Our stint with the updated Sonet showed that considered changes can turn a good product into a great one…
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Time spent: Six of six months
Distance covered: 7 002 km
Average fuel consumption: 7.53 L/100 km
We like: sharp new styling; impressive standard specification; pleasant road manners
We don’t like: CVT an acquired taste; occasionally intrusive active safety features
When the Sonet SX joined our test fleet in September last year, just a couple of months after the updated range was introduced to the market, Kia’s entry-level crossover was already on a strong wicket. Its combination of sharp styling, surprisingly practical packaging for a car of its compact dimensions, decent road manners and affordability had made it a segment hit. So, it’s understandable that Kia was never going to tamper with the fundamentals of such a successful formula, instead looking to add value and diversify a portfolio that was previously quite limited in its breadth. And while the halo SX model was perhaps not the best representative of the range, our six months spent with it helped us better understand just why the Sonet seems to have gone from strength to strength.
The outgoing Sonet was, and remains, a good-looking crossover, and while Kia hasn’t completely rewritten the script with the update, the new elements work an absolute treat. The front incorporates a more prominent take on the firm’s signature ‘Tiger Nose’ grille, headlamp ‘teardrops’ that flow into the foglamps, and vertically stacked brakelamp arrays joined by a long light strip that stretches across a slightly redesigned tailgate. In addition to revised 16-inch alloy wheels, our test unit also sported the newly added Pewter Olive Green paint finish. Barring some very minor trim updates – as well as an uprated infotainment system with a 10.25-inch screen and TFT instrumentation (the latter being specific to the SX and EX+ models) – the interior remains a solidly-built and spacious affair. Its practicality was out to the test when carting home a 134 x 147 double-bed headboard. While this required some finessing to manoeuvre, and moving the front seats far forward, the 868-litre boot and its generous load aperture saved me some embarrassment at the furniture store’s loading depot.
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Although mechanically identical to its CVT-equipped brethren further down the range, the SX commands a R484 995 price tag that ushers in myriad extra features. These include LED-equipped headlamps, a larger complement of airbags (two versus six), alloy wheels, synthetic leather upholstery, climate control, cruise control, drive mode selector, and wireless phone-charging pad, to name but a few. These are all welcome features that lend it a genuinely upmarket air, but they also make strange omissions, such as a lack of one-touch operation for the driver’s side electric window, stand out.
Perhaps the biggest development is the addition of Kia’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) suite of active safety features, comprising the likes of lane keeping and following assistant, and forward collision mitigation systems more commonly found in bigger cars. While such tech aligns neatly with the SX’s halo placement, it’s not perfect. The lane-keeping system is rather sensitive and tends to activate its alarm in response to minor deviations in course. Straying a little further out of one’s lane is met with abrupt corrective steering inputs that caught a couple of drivers in the team off guard. Thankfully, most of these functions can be partially overridden via the infotainment system.
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In terms of its road manners, little has changed in the updated car, and that’s not a bad thing. The naturally aspirated 1.5-litre Smartstream inline-four petrol engine’s 85 kW/144 N.m outputs do a good job of propelling the 1 197 kg Sonet along, and the CVT is one of the better examples of its ilk, not rendering the powertrain too droney under hard acceleration. The high-sited driving position affords a good view of one’s surroundings, the ride is compliant, and the handling and body control are light-footed and predictable. During a spot of dirt-roading in Jonkershoek, the little Kia proved capable on rutted, stone-strewn tracks. The ESP system wicks off power unobtrusively when traction is compromised, and the ride is impressively absorbent.
While the SX impressed in isolation, it must be said that the range expansion, now standing at eight models, from R299 995 to R484 995, accompanying the Sonet’s update, means there’s better value further down the line. For example, the R30 000 cheaper EX+ all but mirrors the SX in the standard specification department but does away with the sometimes-pernickety active safety systems. The combination of solid existing fundamentals, combined with greater model choice and eye-catching new looks really has bolstered the Sonet’s standing in the compact crossover field – values that rightly netted it segment honours in this year’s Top 12 Best Buys awards.
Find the full feature in the June 2025 issue of CAR Magazine.
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