs about RM3,000. Hence, be prepare to save some bucks because you never know when the damage comes. It may or may not break at 1 shot depending on the driver's skill.

When it comes to spare parts, you can get them from service center easily or from 3rd party authorized spare part stores. Please do not worry about the difficulties of getting spare parts because there are numbers of shops out there to supply spare parts to Kia, Hyundai, SsangYong and Chevrolet in Malaysia. 

Modification:

My apologies if the car looks gangster or 'lala' to you. The car became like this for some reason. Anyway, I will tear the stickers and "fake antenna" away the soonest possible because I prefer cleaner looking.

You might also think that the car is heavily modified but actually you are wrong :P. The below are the modifications I made on the car:

1. Body Kit

2. Sport Rim

3. LED Light (reverse light, headlamp, foglamp and car plate light)

4. Stickers (body, grille, rim cap, body kit, car logos (inside and outside)

5. Window Visors

Future Modification:

I plan to replace the original head unit to a Kenwood Player because it will not so responsive on and off now.

Pros & Cons

Pros

1. Comfortable fabric seats

2. Large legroom

3. Spacious car interior

4. Good safety feature

5. Good sound system

6. Good sound insulation

7. Good handling

8. Quiet cabin

9. Smooth engine

10. Very stable on high speed (up to 180km/h)

11. Spare parts are easy to find

12. Worth the price among C-Segment cars

13. No airbag issue

14. Fuel consumption OK

Cons

1. Poor acceleration

2. Expensive rare spare part (Catalytic Converter)

3. Poor resale value

Ratings

• Total Score: 4

• Performance: 3

• Quality & Features: 5

• Space: 5

• Ride Comfort: 5

• Fuel Economy: 3

• Price & Cost: 4

Summary

In overall, this car is really fun to drive with. It brings a lot of happiness with my love ones. The car is still serving me very well until now. As of now, I have not thought of changing new car because the car quality is still in top-top condition and still serving me very well. Besides, I never get bored on its design even though 6 years have passed. Kia Cerato K3 is an underrated and unpopular C-Segment sedan in the country, thanks to Naza Malaysia. If you concern about car resale value, then it is not for you. If not, then it is money-worth which you might not want to miss out. Believe me, Kia is not as bad as what you think and I never regret to own one. I assure you, drive to believe and feel the "Power to Surprise"!