The 2010 Kia Forte SX has the right combination of power, weight, and gearing to deliver excellent gas mileage on the highway.
A touchy throttle, abrupt clutch, and less-than-slick shifter can make the sporty version of the new 2010 Kia Forte compact economy sedan unpleasant to drive in stop-and-go conditions. But this car -- which is spending a week with the DC Car Examiner -- in its element cruising on the highway.
The Forte's engine -- a 2.4-liter four-cylinder borrowed from Kia's larger Optima -- is big and powerful enough that it doesn't strain when you get up to highway speeds, yet not so big and powerful that it uses lots of gas even when it isn't strained. And the manual transmission's sixth gear leaves the engine turning at just around 2,000 rpm past 60 miles per hour.
This combination -- with the air conditioner running -- netted the above result after about 20 miles of driving along Maryland's Interstate 495 with the cruise control set to 63 mph: a gas mileage average that made its way to 40.2 miles per gallon by the car's trip computer. Steady highway driving with minimal changes in elevation or acceleration is ideal for almost any car (the EPA highway mileage test includes changes of speed, which contributes to the Forte's 32-mpg rating from that agency), but few vehicles short of a diesel or gas-electric hybrid would likely match this performance, and any that did would be unlikely to match the Forte's strong acceleration performance from its 173-horsepower engine.
Note that trip computers tend to be a bit optimistic; the 11 gallons the Forte drank over the 335 miles just before this highway drive yields 30.5 miles per gallon while the trip computer reported a 31.5 average over that distance. Those miles were spread evenly over all types of driving conditions: stop-and-go on city streets and in other traffic, suburban highways and residential streets, and rural back roads. If Kia could tame the car's touchy throttle and make the car easier to drive gently at lower speeds, that overall figure would likely increase.
But even as it is, the Forte excels at its steady highway speed. There must be a pun in there somewhere.
Day 1: Introduction
Day 3: Stop-and-go driving
Day 4: Highway driving
Vehicle tested: 2010 Kia Forte
Vehicle base price (MSRP): $13,965
Version tested: SX
Vehicle price as tested (MSRP): $19,490
Estimated transaction price as tested: $16,905
Odometer at beginning of test: 1,442 miles
Odometer as of this writing: 1,813 miles
Test vehicle provided by: Kia Motors America
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