Usually, I’m not keen on driving long distances on my own for one reason really - it’s very exhausting. But on this trip from Cape Town to Knysna, the vehicle that I had to pilot was a Kia Grand Sedona. Yeah, this was going to be easy.
I wasn’t on my own either - I had most of the family with me - all three kids, plus my future sister-in-law. I was, however, the only driver. The distance of around 490km feels like a long one when no one else can take the wheel when you get tired. But, the Grand Sedona provided me with lots of relief and made the drive very easy for many reasons.
The powertrain
The 2.2-litre CRDI diesel unit with 147kW and 440Nm of torque performed well all the way up the N2. It is mated with an 8-speed auto ‘box. This combination proved to be well up to the task of taking the five of us up the Garden Route, plus for meandering in and around the town once we got there.
The climate control
Having five people in the car meant that there were - at least - three different temperatures all over the vehicle. We were never once in agreement about what temperature the entire vehicle needed to be set to, so we just decided to set it all differently. I was grateful that I could still control and lock the back-section’s temperature controls though. Our boys, for ‘some reason’, thought it would be funny to have it set to 32 degrees...
The seating arrangement
Any parent who has had kids on a long road trip would know that it is near impossible to prevent them from annoying one another on a long road trip. It proved much, much easier in the Grand Sedona thanks to the seating configuration. The middle row has two single seats separated by an aisle that leads to the back-row bench. This kept everyone far enough from one another to not get into any personal space, but close enough to still chat and laugh together.
The heated steering wheel and heated seats
When you’re driving into the night, temperatures can drop quite rapidly as the drive goes on. I get cold really quickly, so I loved having a heated steering wheel and heated seats to keep me warm and toasty.
It’s just very practical for a family
Honestly, the Kia Grand Sedona is one of the best family vehicles and I cannot recommend it highly enough. There is enough room for a full-sized family like ours, plus all our luggage. It’s comfortable and it comes equipped with everything you may possibly need for a family road trip including a fully kitted entertainment system. If I had the money, I would honestly buy one in a heartbeat.
A second opinion by Calvin Fisher
It isn’t exactly the car you’d want for a Zombie Outbreak, what with its glacial sliding doors. But when it comes to seating six (seven if you don’t opt for our individual seating in the second row) in maximum comfort, or five for that matter is often the case with my brood, there’s little to touch the Grand Sedona this side of a Range Rover Sport.
I cannot believe how well this has been received in a world where we’re taught the MPV has died and the SUV has taken its place. Sure, we had the range topper which at R805,995 is a princely sum. But to think that its hard points are largely shared with the base model at R623,995 – it certainly deserves to be on your radar.
