Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price

Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price - The 2018 Kia Optima Hybrid is a gas-green pick among mid-sizers that doesn’t put on its eco credentials on its sleeves. The 2018 Kia Optima Hybrid is a mid-length sedan with all of the proper actions. On pinnacle of its safe package deal (its crash-check scorecard is spotless) and relatively good-looking appears, a gas-green powertrain is subbed in for fewer trips to fuel stations. The 2018 model doesn’t alternate at all from closing 12 months, which ought to be right information for buyers.

the base powertrain is a 2.0-liter inline-four with a 1.sixty two-kwh battery percent and electric powered motor. The aggregate manages a 39 mpg town, 46 dual carriageway, 42 mixed rating by using the EPA, which falls in the back of its major rival, the Toyota Camry hybrid, via four mpg combined. the ones searching out greater gas performance can also recollect the Kia Optima Plug-in Hybrid, which friends the equal 2.zero-liter inline-four to a nine.8-kwh battery and electric powered motor combo that could electricity the Optima PHEV on electrons alone for 27 miles. the combo has been rated by the EPA at 103 MPGe, or forty mpg mixed without a complete rate. Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price.

The Optima Hybrid borrows liberally from the Optima’s looks, which is a good element. only a few small badges give away its electrified powertrain, and its sleeker looks nevertheless flip heads on the road. despite the fact that no longer as daring as its predecessor, the Optima lineup (together with the Optima Hybrid) centered extra on interior refinement and experience best that sheet-metallic bravado. inside, the Optima Hybrid is a subtle affair with a undeniable spoken interior that manages to be useful with out being boring.

The 2018 Kia Optima Hybrid doesn’t stray some distance from the Optima sedan, which is a good issue. The 2018 Kia Optima Hybrid takes the Optima sedan’s appropriate appears and doesn’t impart many cues to its greener propulsion machine. The same sloped roof and curvy outside sheet steel wrap a present day cabin. The appearance isn’t as revolutionary because it become inside the beginning of the last decade, but it’s nevertheless good-looking.

Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price

From the outdoor, the Optima Hybrid’s shapely hood, elongated dimensions, sloping roofline, and curves hint at a sportier mission. The Optima Hybrid and Optima are truly identical from the outdoor, except for a pair badges on the front fenders and a grille precise to the hybrid fashions. inner, the Optima Hybrid is at ease and subdued, eschewing the final technique of a driving force-centric cockpit for a more formal atmosphere.

fashion takes a backseat to substance in the Optima Hybrid, the dash substances and format are secondary to the knobs, buttons, and controls that dominate the middle stack. The infotainment machine is inset into the dash with a textured plastic that looks like an afterthought to our eyes, but the relaxation of the Optima is outfitted with as it should be smooth and usable substances anywhere else. Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price.

The Optima Hybrid manages its weight nicely with a smooth journey and enough power to transport more weight from its batteries. The Kia Optima Hybrid and Optima Plug-in Hybrid aren’t known for sizzling overall performance, but that’s surely now not the point. each motors pair a inline-four to an electric motor and battery machine with a 6-speed automated and the front-wheel drive. The Optima Hybrid manages a mixed 192 horsepower, at the same time as the plug-in model manages 202 hp. It’s no longer particularly thrilling, given the substantial loads of the Hybrid and Plug-in Hybrid.

both Optima Hybrid and Optima Plug-in Hybrid fashions depend upon a 2.0-liter inline-four that makes 154 hp for lengthy-range propulsion. The Hybrid’s battery packs can electricity the car for brief distances on electric electricity only, but at low speeds and for quick journeys. like the Sonata Hybrid, the Optima Hybrid can toggle among Hybrid and Charging modes that may maintain the battery’s state of rate or rate the 1.sixty two-kwh lithium-polymer battery filled well into the trunk. The Optima Hybrid comfortably shuffles energy among hybrid motors and engine with out a lot fuss and we’ve noticed that the electric motor manages to clean out shifts from the 6-velocity automatic. The mixed power output for the Optima Hybrid is 192 hp.

In Optima Plug-in Hybrid fashions, the battery’s size is considerably extended to nine.eight-kwh and the electric motor is slightly greater powerful for a combined power output of 202 hp. That bump in electricity is charged basically with moving the heavier Optima Plug-in Hybrid, which weighs kind of 250 kilos greater than the Optima Hybrid fashions. The plug-in hybrid version can tour on electric powered power by myself for up to 27 miles, although it’s difficult to lock in any “electric powered-only” mode—the internal combustion engine will kick on if the accelerator is mashed into the ground. like the Optima, the hybrid versions have a clean and cozy trip that should enchantment to most mid-length sedan shoppers.

Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price

The Optima Hybrid succeeds in passenger comfort and interior quality. just like the Optima, the 2018 Kia Optima Hybrid makes use of upscale substances and a quiet experience to swing for the fences, automotively talking. we are saying that Kia has in large part succeeded in reworking the Optima from an additionally-ran to a top class-feeling car. Its interior might be excellent for the front- and again-seat riders—with the caveat that it’s probable fine for four—and it narrowly misses out on some other factor for its extra pricey appointments. Hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions of the Kia Optima are provided in better trim stages that pile on sound-deadening substances and luxury options that a few base Optimas gained’t have. The end result is a quieter indoors and power adjustable front seats so that it will adapt to most frame sorts.

The the front seats are lower with deep bolsters that offer top side and leg assist. The Optima’s sloping roofline cuts into rear head area, but extensive door openings assist taller passengers enter and exit with out a great deal fuss. There’s simply enough head room for 6-footers, however taller passengers might also need to take into account calling shotgun—or taking the keys altogether. The hybrid batteries consume into usable cargo area, in comparison to the everyday Optima. The Optima Hybrid gives thirteen.four cubic toes of cargo room (as compared to fifteen.nine cubes in the Optima) and the Optima Plug-in Hybrid offers nine.8 cubic toes of area, which isn’t all that capacious.

you could’t accuse Kia engineers of not hitting the mark in developing this second-era Optima hybrid, but. Its thoroughly up to date gas-electric powertrain boasts severa improvements over the previous gadget, and its gas financial system represents a massive leap from the outgoing model’s 37-mpg mixed score. That’s way to a extra green 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine that replaces the preceding 2.four-liter unit; a barely better-capacity, 1.6-kWh lithium-ion battery percent; and a greater powerful, 50-hp electric powered motor. Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price.

whilst most other hybrid systems use constantly variable automated transmissions (CVTs), the Kia fits its 2.0-liter 4-cylinder with a traditional six-speed automated, with the electric motor and a seize replacing the torque converter. This barely unconventional setup will pay off in terms of refinement, as it avoids the droning sensation found in many different hybrids when the powertrain is tasked with pressing acceleration. another spectacular element of Kia’s hybrid gadget is the way the battery p.c. fits smartly below the rear seat. With this placement, the Optima’s trunk measures thirteen cubic feet, larger than the 12 cubic toes determined within the Fusion hybrid or the Malibu hybrid (however 2.five cubes less than the gas-only Optima). The Optima hybrid additionally keeps the 60/forty split-folding rear seat, which offers a extensive skip-thru for larger items.

As it's miles within the standard Optima, the hybrid’s passenger compartment is a satisfying area to spend time. It boasts fantastic in shape and finish, an smooth-to-use control format, and at ease seats back and front. Apple CarPlay and Android vehicle connectivity are preferred, and options such as a wide ranging sunroof, heated leather seats, and a Harman/Kardon audio gadget create a top class vibe. Kia Optima Hybrid 2018 Review, Specs, Price.

With 192 total horsepower lugging a bit more weight than in the preferred version, the Optima hybrid doesn’t sense appreciably faster than the normal 4-cylinder, even though the immediate torque from the electric motor does help make it extra responsive while merging or passing. the car’s dynamics are in most cases unchanged from the standard Optima, with accurate steering, well-managed frame motions, and a quiet cabin. The simplest giveaway which you’re piloting a hybrid is the spongy and indistinct brake-pedal feel, a commonplace sore spot in hybrids due to the problem of mixing regenerative and friction braking structures. There are also severa eco-focused menus and shows to be had inside the instrument cluster and dashboard screens for folks that are willing to hypermile their Kias.

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