2000 Kia Sephia Compact Car Review & Performance

Although the assembly of Sephia occurs at Kia's production facility in South Korea, styling for exterior and interior elements was filtered through Kia's American design studios in Irvine, California. As a result, the overall appearance of Sephia seems familiar in a shape and format similar to other compacts on American roads. Of course, this is the class of cars where conformity in design and homogeneous styling become assets for a non-radical approach that blends into mainstream tastes. To that extent, the Sephia makes a subtle statement with shapely sculpting of what essentially is the three-box form of a small sedan, but with some upscale twists that add eye appeal.

At the nose, for instance, Sephia shows an unobtrusive narrow grille with body-colored bumpers and moldings yet a corner pair of clear-lens headlamps typically found only on more expensive cars.

The bowed hood has flanking notched creases which pick up curving contours of the grille and move these lines rearward to the A-pillars, where they melt into rolled shoulders of side doors. Side panels look flat, interrupted only by delicate bulges of soft flares ringing each wheel well. Door handles, side mirrors and various protective moldings match the body color on LS models as upscale accents. The superstructure above the doors shows more glass than sheetmetal, with a gentle arched line apparent from narrow roof pillars running front to rear across a flat roof.

In back, a high trunk deck rolls over the trailing edge in blunt descent to color-keyed bumpers. A sporty decklid spoiler may be attached as an option to any trim of Sephia, although it looks incongruent with the understated design.

Sephia's interior arrangement maximizes personal space for passengers and delivers more room for heads and legs and shoulders than the class-leading competitors. Twin bucket seats appear in front separated by a center console, while the three-person rear bench in LS models has a seatback that folds to expand cargo space in the trunk.

Also, there are a number of comfort features and perks aboard that are usually not available in this price range. The driver gets a footrest on the left side, for example. The driver's seat cushion on the LS tilts for a better fit, as does the steering column. Front seatbelt anchors on B-pillars adjust vertically for comfort.

The audio system, available as an option across the board, mounts high above the center console for better access, with control knobs and dials enlarged to fit American-size fingers. Dashboard instruments include an analog speedometer with white-on-black face, with a tachometer installed for the LS power package.

Sephia is nicely trimmed even at entry level. Fabric covers all seats as well as inserts in door panels, which have low map pockets. Twin sunvisors and cupholders are provided for front seats, along with two front air bags and three-point seatbelts. Windshield wipers offer two-speed intermittent operation and remote releases control the front hood, fuel door and trunk lid.

Some small cars skimp on safety features, but Sephia matches the class leaders with air bags and adjustable three-point seatbelts. Its chassis structure features integrated front and rear crumple zones, steel bracing in each side door, a collapsible steering column, childproof rear door locks and rear infant seat restraint anchors.

Take a Sephia out for a test drive and it sells itself with zippy acceleration and precise road manners. It particularly impresses with tight control for steering and the independent suspension. The suspension keeps body roll in check and maintains a relatively flat stance through a set of curves.

We played with a Sephia LS on winding strips of blacktop strung around granite ramparts in the pine-clad Black Hills of South Dakota on a cold and windy day. The narrow roads, cleared of summer's crush of vacationing tourists as well as speed patrols that would otherwise challenge our forward line, were best suited for nimble sports cars geared for aggressive action. But our Sephia romped through the mountainous terrain and transformed a morning's run into an exhilarating driving experience.

Sephia behaves well because it contains good equipment. To create its mechanical components, Kia teamed with noteworthy names from around the world for subsidiary automotive systems. Lotus Engineering of England was involved in the design of Sephia's four-wheel independent suspension system, while Germany's Getrag worked on the manual five-speed gearbox. Kelsey-Hayes devised the anti-lock brakes and Bosch LH Motronic did the engine's fuel system.

The suspension, with MacPherson struts in front and a multi-link design in back, incorporates front and rear stabilizer bars to check the body roll. Installing sway bars in this economy class of compact sedans may be unusual but they're a welcome addition because they allow Sephia to handle the curves with confidence and comfort.

Brakes are conventional with front discs and rear drums linked to power assistance, although engine-speed variable assistance comes with the LS upgrade. ABS may be added to LS models for $800.

Power for Sephia comes from an iron-block engine originally developed by Mazda, which once owned a piece of Kia. The plant, now produced by Kia in Korea, delivers more horsepower than Civic and Corolla as well as most other compacts in this class, with lively acceleration in lower gears. However, fuel economy figures for Sephia's engine do not score nearly as high as the Honda or Toyota.

A manual five-speed gearbox is the standard transmission and shifts easily through a short-throw stick. The electronically controlled four-speed automatic is available for $975 at every trim level but saps some of the engine's bonus power points.

For 2000, the Sephia segments into three tiers organized by content of interior equipment: For $9,995, the base Sephia is the price-leading bargain edition.

Sephia LS ($10,995) comes with more equipment, including a tilting steering column, a split back for the folding rear seat, driver's seat cushion tilt adjustment, a day/night interior rearview mirror, and a passenger-side vanity mirror.

Sold as a separate model, Sephia LS with Power Package retails for $13,325. Power Package includes power windows and door locks, power for exterior mirrors, cruise control, and an audio system with CD deck and door-mounted tweeter speakers. Air conditioning is optional ($900) for both the base and LS trim but comes with the LS Power Package.

All Sephias use the same four-cylinder powertrain. All models come standard with a five-speed manual gearbox; a four-speed electronically controlled transmission adds $995 to the price of all models.