[Michel Jean]

I must admit I was pleasantly suprised by sport mode after I found it!
While it is nice to have eco hybrid modes, the reason we all buy it.
Im extremely happy with its peppyness in sport mode. Off the line is great to!
Nice to see that 195 lbs of torque working!
I always speculated a hybrid setup would and could be way more explosive in raw power than a turbo.

Its just really nice to know i bought a powerfull and economical car!!!

 

[KK6PD]

just prep yourself for insanely bad mpg..... I use it rarely, but when I have, it has worked out nicely for me!!! I just can't stand to be behind dwadlers on phones texting.....

 

[Michel Jean]

Yes I agree exactly!
Save gas most of the time. Haha

 

[Griswald]

Sport mode, used correctly, does not have a big impact on overall mileage. I use it like 1st 2nd and 3rd gear then go into eco mode for 4th 5th and 6th.

No noticable difference in mileage but a whole lot more fun to drive!

 

[pezagorski]

I like it for city driving with heavy traffic

 

[hawke]

On Ramps

The sport mode is great when trying to get up to speed after getting on a highway on ramp with a full lode from shopping at Costco.

 

[Michel Jean]

I have to agree with both of you.

I have found it nice to zoom around town.

And i could see a large haul at costco making making sport mode nice to have

 

[lrpavlo]

I paddle board a lot right off a 60mph 4 lane freeway......pulling into traffic with sport mode is wonderful...even with 2 boards on the roof!

 

[judyn]

I think I have to learn to use sport mode. Our previous car (well, we still have it) was a Prius V and I never had trouble getting pep when I need it (passing, getting into a freeway, etc). But we've had our Kia Niro for a little over a month and have driven it from central Texas to Maine and back. I noticed a long delay in its revving up or whatever it needs to do when passing etc. (seconds, seems like hours). I'm saying come on car!, or some such... I presume that if I knew how to kick it into sport mode I would not have this frustrating delay?

 

[yticolev]

Pull shift lever to left. That remaps the frequency response and limits EV only mode. From there, should you want to shift manually (not much reason really), pull the shift lever up or down.

 

[Catmobile]

I think I have to learn to use sport mode. Our previous car (well, we still have it) was a Prius V and I never had trouble getting pep when I need it (passing, getting into a freeway, etc). But we've had our Kia Niro for a little over a month and have driven it from central Texas to Maine and back. I noticed a long delay in its revving up or whatever it needs to do when passing etc. (seconds, seems like hours). I'm saying come on car!, or some such... I presume that if I knew how to kick it into sport mode I would not have this frustrating delay?

That may be due to the regular transmission vs. a CVT. If you're used to driving a CVT in your hybrid it seems slow waiting for a car to shift to me.

 

[Spiritwalker2222]

What I like about the sport mode is that it doesn't shift as much as eco mode does. But it seems to use a lot more gas.

 

[nogastoday]

Sport Mode:

Learn to use Sport Mode as it is useful, dare I save lifesaving in an emergency! When you need to get out of the way, or safely merge in freeway traffic. This is why I drive the first mile in HEV mode to run & pre warm the gas engine. This allows early lubrication of gas engine IF I would need Sport Mode. You can male up for any loss of MPG by active regeneration. Remember we are smart buyers and smart drivers.

 

[Spiritwalker2222]

A smart driver doesn't need to use sport mode to avoid an emergency.

 

[yticolev]

A smart driver doesn't need to use sport mode to avoid an emergency.

I must be very smart then! The only time I've used it in the last 12 months was to demonstrate it to a passenger. But I've had a number of world beating slow cars I've driven very fast. 1967 VW Bug, 1977 Datsun B10 Plus (the high mpg slow model), and a Civic CRX HF (also the high mpg slow model). The Niro is a very fast sports car compared to those.

 

[Pbodifee]

The Niro is a very fast sports car compared to those.

I was amazed too how fast I could accelerate in the HEV. You will be mind blown if you try the EV. In particular the acceleration when already doing speed. Feels like warp mode :nerd:

 

[Dovidan]

I must be very smart then! The only time I've used it in the last 12 months was to demonstrate it to a passenger. But I've had a number of world beating slow cars I've driven very fast. 1967 VW Bug, 1977 Datsun B10 Plus (the high mpg slow model), and a Civic CRX HF (also the high mpg slow model). The Niro is a very fast sports car compared to those.

Old but true saying: "It is more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow" :x

 

[jmurphEV]

Old but true saying: "It is more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow" :x

Absolutely true. I had so much fun flogging a 3-cylinder Geo Metro back in the day. That thing was a hoot to drive.

 

[Spiritwalker2222]

Absolutely true. I had so much fun flogging a 3-cylinder Geo Metro back in the day. That thing was a hoot to drive.

I had the Pontiac Firefly. Aptly named. And ironically it made 60 HP, the same as the Niro EV motor in the PHEV. I've had many 3 cylinder vehicles over the years, but the Firefly was the only one in a car.

 

[jmurphEV]

I had the Pontiac Firefly. Aptly named. And ironically it made 60 HP, the same as the Niro EV motor in the PHEV. I've had many 3 cylinder vehicles over the years, but the Firefly was the only one in a car.

Huh, I did not know that the Firefly and the Metro were basically the same car. The one I drove was a first gen model like this one. It was fun to drive around town or on back roads but got a little scary on the highway. Probably not the most crash worthy car on the road even in 1991.