Error parsing XSLT file: \xslt\FacebookOpenGraph.xslt Our Fleet Test Drive: Kia Ceed SW - 13th Report
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Our Fleet Test Drive: Kia Ceed SW - 13th Report

Date: 26 February 2014   |   Author: Hugh Hunston

A neighbour, rather than the alarm, alerted us to the fact the window was open
Mileage: 6286
P11D price: £21,040
Our average consumption: 52.8mpg
Official combined consumption: 64.2mpg
Forecast CPM: 49.3p

Yes, yes I know our well-specified, level-three (out of four) trim Kia Ceed estate car has audible parking reversing sensors, a rear-view camera and door mirrors.

But old-fashioned parking habits die hard, so I persist in peering out of the window and opening the driver's door to see how far the car is from other vehicles, and its alloys are from kerbs.

The only problem is that the window was, unwittingly and witlessly, left down for 24 hours recently until an observant neighbour pointed it out.

Overnight rain rendered the seat damp rather than soaked and nothing was missing from the locked but vulnerable interior of the Kia, which was thankfully still where it was left.

Which alerted me to the Kia's alarm system not including volumetric monitoring inside its cabin, sensing interior movements.

Hence no horn-blaring warning that the window was open, triggered by wind or leaves wafting around inside. More seriously, an opportunist thief could have clambered in and out. Kia's Sorento and Sportage are both fitted with that security deterrent.

One idiot-proof solution to this open-house blunder could be electronic press and hold key devices, supplied by some manufacturers, that close windows when you lock the car. An open and shut case?


Verdict


  • High spec includes lots of parking aids
  • Lacks intruder volumetric alarm sensors

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