IT’S not an easy thing to get people interested in practicality, but the Kia Carens does its best. The Carens has all the right stuff that add up to practical goodness:  five-door hatchback, five- to six-passenger capacity, CRDi, forced induction, great cargo loading ability and a price that won’t wipe out your wallet (P1.05 million). But when you consider what it has—and the fact that gas prices recently went up P0.50 in the past week—the Kia Carens fills nearly every need, sans the urge to show off to the neighbors and impromptu off-road capability.

Kia’s designers did a credible job of camouflaging the Carens’s boxiness. Somewhat resembling its Carnival sibling, the well-chiseled body panels, car-like nose, swept-back windshield, curved roof line and hinge-operated rear doors give the compact MPV a paradox of being unique yet anonymous. Size matters most, however, when it’s on the move, and the Carens’s compact dimensions allow it to slip easily through crowded parking lots and narrow city streets. There’s nothing goofy or awkward in the Carens’s overall look, but there’s also little to captivate the mind’s eye.

An MPV justifies its existence from the inside, and the Carens makes a good argument there. There are lots of cup holders (up to 10!), power outlets and storage compartments; its cockpit is logically laid out; interior lighting is bright; the air conditioning delivers constant strong blasts of cold air; and the seating is comfortable. The only drawback is that there’s no separate partition for both rear hatch and rear windshield, making it difficult for short drivers to toss in grocery bags within the Carens’s rearmost area.          

The Carens’s hauling room is both generous and variable. The second row slides back and forth and the seatbacks tilt, so it’s easy to climb into the third row. There’s plenty of headroom back there, but the proximity of the seats to the rear windshield makes it a questionable place to chuck in cargo.

Powerband entry is early (1,900 rpm to 2,000 rpm), giving the MPV quick acceleration. Problem is, the engine tapers off dramatically at the top end and there’s noticeable turbo lag. Putting the four-speed automatic transmission in manual mode helps a lot, but the ECU refuses to take the rev counter needle even remotely close to the red line (5,000 rpm), making acceleration on inclines somewhat frustrating.

The Carens gets down the road securely and comfortably, with the fully independent suspension doing a good job of moderating body roll and damping road impact. Even though the MPV is tall, it squats low to the ground and never feels tipsy in the corners. The driver sits in a commanding position with excellent sight lines forward and rearward, so negotiating traffic or backing up while parking is easy, especially with the presence of backup sensors.

Safety-wise, there are a number of issues. Despite a four-wheel disc setup, the lack of ABS tends to make the front wheels lock up too quickly during hard braking. Only the driver gets an air bag. The foot brake has weak grip, with activation that gets millimeters close to the foot well on inclines. However, its release lever is parallel to the driver’s waist and requires less effort than, say, the foot brakes on the new Ford Explorer or the Chrysler Pacifica.

Normally compact MPVs don’t get attention, but somehow, the Kia Carens is fun due to its practicality without pretense. It goes everywhere, does as it’s told and comes back ready for more the next day.

BY the time you read this, car buyers will be milling around inside various Ford dealerships and looking at the new Ford Focus 2.0-liter Duratorq TDCi Sport that debuted in the Philippine market at the Subic Bay International Raceway last weekend.

IT’S not an easy thing to get people interested in practicality, but the Kia Carens does its best. The Carens has all the right stuff that add up to practical goodness:  five-door hatchback, five- to six-passenger capacity, CRDi, forced induction, great cargo loading ability and a price that won’t wipe out your wallet (P1.05 million).

Nissan Teana: Cool executive

EXECUTIVE cars are for executives. There is no doubt about this for mainstream models. From their look to their feel, they are purely for executives.

GETTING much closer to my dream!

That’s how Michele Bumgarner actually describes her blooming career in car racing when she recently announced the start of her training for next year’s Champ Car Atlantic Series in the United States following her impressive performance in the 2007 Accelerate Shoot Out Program, a three-day competition held in different types of cars and on various racetracks such as Las Vegas, Nevada and Laguna Seca, California.

IT seems that there’s no other way to deal with the ever-increasing cost of gasoline but to look for alternative means of powering our cars and vehicles.