cars news 10: 2016 Kia Sedona SX Update 5: Summer Road Trips

Summer has come and gone, and with it came warm weather and road trips. I’ve gone on quite a few in the past couple months. Whenever a trip comes up, friends expect me to bring the van. It has become a staple for our trips; seating for eight comes in handy pretty often, and riding in the Sedona means free gas.

Our first trip of the summer was to San Diego for a friend’s wedding. Next was a camping trip to Big Pine, California, with my little brother and his lady. He got his driver’s license recently and hasn’t had to sit in traffic half his life, so he’s eager to get seat time whenever possible no matter what the car. I gladly let him drive part of the five-hour trek to Big Pine so I could take a break. I asked how he liked the van. “It’s awesome!” he said. “The nicest car I’ve ever driven.” Not much of a compliment from an 18-year-old who’s only driven his mom’s Accord.

Next up was a weekend trip to Paso Robles with a small group of 25 people and four dogs. This time we loaded up four people, a fully grown German shepherd, his big crate, and all our bags with room to spare. I let my friend Renato drive back to L.A., partly to get someone else’s driving impressions but mostly because I was hungover from the weekend. I convinced him to try using Kia’s radar-based cruise control, a relatively new technology that none of my friends is familiar with. He was hesitant at first, his foot hovering over the brake pedal, not convinced by the Sedona’s ability to maintain its distance. “Will it really slow down in time?” he asked. I told him it’d never let me down. He quickly got comfortable and ended up using it most of the way back home. I thanked him for driving once we got back. “Anytime,” he said. “It pretty much drove itself. I barely had to do anything.” He got accustomed to it fast, and I credit Kia’s Smart Cruise Control for being so, well, smart. It would be hard to trust some lesser systems. I use it often and can never really go back to using “dumb” cruise control systems.

A couple updates back I mentioned all the Sedona’s boo-boos. We decided to address them before we give it back to Kia in a few months, but out of curiosity. I chose a shop recommended by my local Kia dealer for a quick estimate, and they quoted $1,731. Not a deal but cheaper than I expected to repair two panels (sliding door and fender) and to replace the rear bumper. Mind you, this is where my dealership brings its cars to, not some shady repair shop, so I would trust their work on my own car. Good thing we didn’t jump the gun on the repair, though, because a month later it was involved in another hit-and-run. Another big scuff on the driver-side rear bumper, opposite of the scuff from the earlier Whole Foods incident. Facepalm. Why does the world (L.A.) hate minivans?

2016 Kia Sedona SX rear three quarter static 03

2016 Kia Sedona SX front three quarters 03

To add to the frustration, I started to notice the brakes pulsating under heavy load. While going down a steep grade at highway speeds with a full load of people and gear, it pulsates and almost roars. Sounds disconcerting, but it’s hard to replicate and only happens under those conditions. With 29,000 miles on the odo, it’s a little soon for new pads and rotors, so I have a feeling the rotors may be warped. I’ll be sure to ask the dealer to take a peek during its upcoming 30,000-mile service.

Oh, and yes, you read right: 29,000 miles in less than a year. More to come before the final update.

More on our long-term Kia Sedona SX here: