The Kia Niro is our latest addition to the Kia line. It has been available for a few months now, and is a huge seller. At 48-52 MPG in town and 43-46 on the highway, it has the attention of the hybrid driving community.
It's the first fully dedicated crossover hybrid. Has tons of cargo space, and is not hard to look at.
There are a lot of Hybrids out there. Right now most manufacturers have a hybrid on the market. What makes ours so special? Glad you asked.
For one thing, the Niro has the Kia 10 year 100,000 mile warranty that also cover the hybrid battery. That's HUGE. It also features luxury appointments like leather, sunroof, intelligent navigation (which reads the future terrain and adjusts the charging process for optimum MPG's) lane change departure warning, smart cruise, blind spot indicator, rear camera, Android Auto (r) and apple Carplay (r) and a whole host of other cool stuff for a price tag lower than the less equipped competitors. But, enough with the ad..(lol) let's talk about the difference between a Hybrid and a non Hybrid.
A Hybrid runs on both gas engine and electric power. (This is not an EV car, or a plug in). The engine charges the hybrid batteries, then the batteries take over, mostly in city traffic. When it runs on battery power, the gas engine is shut down. Driving a Hybrid is an experience you have to get used to. You may be at a red light and the engine will suddenly quit. Normal. The other thing you have to get used to is when you start the car, the engine may or may not start (depending on the battery charge) It's a little strange at first, but once you know the signs that the Hybrid power is on, it's like being in stealth mode. (Could have used it back when we were in high school and late for curfew).
Or course, the thing that is a pleasure to get used to is the 50 MPG that the Niro provides!! True, it is not a muscle car. But, it will pass a lot more gas stations that most.
For more info, feel free to email me at cashatkia@centurylink.net, or come on into Jum Marsh Kia in Las Vegas. 8555 West Centennial. 702*946*1000 Ask for "CASH"
Have a Kia Day
Good Question
Many cars on the market are doing away with CD players. Many people opt to stream music from a service such as Pandora. You also have the option of XM radio and, of course, MP3 files on a thumb drive, which is what this is about.
You will notice that your Kia has a USB port in the front of the center console. This is a trickle charge for your phone, but also serves as a USB Data port for MP3 files on a thumb (Flash) Drive.
Get your favorite CDs and load them to your computer. In Windows they will save in Media Player as a WAV file. These can not be played through your system. You must first convert them to an MP3 format. There are several conversion programs out there. Just google WAV to MP3. After that, just move the MP3 file to the flash drive (drag and drop) and there ya go. You can put hundreds of songs on a 8 or 16 Gigabyte flash. They are small, and portable. Play your MP3 files by putting the flash drive in the USB port in your car and then go to the MEDIA setting and it will pull the music up.
Ok, So here you are in your new Kia. You spot a button that says DRIVE MODE or MODE. When you press it, you see that it takes you to ECO, SPORT and NORMAL (actually there is no 'normal' light, it's just blank).
Here is a quick education on what they do.
ECO MODE adjusts the shift points, fuel mix and the efficiency of the Air Conditioner. You will notice that the car shifts at a lower RPM, and that the Air does not seem quite as cold. The thinking behind this is that the lower the RPMs between shifts saves on gas in the long run. You will really notice the difference between ECO and SPORT when you trying to pass that semi on the freeway.
SPORT MODE is the 180 degree opposite of ECO mode. The car will climb in RPMs between shifts. Adding power, but reducing fuel efficiency a bit...But you will notice the difference between it and ECO mode.
NORMAL MODE is somewhere in between.
Just as a side note, I always drive in sport mode. I find the small difference in miles per tankful is not worth the loss of power. But, this is a personal preference. Try all three and see which suites you best. You might even try the "manual +/- option. We will talk about that next time along with how to properly use your paddle shifters if so equipped.
Remember, you can always submit Kia Question to me at cashatkia@centurylink.net
AND if you are in the Las Vegas Area, stop by Jim Marsh Kia. 8555 West Centennial in Northwest Vegas. I will happy to answer your questions!
Have a great KIA day!!
