Almost ready to buy a 2017 Kia Niro Ex. We just came back from a trip to Denver Colorado and I was hoping to see other Niro's on the road but didn't see even one. That is from Henderson Nv. to Denver and back. My question was how it works in the mountains of Colorado (Vail and Loveland). The dealers here only have great things to say but they want to sell me a car. Does it have enough power to climb the passes and are you able to down shift to reduce speed downhill. Would appreciate your answers.
Almost ready to buy
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Not sure about your area but I now have 2 months Niro buyer/driver experience. I live in Northern NY, right on the Canadian border, we have mountains and valleys. The Niro's dual clutch transmission is basically an "automatic standard/manual" transmission really, without the clutch pedal. In ECO "drive" mode, i.e. "automatic" it can struggle up hill in mountains, BUT, if you switch it to "Sport mode" i.e. standard/manual, you will be able to downshift for easier hill climbing and to also utilize "engine braking" on down hill so you wont have to brake as much. However, remember, light intermittent braking will first utilize the regenerative braking system and not the brake pads and rotors, though those DO get used in extreme braking situations. Using the regenerative braking system whenever possible (slow gradual stops in city driving when feasible, and works in higher speed highway situations downhill as well) will throw a good charge current to your hybrid battery, while the gas engine will be OFF and you wont be using hybrid battery power either to propel the car, battery will be used of course for any lights and accessories powered on, in this situation you are getting a great charge, driving gas free, and racking up the MPG's. I did a TON of research on hybrids, mainly the Prius, Niro and Ioniq and learned the technology, tips and tricks, starting about 3 months before we actually bought the Niro, our first Hybrid. Being a research geek, this really helped me during the "new" phase and learning hybrid driving techniques that can really beef up your MPG's. Techniques such as "hypermiling" , throttle control of forcing electric "EV" mode, better braking techniques etc. Our Niro EX has gotten substantially BETTER MPG's than rated, we have hit 57.7-60.00 mpg HIGHWAY, and city ranges 49-52 mpg. I did learn that using high octane non ethanol gas gave the best results and 87 octane 10% ethanol really dragged the MPG's down to the 40-42mpg range. I don't care what all the "experts" say about not needing high octane or non ethanol unless your manual states that you do, I find that it DOES indeed make a HUGE difference! Best of luck on your Niro purchase and feel free to pick my brain, I've learned a lot and have more to go as I plan on putting on 4 snow tires in the next month or so. I will be very interested in seeing how this impacts overall MPG's. P.S. I gathered from your question about downshifting that you may not be familiar with "dual clutch transmission". Yes, it's "automatic" but not like the torque converter based automatics that are the "norm", these do have 2, (dual) clutches, so it's really an automatic shifting manual transmission. On a hill at an upward incline, after removing your foot from the brake, after 2 seconds in which the vehicle is held there for you (HSA > hill start assist) the car WILL roll backward the same as a "standard/manual" with a clutch pedal. What makes this DCT/dual clutch transmission so nice is you dont need a clutch pedal, you can shift while driving without taking foot off gas, you can switch between auto and manual shifting at will even when moving at 55mph or faster, and best for last, you can shift through all 6 forward gears, not just D2 and D1 like regular automatics.
It definitely struggles going up big hills but as others have said, the sport mode improves the experience. As for downhill, you won't need to downshift, just let on the gas and coast on EV mode down the hills. The only negative for the area you live in is the lack of AWD. But if you're ok without it, you will love it.
I went up a 4k grade and you can feel at times it's at high rpms staying at 70mph. The plug in hybrid might be good for you since it will have more electricity in the battery cause the problem I saw is when the electricity would be used completely and it struggles to produce as much power. With the plug in youll have much more electricity in the tank and I think it has more HP. That being said I'd have no problem going up the same grade again in the Niro.
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A very good coverage. I have found basically the same thing.
Accelerates from traffic lights very quickly in the Sport mode.
I try and keep the EV light on as much as possible by easing off the accelerator when possible and keeping close to the posted limit.
Using the manual shift in Sport and watching the economy gauge while climbing a local ski hill ( 3,000ft climb ) I quickly found which gear gave me the best combination of economy and pull.
https://flic.kr/p/XqLdUP
Accelerates from traffic lights very quickly in the Sport mode.
I try and keep the EV light on as much as possible by easing off the accelerator when possible and keeping close to the posted limit.
Using the manual shift in Sport and watching the economy gauge while climbing a local ski hill ( 3,000ft climb ) I quickly found which gear gave me the best combination of economy and pull.
https://flic.kr/p/XqLdUP
:nerd::nerd::nerd:
Well I WAS about ready to buy but now the dealers are playing a number game and I'M not interested in that. Way too little for my trade-in (2011 Kia sorrento LX AWD 70k miles, excellent condition $7,000, carfax history great). When do the 2018 niro all electric come out?
Should be next year, probably late next year since the plug in comes out late this year/early next.
Play hard to get. The dealer will call you in a few days. If they don't, then they aren't interested in your business.
I took a lot of your advises about being patient and wait for dealers to make the deals, but my wife is a different type of buyer. She got them down to the lowest she thought they would go and then said throw in a 100K wrap a round warranty that will cover everything and we will buy it, and we did. It is a warranty through KIA, so now we own a 2017 Kia Niro Ex. Don't mess with your wife when she is on a roll. So now we are learning all the things we don't know about in this now car. I'm going to keep watching this site for help
Spare tire is now full size and have full warranty on all 4
After reading the different reviews and threads about the tire compressor/ tire kits/ tire repair and replacement, we decided to avoid most of the headaches by having a full size spare tire. Bought a tire and spare wheel ($66) from "Discount tires" and with only having less than 200 miles on my new car and factory tires. Discount Tires gave me a complete road warranty of 70K miles for all the tires with free rotation and spin balancing as needed. The complete bill came to $149.11.
The tire fits very nicely in the compartment without the foam partitions and there is plenty of room for jack, jumper cables, tools, umbrella, snow scraper brush, extra wiper blades, 2 blankets, 2 towels, the compressor w/stop leak, electric tape, duck tape, small tarp, roll of toilet paper, tow strap, and other items of need.
I did make a wooden cover the compartment with 3/8" plywood to strengthen the floor of the trunk.
This whole project cost me about $150 and took away a lot of extra problems that happen with a flat tire, and gave us a warranty on all the tires......THINK ABOUT IT.....
If you want I can give more information and details w/pictures
After reading the different reviews and threads about the tire compressor/ tire kits/ tire repair and replacement, we decided to avoid most of the headaches by having a full size spare tire. Bought a tire and spare wheel ($66) from "Discount tires" and with only having less than 200 miles on my new car and factory tires. Discount Tires gave me a complete road warranty of 70K miles for all the tires with free rotation and spin balancing as needed. The complete bill came to $149.11.
The tire fits very nicely in the compartment without the foam partitions and there is plenty of room for jack, jumper cables, tools, umbrella, snow scraper brush, extra wiper blades, 2 blankets, 2 towels, the compressor w/stop leak, electric tape, duck tape, small tarp, roll of toilet paper, tow strap, and other items of need.
I did make a wooden cover the compartment with 3/8" plywood to strengthen the floor of the trunk.
This whole project cost me about $150 and took away a lot of extra problems that happen with a flat tire, and gave us a warranty on all the tires......THINK ABOUT IT.....
If you want I can give more information and details w/pictures
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