Kia Sorento XE-C Van : XE-C WHEN YOU KNOW HOW

Expert Rating:

Its Unlikely To Appear At The Top Of The Sales Charts But There Is A Place For Kias Sorento XE-C in the UK LCV Market. Steve Walker Reports

Is there really that much call for 4x4 vans? I only ask because the market is positively swimming with the things and yet, when was the last time you saw one on the road? It could be that these vehicles do sell in good numbers but all spend their working lives out in the windy wilds so nobody who sticks to more travelled thoroughfares ever claps eyes on them. On the other hand, it could be that demand for off-road vans is slight and the inordinate number of different models is down to the ease with which manufacturers can chop the rear seats out of a family 4x4 and sell it as a van. Whatever the thinking behind it, Kia have gotten in on the act with their Sorento XE-C commercial vehicle.

Were talking about 4x4 vans here and not pick-ups. The pick-up truck is a far more common beast for reasons that arent too tricky to fathom. They have that tough n trendy image for one thing and you can see how the open-air load area could come in useful for dirty and/or smelly equipment - whether its of the professional or leisure variety. Put something smelly in the back of a 4x4 van and youll be sampling that aroma all the way home, while any dirt that drops off in the back cant be easily hosed away and wont wash off in the rain.

Itll be a dustpan and brush job. When it comes to keeping cargo dry, a 4x4 van obviously fares better but its simple to equip a pick-up with a detachable load area cover to solve that one. In terms of functionality, a 4x4 van only really makes sense if you want to carry a load that must be kept clean and protected from the elements over terrain that a conventional van couldnt handle. Its a specialised set of requirements that might go some way to explaining the 4x4 vans relative obscurity.

Over the past few years weve seen 4x4 vans aplenty popping up onto the LCV marketplace, some of them, like Kias Sorento XE-C, from unexpected quarters. Nissan, Land Rover and Mitsubishi are the usual suspects in the sector but Jeep threw us a curveball with their Cherokee Pioneer a while back and then Kia came up on the rails. These last two additions to the genre are unusual because neither Jeep not Kia had any history of selling commercial vehicles in the UK. Could it be that they view a van conversion as a quick-fix method for shifting a few more units of their family 4x4s? It is a possibility, although theres more to the Sorento XE-C than a standard Sorento in which someone has set about the rear seats with an angle-grinder.

"Kias offering might just be the most visually attractive 4x4 van on the market"

The Sorentos rear bench seat is no longer present in the XE-C van and in its place is a flat load floor. The area in the back has surprisingly roomy dimensions with a load length of 1,610mm, a load width of 1,370mm and a height of 930mm. Access to this space is through the rear tailgate which also retains the secondary flip-up glass hatch seen on the Sorento passenger car. Its a handy inclusion that lets you quickly drop smaller objects into the back without opening the full tailgate.

You can also get at your cargo through the rear passenger doors but these side-hinged portals dont really lend themselves to the loading or unloading of bulky items. You soon appreciate why purpose-built vans employ sliding doors on their flanks when the open doors on the XE-C get in the way and the aperture, which was designed to accommodate passengers, wont let that big cardboard box pass. Eventually, youll admit defeat and use the tailgate to stow any oversize objects. The Kia Sorento is a good-looking family 4x4 and, being that the alterations which made it into a van took place internally, the Sorento XE-C is a good looking 4x4 van.

Looking good might help it get an edge on the competition too. Its not too difficult to envisage image conscious urban businesses turning to something like the Sorento XE-C instead of a run of the mill compact van. They would probably have no intention of ever taking it off-road but, creatively sign-written and packing some outlandish alloy wheels, the XE-C will cut much more of a dash on the local high street than something like a Citroen Berlingo. With its chunkily modern front end featuring that sharply contoured bonnet and those dramatic wheelarches housing their oversize wheels, Kias offering might just be the most visually attractive 4x4 van on the market.

The XE-C is based on the Sorento XE from the passenger car range but the very fact that it shares its specification with a non-commercial model is encouraging as vans normally miss out on the choicest features in the interests of keeping costs down. Sorento XE-C buyers get air-conditioning, remote central locking, power steering, ABS brakes and 16" alloy wheels amongst other niceties. Whats entry-level spec for a family 4x4 these days is still positively luxurious for a van. All Sorento models come with the same 2.5-litre CRDi common-rail diesel engine and its a pleasantly refined one thats not lacking in power.

The 138bhp maximum output is generated at 3,800rpm and torque of 343Nm is available between 1,850 and 2,500rpm. It all adds up to good flexibility with strong acceleration on tap through a broad section of the rev-range. Theres a choice of good five-speed manual gearbox or a five-speed H-matic auto option which makes for a more relaxed drive but hurts fuel economy slightly. Pick the manual and you can reasonably expect to get 37mpg from your Sorento XE-C and that drops to 33mpg with the automatic.

On the road, the steering is rather loose and inaccurate but the XE-C rides well and is otherwise very pleasant to drive. Kias traditional values of high specification and low prices should strike a chord with commercial vehicle buyers in this country and theres no reason why the Sorento XE-C shouldnt establish a foothold in the LCV market. There are question-marks over the durability of some of the interior materials when faced with harsh commercial usage and the Sorento isnt the most capable off-road vehicle but you cant argue with the specification, the price or the styling and the engine is also a winner.

Facts At A Glance VAN: Kia Sorento XE-C
PRICE: £18,670 £19,909 On The Road
PERFORMANCE: [CRDi] 0-60mph 14s Top Speed 106mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [CRDi] (urban) 28.2mpg/ (extra urban) 43.5/ (combined) 36.7mpg WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE? Length/Width/Height, 4567/1884/1804mm