Kia Rondo – Kia What?

KIA Rondo

What on earth is a Kia Rondo? While the name might not exactly roll off the tip of the average American’s tongue, the Kia Rondo is Kia’s crossover offering; a part-station wagon, part-SUV that looks like a little minivan. In Europe, this style of vehicle is called a “space wagon MPV” and is quite popular, but the concept is fairly new to the U.S. auto market, which is in the process of detoxing from yet love-affair-gone-bad with huge trucks and SUVs.

The Rondo is available in a 2.4 liter four cylinder model and a 2.7 liter V6, both of which feature automatics transmissions with a Sportmatic feature that lets drivers choose their own gears. Air conditioning is standard at all trim levels except the most basic LX, and lots of fun options are available, like MP3-capable audio systems and leather-wrapped steering wheels. The 4 cylinder option gets an decent EPA fuel efficient rating of 20 MPG in the city and 27 MPG on the highway, with the V6 coming in slightly lower at 18 MPG city and 26 MPG highway.  MSRP on a 2009 Kia Rondo starts at around $18,000.