Good and accurate writeup.
My wife's daughter had an '07 Rondo EX 2.4. She has two boys and one pooch and occasionally one gwammaw to haul around a big city.
It was...was a fine car and did its job in yeoman fasion. There is huge inside space for something barely longer than a Spectra or a Corolla.
Was. She got T-boned by a Lexus red light runner. The side bags did their job but she's still hurtin for certain from the banging around. Slow but steady progress...
The car was totaled. We recently picked up a Sorento LX 3.3 and paid less than we did for the Rondo. My wife drove the car down to her.
Super fire sale at Spokane Kia, today's ad shows '09 Spectra @ $9,995 (probably an LX stick, possibly w/o ac), '08 Amanti @ $17,888, '08 Sorento 4x4 automatic 3.3 @ $15,947.
Recently they were advertising '08 Rondo LX for about 13 grand.
Cheap to buy, cheap to buy used.
But KIAs IMO are solid wheels. There was nothing close to my Spectra, in the cost/quality equation, when I bought it about a year ago.
As you say, the doors have a solid clunk (unlike my '04 Impala), the interior is well laid out, and the headlights definitely reach out.
I kinda like the Amanti in black (oops, except in kalifornicationia), if I had bailout money I'd go buy one and then build a garage to put it in.
