KIA Stonic 2021 iMT - They See Me Sailing (ENG) - Test Drive and Review

The face lited KIA Stonic received among others a GT-Line trim. KIA Stonic GT-Line is somehow supposed to be more exciting. There is a new grille, including 3 slots under the so-called tiger nose, different placement of the fog lights, and fake exhaust replaced a real exhaust tip in the pre-facelift model. Inside the noticeable change is the new infotainment system.
KIA dropped the diesel, as well as the 1.4 liter normally aspirated petrol engine. There is still a 4-pot 1.2 liter normally aspirated engine producing 84 hp. The other choice is a 1-liter 3-banger turbocharged motor with either 100 or 120 hp. The latter being a mild hybrid with so-called sailing mode. The 1.2 liter engine works with a 5-speed manual, while the 1-liter engines can be ordered with a 6-speed manual, or a 7-speed double clutch transmission.
At 414 cm the refreshed KIA Stonic is smaller than the current generation Nissan Juke, Peugeot 2008, Renault Captur or the Skoda Kamiq.
↔ KIA Stonic dimensions:
✔ length: 4140 mm
✔ width: 1760 mm
✔ height: 1520 mm
✔ wheelbase: 2580 mm
✔ boot/trunk: 352/1155 L
💲 KIA Stonic starting price: 16 650 euro
💲 KIA Stonic GT-Line iMT price as tested: 27 000 euro
🎯 Do you like my channel? Subscribe here: bit.ly/SubMarekDrives
💥 Follow me here:
www.wieruszewski.com
/ marekdrives
/ mwieruszewski
/ marek_drives
📢 I started a new channel - bit.ly/MareksGear, where I'm talking about the gear I use to make my shoe-string budget car reviews. Check it out, and please consider subscribing: bit.ly/SubMareksGear
🚙 Also watch:
Citroen C3 Aircross • Citroen C3 Aircross - ...
Dacia Sandero • Dacia Sandero Stepway ...
Hyundai Kona • Hyundai Kona 1.0 122 h...
KIA Stonic • KIA Stonic (ENG) - Tes...
Nissan Juke • Nissan Juke 2020 - No ...
Peugeot 2008 • Peugeot e-2008 - Elect...
Renault Captur • Renault Captur 2020 - ...
Skoda Kamiq • Skoda Kamiq Crossover ...
Volkswagen T-Cross • Volkswagen T-Cross 1.5...
#MarekDrives #KIA #KIAStonic
📌 Thanks for watching Marek Drives reviews. If you liked it, here are several other channels you may enjoy: Autophorie, Autogefühl, Bob Flavin, Carfection, Carwow, Doug DeMuro, Driven Car Reviews, Fully Charged, TheSmokingTire, TheStraightPipes, VINwiki.

[@MarekDrivesENG]

Subscribe to my newsletter and receive new video updates by e-mail: marekdrives.tv/eng

[@MrSunnyBhoy]

Haha who knew Marek has such a good singing voice :) I really like the front end of this car. Wish they had done the same to the Kona N, that looks horrible from the front. Hope you will review that.

[@ericbury6826]

Very well done, as usual. But the music is a bit loud...

[@mike13543]

Thnx for the review on the imt yes the clutch is high on the ceed too I thought clutch was broken

[@piglet5287]

I'd prefer less busy background music in your reviews. As for the Stonic, it has always seemed a bit of an also-ran among crossovers, to me. Or now, also-sailed?

[@AliHijazi]

great review; and I like the music that you are integrating in the video but as for the car, there is nothing impressive

[@MarekDrives]

Fair enough!

[@stuartbear6126]

Engaging as always but please... the music is too loud. Do you really need it? You could sing instead?

[@talpa40]

Finally a review that Explain the sailing effect. Well done sir. We are test driving this car at the moment. Its fast, agile and comfortable. The clutch is okee beter then the clutch of the similar Hyundai I20 who is also mid hybride. To bad the steering in ecomode is to light. In normal mode this car is more ten okee.

[@MarekDrivesENG]

Glad it was helpful!

[@MotorTorq_ZA]

Hey marek. This review was all plain sailing 😂😂😂

[@joshbacon8241]

I believe the reason why the 1.6 diesel is no longer offered for the facelift is because of low demand?

[@Neatspejamasis]

I noticed that probably most of these small crossovers, SUVs usually tend to look sharper, stylish (a few color paint on saem body options), large wheels, FWD, high window line, relatively small engines.

[@MarekDrives]

Yup. All show, no go :)

[@user-yq8gw2qr7f]

Hello! Very nice review,very informative. I want to know your oppinion. What would you recomend,between the dacia sandero stepway and the kia stonic? Both with 1.0 litre turbo engine. Which one seems to be the better car from your point of view? Thanks in advance.

[@MarekDrives]

Dacia is more car for the money, but I find it much less refined, less comfortable. Have you looked at the VW T-Cross? I know it might be a bit more expensive, but that sliding rear bench could make it more usable in certain situations.

[@user-yq8gw2qr7f]

@@MarekDrives First of all thanks for answering. I really like the idea that kia offers7 years warranty. Also,asking different mechanics,all say only good things about kia cars,like that they offer decent quality,for a fair price. Thanks again for answering,and keep up the good work,your reviews are funny and also very informative.

[@spursman3998]

Interesting review. The car leaves completely underwhelmed.

[@RaduB.]

I wonder how long would the clutch last, if you were to choose 'eco mode' all the time. (I mean the thrust bearing. Or maybe there's something different in the construction of this clutch...)

[@MarekDrives]

I'll ask if the Polish technical department has some more information on it. I'd imagine with an electronic clutch there is less wear in general, because there is no 'riding the clutch' situation. More details here: www.enginetechnologyinternational.com/features/tech-deep-dive-kia-intelligent-manual-transmission.html

[@peterspeets9950]

Thank you for your great review. Two days ago i got my kia stonic mhev 1.0 turbo from 2020 with manual 6 gear. I tried everything to go in sailing mode but it seems it does not work. I tried on city roads and the highway. When you push to brake, you can see in the display that energy is beeing transported to the battery in the back. Any idea what could be the problem? Doesn't my car have imt maybe? For the rest i am very glad with this car. Thanks in advance for your reply Any idea how to solve

[@MarekDrives]

I'm not sure if it's the same car/engine/mhev system. The iMT (not to be confused with MHEV in general) is a feature offered as of 2021, so yours may be different.

[@peterspeets9950]

@@MarekDrives o now I understand. Thank you Marek

[@peterspeets9950]

Hello Marek I just experienced sailing haha. It is real fun. Now I know how to activate it: a little bit accelerating and then your feet of the pedals. My car was built in october 2020 Have A nice day 🤗

[@mircobutti6456]

If i am in 5th Gear with the engine off (sailing mode) and i slow down too much for the 5th Gear, what happens ?

[@MarekDrivesENG]

The engine will come back on. If you are really too slow for 5th gear, the car will remain in neutral for you to press the clutch, and put the car in a lower gear.

[@Tom-uk2ow]

Marek you did not say anything about new led projector headlights are they better than pre facelift model?

[@MarekDrives]

Because they're not.

[@Tom-uk2ow]

@@MarekDrives t Thanks,i in my 50 realise that have problems in night driving so headlights are one of proirity.

[@MarekDrives]

First thing you want to look for is lights with >2000 lumens, and that would be those with automatic levelling vs. the little dial over the driver's knee on the door side. In (relatively) cheaper cars LEDs are meant to save energy to make the stop&start system more efficient, but they are no better (if at all) than good bi-xenon headlights. If you want good headlights, you have to look for those matrix adaptive units. They are usually much brighter, and as a result they have to adapt to avoid dazzling oncoming drivers. They really make a difference, but it's hard to show on camera though.

[@Tom-uk2ow]

@@MarekDrives thanks,been driving in friend c class with perfomance led i think and i must say briliant headlights but c class is not my cup of tea like car..

[@MarekDrives]

@Tom you don't have to go all the way premium, although cars with adaptive headlights are going to be on the pricey end of the scale. Ford - Kuga and upwards, Mazda 3 and CX-30 (though I don't recall their headlights being brilliant), Opel Astra and Insignia, Renault Espace, Seat Leon, Skoda Scala, Kamiq, Octavia, Superb, Kodiaq, Toyota RAV4, VW Golf and above. Of course in most cases these will be optional on higher trim models.

[@DaveDVideoMaker]

Do you prefer the TGDi or iMT?

[@MarekDrives]

One doesn't exclude the other.

[@garyknight3979]

Looking forward to your CD release

[@andersemanuel]

Nice review as usual but the music.. please no more jazz. It's what is used to stop hobos from sleeping in train stations ;)

[@MotorTorq_ZA]

🎵 Come sail away come sail away come sail away with me 🎵 😂😂😂😂

[@10mbc]

I will buy an i30 with IMT tomorrow without ever testing an IMT gearbox. I do have some doubts but there are no drive test cars available.

[@MarekDrivesENG]

You'll be fine. Love your cat video BTW :)

[@10mbc]

@@MarekDrivesENG You watched my cat video? :) Thanks! Hope all will be well as I can't sell it for 1 year because I will use the gov incentives for new cars.

[@haraldk123]

I really like the economy features they added. But (perhaps because I come from a country with bad roads) where do you put the spare tyre now that the battery sits where the extra tyre used to be? I wouldn't trust the tyre repair kit for ugly cuts.

[@MarekDrives]

Spare tire is optional or standard depending on the market and car spec. In some markets if a spare tire is a must, I imagine the MHEV would not be offered. Also if a spare tire is optional, and the client thinks it is more important, they will not buy an MHEV, which cannot have a spare tire.

[@haraldk123]

@@MarekDrives thank you for taking the time ! I think that would be a bit binary (and surprising) from kia not to offer MHEV if the spare tyre is mandatory. I was wondering if there was an elegant storage hack that I didn't see but doesn't appear so :)

[@MarekDrives]

These days a spare tire is sometimes an option reserved for "less developed" markets, where a mild hybrid could be considered unnecessary and too expensive.

[@phil8437]

Like all of these kind of cars way too expensive. Should be more like 20k euros for a GT line model. A very good review thanks.

[@MarekDrives]

Thanks for watching!

[@GaganGrewalf095]

2:55 there’s a technical term for it, it’s a Bugature.

[@MarekDrives]

🤣

[@Da_StormtroopeR]

They see me sailin' They hatin' Patrolling and tryin' to catch me ridin' dirty Tryin' to catch me ridin' dirty

[@madikinho]

Hope there will be a review of renew Toyota Camry soon!

[@MarekDrives]

I didn't know there was a refreshed Camry coming. I mean it must come at some stage, I just didn't think... about the Camry at all :)

[@madikinho]

@@MarekDrives hope dies the last, that’s what we’re saying in Russia:) I’ll just wait for it) thanks👍🏽

[@MarekDrives]

@@madikinho we have the same saying in Polish :) OK, I'll be on the lookout for a refreshed Camry.

[@markuslangguth7315]

Interesting, but I would prefer the DCT version. Thanks for the review! One bit of feedback: there is a huge volume difference between the "in-car" shots and the voiceover/music from the outside. I had to turn volume up and down all the time, that was a bit annoying.

[@Gilotopia]

What is better about DCT? Every review complains about them.

[@markuslangguth7315]

@@Gilotopia 28 years driving with manual gearboxes are enough :) I simply prefer automatic now, especially in traffic jams.

[@MarekDrives]

Thanks for the info about the music. Weird, because it sounds fine on my earphones and speakers. What device ware you watching/listening it on?

[@markuslangguth7315]

@@MarekDrives pc with loudspeakers. That effect was very noticable compared to other videos. And not only the music, also your voice was much louder in the outside shots.

[@MarekDrives]

Interesting. I've just tried it on my laptop and smartphone, fiddled with audio settings. Perhaps the last tune with trumpet sections is a bit loud, but that's due to the instruments, rather than volume.

[@stepheng8779]

Like the look of it, shame it's not a phev or ev. Looking to replace my Niro plug-in soon, very fine car but lacking a bit of style, bland colours etc. Wish Kia would make a smaller EV with a bit of bling 😄

[@MarekDrives]

There's always the Xceed PHEV. It's Niro size, but shaped similarly to the Stonic.

[@robertkeri1421]

Dear Marek! If you are making the English version, please also change the menu in the car to English! Thanks!

[@chuckhpnwx]

I keep seeing "Kia Satanic." Feel free to keep singing!

[@Grazvius]

More singing, please!

[@thelittleyellowducks]

Some of us want to live.

[@triviace]

No Stonic in A MAREK A.another interesting vehicle we don't get.

[@MarekDrives]

This would be sub-Seltos, but different than Soul. In Europe we only get the Soul as an EV. The ICE version didn't sit well with the hamsters, and only old people bought it :)

[@michalklucz6907]

OOkk.. After watching the Polish version I was counting on 'What will we do with a drunken sailor?' :(

[@MarekDrives]

I was considering Rod Stewart I am sailing :-)

[@christianronn5301]

I can’t help wondering what the point is of developing the manual transmission any further. It’s like inventing a new revolutionary type of window winding handle when everyone is using electric anyway. Love the 125p in the mirror as you’re demonstrating the blind spot monitoring.

[@MarekDrives]

I guess it's still cheaper, than the DCT, possibly easier to maintain.

[@TheSynecdoche]

Hyundai's press release at the time of introduction said that iMT was developed at their German R&D center to meet demand of the "European" customer who seems to prefer changing his gears himself. Very strange argument.

[@MarekDrives]

@@TheSynecdoche it's a nicer way of saying "our customers are cheap, and don't want to pay 2k euro for a dct" :)

[@TheSynecdoche]

@@MarekDrives KIA are offering their Seltos in Russia with three automatics: a "conventional" one, a CVT and a DCT. Koreans seem to prefer the one with torque converter: robust and cheap as they make so many of them.

[@Rankidu]

Well, jeep has just launched a wrangler prototype, the 4xE, wich has got an electric motor AND manual transmission. So there is still room for new tech

[@MrFlazz99]

No diesel? No thanks.

[@joshbacon8241]

I believe the reason they dropped it from the engine line-up for the facelift was because of low demand?

[@vlad612]

Singing in every video. This is the way! 😬

[@zrimec]

27k for this......haaaa hhahah hhaaa N1 kia :)

[@xeniosaias]

any other suv than this

[@rileypart1]

0:06 oh please don’t sing that song .... 😬

[@Aprill264]

personally I'm not a fan of this one, the styling is bad, especially from the side and rear, and it is way too small compared to its competitors