![]() SENSE AND STYLE Family Friendly (Not Really, Fair, Great, Excellent): Fair Fun-Factor (None, Some, Good Times, Groove-On): None IT’S THE LITTLE THINGS THAT COUNT Storage Compartments (Puny, Fair, Ample, Galore): Puny Cargo/Trunk Space (Puny, Fair, Ample, Galore): Fair LET’S TALK NUMBERS LATCH Connectors: 2 Seating Capacity (includes driver): 5 (barely) As a mom and generally cool chick (if I do say so myself), that is about as much praise as I can muster for this car. Its 25 mpg in the city barely puts it in that category for me. I consider the 2006 Kia Spectra a very basic and inexpensive commuter car. So much for testing the car’s get-up-and-go in the mountains. ![]() The rear seats fold down with a 60/40 split which is helpful, but I am not able to fit my skis in without hitting the gearshift. It doesn’t pass the Costco test for me and I have to put some of my purchases in the front seat. The cargo area is about what I expect in a car this size, a small weekly grocery trip is about it for capacity. ![]() The middle passenger seat in the rear is not really big enough for any person who is old enough to be out of a booster seat. Between my husband ceaselessly adjusting his seat to get comfortable and three children fighting in the back seat, I thought I would never make it to the movie theatre, less than 5 miles from our house. I am able to squeeze my family of five into the Spectra, although I would not recommend this to anyone who values their sanity. I also appreciate the standard side curtain airbags. The heat controls are user-friendly and the stereo is a breeze to figure out. It is refreshing to drive this car for a week and not have to pull out the manual. What the Spectra lacks in creature comforts it makes up for in simplicity and safety features. I can fit my iPod in this space, but not much more. Most disappointing of all is the size of the center console. Some other amenities that I really miss in the Kia Spectra are: A lighted mirror on the sun shade and an outside temperature gauge. I live in the land of giant SUVs, so feeling exceptionally low to the ground is intimidating and somewhat unnerving. It has a manual pump-action seat hoist that seems to get me just a couple inches off the road – literally. First of all, I cannot get the seat high enough. Holy distracted driver, Batman!Įnough about my dislike for the stick shift I am really unimpressed about some other aspects of the 2006 Kia Spectra as well. It seems that each time my phone rings or the children need me, I am also in the midst of shifting. With a manual transmission, I feel like I need another pair of hands just to take a sip or answer a phone call (with my headset attached, of course). As much as I believe in limited distractions while driving, I often have a coffee cup in the cup holder and a cell phone at the ready in the console. Sounds pretty girly, huh? I am really glad that I posses those skills, but the only one I use with any frequency is being able to drive a car with manual transmission.įor me, however, having an automatic transmission is a must in a mom-mobile. My father wanted to be sure that I could drive a difficult stick shift, change a tire, change the oil, and engage a manual 4-wheel drive system. I learned to drive in a Jeep, a very old Jeep.
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