As a young boy I used to watch a show called Record Breakers.
The show, which was hosted for 20 years by a guy named Roy Castle, himself apparently a holder of nine world records all earned while hosting the show, was something I looked forward to watching every week. Two other part-time residents on the show were twin brothers Norris and Ross McWhirter, the founders of the Guinness Book of Records. The show was all about world records, with questions about records answered by the McWhirter twins and every show closed with someone making an attempt at a world record.
I often tried to emulate some of the records with my friends, most gas passed after eating a can of beans, most burps in a minute, biggest sculpture made entirely from toe jam, and things like that.
Through all the years I watched the show I never actually beat one of the records, nor did I ever meet someone who did, until now.
It would appear that the car I drove this week, the KIA Optima hybrid is itself a record breaker, earning the title for lowest fuel consumption across 48 U.S. states by a gasoline hybrid car. It would appear that the Optima achieved an average of 3.6 l/100km during its jaunt covering 12,712 kilometres. As this was in the States and they use a little different measuring system, the 3.6 l/100km equates to a little more than 65 mpg. That's more than I get from my bicycle.
According to KIA the Optima hybrid can also go 100 km on batteries alone and in city driving it can run exclusively on battery power at speeds up to 100 km/h.
That's pretty damn impressive.
The Optima doesn't lack in the power department either with 206 horsepower on tap, which is more than enough to blast you past when some overtaking is needed.
Another good thing the Optima has managed to do with its hybrid is keep the original good looks of the regular gasoline engine Optima, itself the winner of Motoring 2012's Car of the Year award.
This is a good looking vehicle with no lack of rear seat legroom and decent room in the trunk, both of which can be lacking when a manufacturer needs space to put the batteries for the electric motor. There was also storage under the floor in the trunk.
This Optima came with leather/cloth seats with heaters and two memory settings for the driver. Other options included dual zone climate control, which would be welcome in my more-than-tepid house right now, Bluetooth for the phone, voice-activated satellite radio and a hard drive. The hard drivesystem called UVO, short for your voice can store all your music or photos and is also voice activated. Tell it what song you want to hear and it finds it for you.
On the road the Optima doesn't drive or handle any different from the regular gasoline version except when taking off from a stop. At this time, because there is no engine noise, it is initially a little odd and the notion is to hit the go pedal a little harder than normal.
Around town and on the highway the Optima handles well and gear changes are buttery smooth. The driving feel is no different from a regular gasoline car, and this is a good thing as hybrids do not have the cool name yet. They are still often seen as cars for older folks looking to save money, or for tree huggers. I doubt a tree hugger has ever been seen driving a car as cool as this Optima.
The Optima also came with a back-up camera for perfect rearward parking and the safety of little ones playing behind and a host of safety gadgets. The company has packed a lot into the car for $32,150 making it appealing not just in looks but in price too.
If you have ever dreamed of being close to or owning a world record holder then you need to put down the can of beans and get yourself a KIA Optima hybrid.
Vehicle:
KIA Optima hybrid
Vehicle type:
4-door sedan
Transmission:
6-speed manumatic
Engine:
2.4-litre four cylinder
Horseppower:
206 @ 6,000
Torque:
195 @ 4,200
Price as tested:
$32,150
Mileage:
5.6 l/100km 50 mpg city
4.9 l/100km 58 mpg hwy
