Hi everyone, I'm new here. I took the plunge and ordered a
Cerato Forte pre launch and got the 1.6A SX at 45K, COE inclusive,
6 months road tax and Rikekool solar films thrown in. Solar
films comes with 10 yr warranty! Any time the film starts to
peel, send the car back and they will have it replaced, quite
cool. My friend is using this brand of solar film and he
mentions that his 'transition glasses' does not darken when placed
in the car, but it darkens after he winds down the windows, so it
can't be that bad.
The interior is really spacious while the exterior is
sporty. What I did not like is the 1.6 versions did not
offer you leather seats, although you can get it done yourselves
outside. Exterior design was by Kia's Chief Design Officer,
Peter Schreyer, who designed the Audi TT also.
The feel when test driving is good, however it
is noticeably noisier than the Hyundai
Avante. Possibly because of the 17 inch rims they use,
suspension is also harder than the Avante which makes it a little
bumpy when going over little pot holes. Not sure if this is
to compensate the height since it is 30mm lower than the
Avante.
The sales person also mentioned that the engine is the same as
the Cerato Variant 2, they sup-ed up the Forte's engine so that it
is performing almost at its limit, they also gave it an aluminium
block, making it lighter than previously.
I checked with my collegue who owned a Cerato variant 2, he
mentioned that FC is about 11-12KM? Hence I am not optimistic
that the Forte will be any better, specially with those 17" sports
rims offered. I won't be driving it for long distances, hence
not too bothered by the FC.
