You might expect a little envy driving a £285,000 5.8m-long Rolls-Royce Phantom limo.
I’ll hold my hand up to being a tad green-eyed as we passed one (see picture) in our humble Kia Optima in central London a while back. But it appears the envy is spreading, as last month someone seemed so jealous of our rather smart saloon – but actually rather good value at only £21,695 on the road with all the trimmings – that they keyed it down one side. Moronic, yes, but I’m choosing to take some comfort from the fact that it must have been because Kias are now so damn desirable.
| Kia Optima 1.7 CRDi 2 Tech (manual) |
| Mileage |
2135 |
Claimed combined
consumption |
57.6mpg |
| Our average consumption |
43.3mpg |
| P11D price |
£21,640* |
| Model price range |
£19,595-£25,995 |
| CO2 (tax) |
128g/km/18% |
| BIK 20/40% per month |
£65/£130 |
| Service interval |
12,500 or 12months |
| Insurance |
group 17 |
| Warranty |
7yrs/100,000 miles |
| Boot space |
505 litres |
| Engine size/power |
1685cc/134hp |
| Top speed/0-62mph |
125mph/10.2secs |
| Why we’re running it |
To see if Kia really
can mix-it with the
fleet’s big boys |
| Positive |
Good value and
desirable… |
| Negative |
…but that creates
envy leading to keying |
| *Before options fitted: Metallic paint £475 |
|
