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Glad to hear you love it. Those MPG figures seem a little disappointing. Heavily considering the new Lexus NX350h and people are reporting better than advertised MPG (41/39/37) from that car. Obviously it’s a $10k price difference compared fully loaded. Hmmmm…..

The NX350h is closer to the Niro in size, especially the 2023 Niro. Keep that in mind when comparing.

 

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Yes you are correct. Size doesn’t really matter that much for this vehicle we plan on buying. Mainly a commuter car/grocery getter for my wife

Then you might look at the Niro, too. Mine gets fantastic gas mileage. It's the PHEV, and even when I haven't been able to charge it, I can get 50 mpg without trying too hard. And it is definitely more affordable than the Lexus or the Sportage.

 

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A dealer in Colorado Springs told me that they are selling the Sportage PHEV already, and are placing an additional markup of $10K on every one of them. For that $10K premium I could buy enough fuel to drive 50K miles at $5.00 gallon. If that is truly the case for the PHEV, there is absolutely no reason for anyone to buy this PHEV, unless you always drive 33 miles.

On another note, the sales manager, at the Peak Kia dealer in Colorado Springs, was very rude and condescending. The salesman requested that I put in an application for credit on a vehicle that apparently was already sold. I was pretty upset to say the least. Be careful out there and stay away from Peak Kia of Chapel Hills, in Colorado Springs.

Avoid that one for sure. Kendall Kia of Nampa, Idaho is telling me that they are not planning on markups. They have my name on a list, but orders are not open yet.

 

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I think the dealer may have actually been referring to the Santa Fe PHEV.

I have noticed that a fair number of dealers tend to have employees entirely in the dark about upcoming vehicles and who make assumptions based on what they have seen coming in.
And some who just assume customers aren't in the know.

 

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Do dealerships still think that people have absolutely no clue about cars when they purchase one? This is so ridiculous.

There are still people who think that the way to research a car is just to go to some lots and see what they like. My parents know almost nothing going into a vehicle purchase, and my girlfriend knows even less.

 

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That's a sure way to get ripped off ... I mean, go to the lots and test drive, but at least figure out the price range and trade in values ... AT LEAST

My parents used to have me do their research, but now they just go to the Toyota lot and trust the salesfolk. I think they do look up their trade value, at least.
And my girlfriend runs her car beyond any reasonable trade value and then buys something she likes. So she probably gets ripped off, but I haven't seen her buy one yet.

 

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Easy on the gas, easy on the brake. You recapture more energy if you can avoid actually triggering the real brakes. You use less fuel driving conservatively.
But a week isn't long enough to break it in. Most reports are saying the gas mileage gets better, regardless of driving style.

 

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Question, why does the charge indicator show me always at 50 %. It never gets charged even though i dont brake that heavily. I am going easy on the brakes and on the accelarator.

I believe that is where it wants to be. If it gets full, you aren't using enough electric and you can't use the regenerative braking. If you find yourself around 50% when you head down a hill, watch it fill from the regenerative braking.
Of course, if there is something going wrong keeping it from using or charging the battery, that would keep it there, too, so I can't be sure.

 

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NX350H is pretty much a luxury version of the Prius Prime isn't it?

Not the Prime. The NX450h+ is the Prius Prime. The NX350h is the regular hybrid, equivalent to the Prius.

 

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Just to be clear, do you (or anyone else) know if Kia/Hyundai offer any hybrid or PHEV vehicle that doesn't actually utilize regenerative braking automatically when pressing the brakes up to a certain threshold? I was reading some that some manufacturers, at least in the past, did not integrate the brake pedal into the regenerative braking system and with this subject it seemed like a good time to ask.

I don't believe any current market options have a brake pedal that only actuates traditional brakes. As far as I know, all current HEV, PHEV, and EV have regenerative braking. If you don't brake too hard, you'll be using it in any one of them.

 

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So the idea is to press gently right? How do we know whether to press gently and or else real hard, what trigger regenerative braking?

Braking gently is best for regeneration. Slow down with lots of spare room whenever you can. I can't speak to the Sportage hybrid, but my Niro makes the transition between regenerative and regular brakes pretty smooth, so it may be hard to tell when you hit that point. I check the regen gauge on it, but I don't know how accurate it is.

 

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Whats this regen gauge ? Can you please share more information?

The Niro, at least the 2019 Niro, has a gauge indicating recharge or power use. I think the Sportage might only have it in the higher trims, but I am not sure.
Like I said, I don't know whether it is completely accurate, but it can give you an idea if it is there.

 

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We picked up our 2023 Kia Sportage Hybrid EX today and on the way home from Colorado Springs to Denver, we got 48 mpg, all highway. It has yet t be seen, if we can keep that up.

Wow! That is nearly the gas mileage of my Niro! For a significantly larger vehicle to get so close is amazing!

 

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I am starting to wonder if Kia's choice of engine for the hybrid was a mistake.
Using a turbo engine is excellent in theory, but they really don't work as advertised in real life, using much more fuel than EPA rated MPG.
I wonder if the mileage could've been improved further (in real life) by using the 2.5 used in the NA Sportage.
Thoughts?

The turbo should be a good choice for efficiency, assuming the tune is right and the driver doesn't accelerate hard. But you may be right that for the real world, people aren't easing into the throttle. And I am not sure how the electric takeoff affects things. I would expect it would help prevent the effects of hard acceleration from a stop, since you get the immediate acceleration from the electric.
Personally, I like the idea of having the power available. My Niro is pretty gutless, which is fine for my commute, but going over a fairly steep pass took all it had to stay at 70. I think a little more power for the one with extra battery weight is worthwhile to me.