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The Kia Sedona minivan might be the most-welcome surprise of the 2002 model year.

Here’s a vehicle that comes to market with few expectations. Kia has a relatively bland collection of cars and SUVs — mostly known for their low prices — and is likely to emerge as Hyundai’s secondary brand on the American market.

Yet, the Sedona is a winner.

In January, it became only the second minivan to earn the government’s five-star (highest) rating in both front and side-impact crash tests.

In February, Kia dealers sold 2,535 Sedonas. That means the Sedona outsold the Nissan Quest, the Mazda MPV and the Oldsmobile Silhouette minivans for the month.

Price, as always with Kia, remains a strong selling point for the Sedona. The base LX model has a starting price of $18,995, while the well-equipped EX version starts at $20,995. The destination charge adds another $595. That makes the Sedona the cheapest minivan on the market, except for the rare base model, 150-horsepower versions of the Chrysler Voyager and Dodge Caravan.

But price alone isn’t the Sedona’s calling card.

Our test vehicle, an EX model painted red and beige, proved to be a functional family hauler in a week on the road. Here was a vehicle that was roomy, practical and comfortable.

The engine, a 195-horsepower, 3.5-liter V-6, was more than adequate for this fairly heavy (4,700 pound) machine. The five-speed automatic transmission could have used a bit more refinement as starts were occasionally jumpy, but it was mostly OK.

Seating — for seven — was thoughtfully designed. No, the seats don’t disappear and tumble into the floor as in a Honda Odyssey, but they do come with lots of flexibility. The second row features two captain’s chairs — the LX version gets a two-person bench — that slides forward and back and can be removed. The third row of seats handles three people in reasonable comfort. Those seats also slide, can be removed and split and fold to accommodate varying arrangements of people and cargo.

The Sedona isn’t perfect, but it’s pretty good.

At 194.1 inches long, it’s a half foot shorter than a Honda Odyssey. You miss that extra length when you’re carrying a full load of people and you only have 21.8 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third seat (vs. 38.1 cubic feet in the Odyssey).

Carry less than the soccer team, however, and you’ll find plenty of cargo room once you either fold down or remove the third-row seats.

Another knock: Gas mileage — 15 mpg in the city and 20 mpg on the highway — is surprisingly poor. The Odyssey, with its much more powerful, 240-horsepower V-6, manages 18 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway.

While the exterior of the Sedona is minivan basic, the interior design is subtle and sophisticated. The fake wood trim is standard and applied sparingly. The optional leather seats ($850) were comfortably firm and not at all cheap looking.

T he dashboard layout made perfect sense, although the climate controls were hidden a bit behind the automatic shifter. And the AM/FM/cassette/CD stereo sounded nice.

Inside the Sedona, you’ll find all the stuff you’d expect in a good minivan — lots of hooks in the cargo area for plastic grocery bags, cup holders for those in the third-row seats, rear-seat air conditioning. What you won’t find is a lot of amenities that are starting to show up in the pricier vans on the market — navigation systems, rear-seat entertainment systems or power sliding side doors.

Kia’s warranties, including a 10-year, 100,000-mile powertrain warranty and a five-year, 60,000-mile limited basic warranty, are among the best in the industry.

Quality, and the perception of it, remains a Kia bugaboo. Consumer Reports magazine has never given its recommended rating to a Kia vehicle. And the Kia brand finished dead last among 37 automotive brands in the 2001 J.D. Power and Associates 2001 I ial Quality Survey.

Still, for family hauling, the new 2002 Sedona deserves consideration — for its price and more.