2018 Kia Niro consumer reviews

This car has some nice features for the money, but leaves you wishing for a little more. I like the android auto, the push start, dual climate control, etc that comes on the base model of the LX (which I own), but I'm not sold on the dependability as I had to take my car in on the 4th day owning it. I don't love the look, it's just kind of there, but the interior is nicely designed. In the end, it's a decent sized hybrid for less than most smaller hybrids

Love the car but needs a few things. Power passenger seat would be nice. the other Kia models have power second seats. Also, the fix for the steering is apparently an over compensation for the 2017 problems, The steering will be driving on straight flat streets will pull your hand around, very uncommon. Dealer checked out the car several times and they are telling us that this is now the new normal for the car, electronic computer compensation. Nnot a desirable trait in our view. We will not buy another Niro unless this is dealt with. Only real negative with the car and lack of power second seat would be nice. Power and overall other performance just fine.

I recently traded in my 2015 Mazda CX-5 for a 2018 Kia Niro EX Premium. I am very impressed. The CX-5 is also a very good vehicle, but my CX-5's electronics left some things to be desired (the radio station preset interface was archaic, it took a while to pair with Bluetooth devices, and some features, like displaying text messages to the display, never worked). I looked into the Niro for two main things: 1) I needed better gas mileage due to moving farther away from work. The CX-5 actually had pretty good fuel economy, but the Niro blows away most cars out there. So far this part of the vehicle has been fantastic. If you're a good driver you can pull more than the specified MPG from it. My driving is about 70 percent city/30 percent highway, so that helps too as MPG for hybrids tends to drop some if you're spending more time on highways. 2) Better electronics and tech. Again, the Niro does really well here. The EX with premium package is loaded with safety and entertainment features. The displays are crisp and have bright and easily read text and the whole thing just screams high-tech. Very happy with this element of the vehicle. I haven't even started to dig into the possibilities of Android Auto (or Apple's version of the same). Now, where is the CX-5 better? First, the CX-5 is a real crossover SUV. As some other reviewers mentioned, the Niro is more like a car than an SUV. The CX-5 also had slightly better external styling and a more flexible second row where you could fold down left, right, and middle sections whereas the Niro has a 60/40 split option only. Both cars feel strong and solidly built but the CX-5 rides higher and has a higher clearance so it's a better fit for actual inclement conditions. Visibility in the CX-5 was sometimes tricky with its large pillars; the Niro's pillars are a bit slimmer but can still be obstacles. I also agree with some of the other reviewers in that I miss the larger center console and glove compartment space of my other vehicles. The only other negative surprise to me was that after getting essentially the loaded model I found out that Homelink garage door opener is not included on any Niro trim! It is available with OEM equipment but you'll have to add it separately. But in almost every other way, the Niro is a great car for me so far and I'm quite happy with it. Some recommendations on the trim selections: If you don't spend a lot of time in the car and just want something efficient to tool around in between home and short errands in city driving conditions, you can get by with the FE or LX models which are cheaper and have killer MPG. But if you have longer commutes or spend more time in your car, treat yourself to the EX as it has most of the best comfort and safety features. The touring model is the best looking trim, but the higher weight and upgraded 18 inch wheels will drop the fuel mileage a bit. If you want all the features of the touring without giving up the MPG, get the EX with premium package. That'll add on: - the full leather seats with both heating and cooling (base EX has combination leather and cloth and only the heating) - the heated steering wheel - a wireless phone charger (yes, you read that right, and it's pretty nice if your phone supports it) - the warm welcome feature (pretty cool, the car detects when you're approaching and folds the mirrors out and illuminates the door handle for you) - sun/moon roof - a passel of other safety features (although in my opinion the base EX already has the most important ones [emergency braking, blind spot monitoring, and rear cross traffic alert]) - and more

So far, so good. Gets about 54 mpg, quiet, nice interior, but a few fine touches would have made it outstanding. No on board compass? No way to delete a radio preset station? All the exterior lights are LED but the turn signals are bulbs?

I had a major horrible scare with my Kia Niro within the first few weeks of owning with a very strong gasoline and burning smells in the cabin of the car. First I thought that maybe I spilled gas on myself, but no, it was coming out of the vents each time I either ran the AC or heat didn't matter what setting you had it on it was bad. Along with the gas smell there was also a burnt wire/plastic smell which was so bad I was expecting to see smoke or flames coming out of the vents, it never did. Both smells made me completely nauseous and sick each time I had to drive the car I had to put the windows down to feel better. The Dealership laughed and said it was part of the break-in process I said no way, I've owned enough brand new cars and these smells were not typical break in smells, they didn't find anything wrong with the car as I couldn't deal with the sickening odors anymore as it was only getting worse. I felt so uncomfortable in the car feeling this sick. There were other things among the smells just didn't seem well for a brand car it lacked power and had jerky/missing during acceleration. Good bye KIA brand. I ended up trading it in on a 2019 Buick Encore which has been a wonderful vehicle in the past month since my trade of the junky KIA.

We bought a new Niro in June 2018. Since purchasing this car, we have had issues with the car's computer system, shift lock malfunction, and door handle falling off the vehicle.

I bought the NIRO for my wife. She basically uses just around town. If we drive out of the area with it, I drive. It doesn?t have the get up I like but for a hybrid its impressive. It does have the sport mode which helps getting into traffic. It handles well and of course great gas mileage and a great deal of room for its size. I?m 6 ft 200 pounds and I have the seat back and someone can sit comfortable behind me. We may take it on a road trip to Florida from NY in January rather than the Lexus R350 but unsure yet. It will depend on what We need to bring with us. To call it a SUV is a bit of a stretch. It is more like a hatchback wagon or maybe a crossover. It doesn?t really fit into one category.

I had a Prius that I really liked, but didn?t love. The gas mileage was awesome, but it wasn?t very stylish. I stumbled across the Niro and fell in love! I has the same gas mileage as a Prius, but I get the crossover style and roomy interior. I am sooooo glad I made the switch.

With rising gas prices and global warming I wanted to explore the hybrid option. The Kia Niro is affordable, attractive, and I am getting 50 miles to the gallon. I am quite happy with my purchase.

I went from a small crossover SUV that got 20 MPG to this slightly smaller hybrid crossover that gets more than the average of 49 mpg that is advertised, even on the highway at 65 mph. No plugging in and with about an 11 gallon tank I have over a 500 mile cruising range. I hate pumping gas so this works well for me. I also did the math and this car will save me about $900 per year over the car it replaced based on 10k miles driven per year at $3 per gallon. It comes with all kinds of amenities that you would expect to find in a more expensive car. So far is is very comfortable and reliable but surprisingly, I don't see many on the road. I think it must be the best kept secret of the auto industry.