September 19, 2007
Page B6
orflanJ OL s e r v e r A u io R e v i e w
News and reviews on new motor vehicles
2007 Kia Sedona Base
by
K athleen C arr
Like a fine wine, the Kia Sedona
m inivan has im proved with age and
we are enjoying our second glass.
Fifteen years ago, no one could
have im agined the fledgling Ko­
rean autom aker w ould be building
affordable and fun-to-dri ve vehicles
able to com pete with the leaders in
this segment.
But Kia has w orked hard to im ­
prove its product quality w hile co n ­
tinuing to undercut the pricing of
the top import brands— a strategy
that has paid o ff with record sales.
T he 2007 Kia Sedona is a great
exam ple o f just how far the co m ­
pany has com e in just the last six
years.
The
p r e v io u s - g e n e r a tio n
Sedona m inivan lost points w ith us
fo r its m e d io cre a c c e le ra tio n ;
s lo p p y h a n d lin g , d ism a l fu el
econom y and porky curb weight.
T he second-generation van, intro­
duced last year, went under the
knife and cam e out a swan.
For 2007, Kia has introduced a
new short-w heelbase model. It's
12.6 inches shorter than the regular
version and has a slightly tighter
turning radius. It's also less expen­
sive, though this has been achieved
by cutting some standard and o p ­
tional features, most notably the
fold-flat third-row seat.
The 2007 Kia Sedona minivan
com es in tw o sizes — a short-w heel­
base (SW B ) model with a 114-inch
w heelbase and a long-w heelbase
(LW B) model with a 119-inch wheel­
base.
Inside, the Kia's m inivan is more
functional than stylish. M ost m ate­
rials are solid in quality. Both vans
seat seven, but only the LWB van
has a fold-flat third-row seat. All
S edona's offer plenty o f storage,
and seating is com fortable in all
three rows, though larger families
will w ant the extra legroom of the
long-w heelbase model; 141.5 cubic
feet opposed to the short-w heel­
base van offering a total o f 121
cubic feet.
The base Sedona com es with 16-
inch steel w heels, dual m anual-slid­
ing rear doors, privacy glass, sec­
ond-row captain's chairs, a 50/50-
split rem ovable third-row bench.
Kia Sedona Leads the Pack in Safety & Value
Specifications: 3.8-Liter 24-Valve 250-hp @ 253 Ib-ft torque V6 Engine: 5-Speed Automatic
Transmission: 18-City 25-Highway MPG: $21,645. MSRP
tri-zone air-conditioning (w ith sepa­
rate zones for the driver, front pas­
senger and rear seats), keyless en ­
try, an eight-speaker C D stereo,
cruise control and pow er first- and
second-row windows.
All K ia S e d o n a 's are front-
w heel-drive and equipped with a
3.8-liter V bengine that puts out 250
horsepow er and 253 pound-feet of
torque; 0-60 mph in 8.0 seconds. A
five-speed autom atic transm ission
is standard. Fuel econom y is rated
at 18-city/25-highw ay mpg.
Standard safety equipm ent on
the 2(X)7 Kia Sedona includes front
seat-m ounted side airbags, full-
length side curtain airbags, front
active headrests, antilock brakes
with brake assist, traction and sta­
bility control, and a tire-pressure
m onitoring system. Rear backup
sensors and adjustable pedals are
optional only on the Sedona EX.
The Kia Sedona received a top five-
star rating in all N H TSA frontal-
and side-im pact crash tests. It also
fared well in Insurance Institute for
H ighw ay Safety (IIH S) crash tests,
earning the top score o f "Good" in
the Institute's frontal offset and
side-im pact tests.
T he 2007 Kia Sedona is im pres­
sively quick o ff the line and during
highw ay passing m aneuvers, and
it provides a sm ooth, quiet ride.
Even at high speeds, front and rear
passengers can m aintain a normal
conversation without having to yell.
Ride quality is com fortable and
controlled, but handling isn't ath­
letic.
O verall, w e’re quite im pressed
with the 2007 Kia Sedona. Factor in
its significant price and warranty
advantages and you’re looking at
one very com pelling minivan. As
utilitarian vehicles go, the Kia is
still quite com petent and should be
on your short list if you're shop­
ping for a m inivan that will protect
your fam ily and provide an honest
value for your investm ent.
S ports ___________
you seen me?
Oden Injury is Déjà vu for Blazer Fans Have
Missing and Exploited Children
Surgery brings
inevitable
comparisons
(AP) -- The season-ending
injury to Greg Oden dredged up
a bad memory for Portland Trail
Blazers fans— that fateful draft
day in 1984 when the team used
the secondoverall picktochoose
Sam Bowie instead of Michael
Jordan.
Bowie proved injury-prone
and Jordan proved to be. well,
Jordan.
The news Thursday that the
number-one pick in the June
draft is out for the season after
knee surgery brought inevitable
comparisons. Should Portland
eyes today, you will see that this
kid is what we want, and I have
no doubt he will be back," Blaz­
ers general m anager Kevin
Pritchard said. “I always be­
lieve things happen for a rea­
son."
Greg Oden
have gone with Texas star Kevin
Durant, who went to Seattle
with the second selection?
Blazers management recalled
Bowie, but stood firm by the
decision.
“If you could look in (Oden's)
And it remains to be seen
whether O den’s future will
prove as bleak as Bowie's in
what has been called one of the
worst draft debacles ever.
In 1984, the Houston Rock­
ets took Hakeem Olajuwan with
the top pick. Then the Blazers
selected Bowie, passing on
Charles Barkley, John Stockton
and Michael Jordan, who went
third to the Bulls.
T he7 -fo o t-l Bowie played
four seasons with Portland,
averaging 10.5 points, but he
was plagued by injuries and
had leg surgery as many as
five times. He retired in 1995
after stints with the New Jer­
sey Nets and the Los Angeles
Lakers.
There were about 20 requests
for refunds or cancellations
Thursday from fans who bought
season tickets even though the
team does not offer refunds.
“There has been so much
excitement about the anticipa­
tion of this young team getting
out on the floor and playing in
front of our fans and the na­
tional m arket," coach Nate
McMillan said. “To know that
Greg wouldn't be with us, it was
disappointing."
Oregon High School Football Lineup
There’s plenty of local action
to be found as most city teams
this weekend play their last pre­
homecoming away games.
Kickoff Friday with South
U m pqua trying th eir hand
against M arshall High School
on M inutemen turf at 5:30
p.m., then stick around for a
matchup between Cleveland
and W illam ette at 8 p.m. O th­
erwise, head to M adison or
Lincoln to see them take on
Springfield and Tualatin at 7
p.m.
Hit the road for Franklin at
Forest Grove, Jefferson at Eagle
Point. Roosevelt at Ashland and
Wilson at Newberg at 7 p.m.
Away games at 7:30 p.m. are
Grant at Southridge and Benson
at Aloha.
Tickets are available at the
gate for $6, $2 for students.
Portland Timbers
Advance in
Season Playoffs
The Portland Timbers will host the
Atlanta Silverbacks in their home semi­
final playoff match on Sunday at PGE
Park at 5 p.m.
The Tim bers advanced to the sec­
ond round of the playoffs for the first
time since the 2001 season with a 3-1
aggregate-series win over the defend-
ing-champion Vancouver W hitecaps.
1
leased by the team.
Sept. 9 Everett was hurt mak­
ing a tackle during Buffalo's
season-opening game against
Denver. He arrived at Millard
Fillmore Gates Hospital para­
lyzed from his neck down, and
doctors feared he would never
walk again.
By Thursday. Everett slightly
— and voluntarily — moved
three fingers on his right hand,
something he had previously
been unable to do.
Advertise with diversity
Tryout
Call 503-288-0(133
L il i h e t h
C in th ia
D e lt o r o
CurrentAge:3years
P u lid o -D e lto r o
Current Age: 26years
Date Missing: Aug. 29, 2007
Missing From: Phoenix, AZ
Cinthia picked up her children from their babysitter's
home in Phoenix, and was heading back home to Mesa,
Arizona. She contacted fam ily members at approximately
9:30 p.m. saying they would be home soon. Cinthia and
the children have not been heard from since. They were
last known to be traveling in a 2005 blue Chevy Cavalier
with Arizona plate 036-MBZ.
I f you have any information please contact:
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
1 -800-THE-LOST ( 1-800-843-5678)
This public service announcement provided
by the Portland Observer Newspaper.
H i -T e c h A u t o R e p a ir
Coast to C oast Baseball in­
vites players ages 11-18 from
across O regon to show case their
skills at an open tryout in The
Dalles.
T he organization will select
three team s to represent the U.S.
against Puerto Rico, Australia.
Europe and Hawaii.
To register for the Oct. 6evcnt,
c a ll 7 4 0 -3 7 3 -4 4 5 5 o r v isit
co astto co astalth lelics.co m .
1 O 0 1 O N E SANDY B l VD.
P o r t l a n d . O R 9 7 2 2 0
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• LICENSED
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Tim Wilson
503-550-3841
way through the third quarter. White
engineered a 15-play, 85-yard drive, tak­
ing advantage of a key third-down pen­
alty by Sacram ento State early in the
drive.
That set up an exciting finish for the
Vikings as White completed 26 of 37
passes for 363 yards and two touchdowns
w hile Senn led the defense with 11 tackles,
a pass breakup and an interception.
m 'ri,r
Anahi Deltoro
Current Age: 4 months
G R A D U A T E O F UNIVZER SA L T E C H N IC A L
in s t it u t e (P h o e n ix . AZ)
Rally Seals First PSU Win
Portland State (1-2) secured its first
of win the year Saturday against Sacra­
mento State, dropping them to 0-2.
Quarterback Brian White led a fourth-
quarter comeback and linebacker Jor­
dan Senn capped it off with a big defen­
sive play in the final seconds as the
Vikings won their Big Sky Conference
opener 35-24.
With the Vikings trailing 24-14 mid­
Endangered-Missing
D a v id L e
A SE C e r t if ie d T e c h n ic ia n
Bills’ Everett Slowly Improves Baseball
(A P) — F urther positive
signs emerged following a life-
threatening spinal-cord injury
as B uffalo Bills tight end
Kevin Everett dem onstrated
some movement in both hands
and greater strength in his leg
muscles.
“Everett remains medically
stable in the intensive-care unit,
and continues to make daily im­
provement in his neurological
status," BillsdoctorJohn Marzo
said Monday in a statement re- Kevin Everett
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