Engines: gasoline 3.0 liters (187 hp) and 3.5 liters (203 hp).
Transmission: automatic 4-speed, front-wheel drive.
To a complete set: ten options.
Price in Russia: $ 29 990–39 990.
Test car: 3.5 L, 203 L p., automatic 4-speed gearbox, leather interior, $ 38, 000.
When I first saw "Opirus", involuntarily slipped from my lips: "Big-eyed." The politically correct mind corrected: the headlights are similar, but this still does not mean anything. However (perhaps by accident), one of the sellers at the car dealership managed to compare this KIA for a short conversation … you understood what.
The high line of the hood and the large grille, emphasized high in the rear of the interior and doorways. The executive class is as it should be - serious engines, a convenient passage to the apartments and, of course, a reserve of space above the head of an important person are also necessary under the hood. Although who said that only a passenger will be such a person?
For the comfort of the driver, there are five electric seat adjustments and two steering wheels, separate climate control in front, electric drives and heating. Only an automatic transmission with sequential manual shift function is provided. Most trim levels include a leather interior, but there are also options with velor. The seat adjustment range characteristic of Korean cars is smaller than that of the Germans, but sufficient for normal riders.
The seats would put a four with a plus. I can’t precisely formulate the claims, but, I remember, it was more convenient to place myself in other models of the executive class.
By the number of pleasant or useful little things, “Opirus” (lat. Ophir Rus - rich land) is quite consistent with the name: music with a CD changer, on-board computer, exchange rate stability system, several airbags, you can order an electric sunroof. Unless the headrests without a servo drive and the front armrest are unregulated. But you can change the stiffness of the shock absorbers: by pressing a button on the tunnel you activate the "sports" settings or return them to the "normal".
MODE
A machine with such capabilities encourages experimentation. Breaking into the operational space, the first thing I did was put the suspension in the “sport” mode, and the “automatic” selector in manual control. On a suburban highway, a car with a tight adjustment of shock absorbers becomes more sensitive to driving movements and bumps on the road. But the “automatic machine” and now remembers its task - to promote a comfortable ride. She switches more gently than an ambitious driver wants, but fast enough for a balanced person. In the end, the intensity of acceleration in the executive class does not depend on the speed of the skipping steps, but on the capabilities of the motor. In this case, a 3.5-liter with more than two hundred “horses”.
The return of the suspension to the “norm” added opacity to the “Opirus”, but the car did not acquire cat's softness on irregularities. As if by inertia, he continues to track the profile of the road.
Having been indulged in the box selector, I translate it into the “automatic” mode and relax. A non-sharp steering wheel, long-stroke gas pedal, soft chairs and fair skin around contribute to this. The photographer, sitting on the right, was distracted from the search for a beautiful background outside the window and played with a radio.
The suspension sometimes reports the passage of potholes, but the engine is barely audible even with short, intense overtaking. Later I caught myself thinking that I "did not pay attention" to the characteristics of the motor - for a short test I could not keep the right pedal in the floor for a long time. Whether comfort lulling, adjusting to a calm mood, or the dynamic capabilities and settings of the car created a sense of stock. Of course, you have to pay for the dynamics - in the test cycle, the trip computer showed more than 20 liters per hundred. But we went to pleasure!
IN AN ANT ANTIC
It’s nice to ride an executive car on the highway, but it's time to go to a city where there are slightly different conditions and requirements. Traditionally, they include maneuverability, but this characteristic is relative to an almost five-meter car. “Opirus” corresponds to the class, although it is subjectively heavy, and its hydraulic booster does not like very fast steering - it “bites”. However, do you need to fussyly turn the steering wheel on a representative car? Neighbors try not to disturb him in the stream.
Thin KIA front pillars favor viewing. Mirrors are good, although the left, as it seemed, has a slight curvature. The feed of the car is noticeably rounded, and if it were not for the parking sensors that all cars are equipped with, it would be difficult to feel the rear position. But the rear bumper is located quite high - under its lower edge comes a standard height border.
Saying goodbye to the Opirus, I look around the salon again and put together the feeling: how do I remember the car? Richly equipped, but moderate in price, slightly damped in their reactions, but very dynamic. Well, most of the coincidences with other machines, we assume, are dictated by the class.
SUMMARY
Kia Opirus - a well-equipped executive car for a reasonable price.
