 What is up you guys? Welcome back to another one. If you are new to the channel, I am Goldpony. I do new car truck SUV reviews on YouTube and today we are in the new 2021 Kia K5 courtesy of Kia. They have dropped it off at my house for a week. I've now had it for about a week. So I'm going to be able to give you a full in-depth review of this thing at this point. So wanted to check out the K5 because this of course is an all new model from Kia replacing the former Kia Optima. Styling is 100% on point in my personal opinion. One of the best things about this one though is it does come available with all-wheel drive. You don't always see that on sedan. So I did want to emphasize that as well. That's pretty darn cool. Also comes with America's best warranty being five-year 60,000 mile bumper to bumper, 10-year 100,000 mile powertrain warranty. And so all in all, this is going to be a very in-depth review. We're going to be going over driving dynamics, exterior, interior, nighttime visibility. I'll give some shots of this one at night as well for you guys. So having said all that, what do you say? Let's just go ahead and jump right into it. And as always, let's start with pricing. And so of course, there will be several different trim levels for the 2021 Kia K5. First one being the LX starting at $23,490, LXS for $24,490, GT line, which actually is the one we have today, starting at $25,390, then there is the EX for $27,990, and lastly the GT for $30,490. And by the way, that one's not quite out yet at the time of this video at least. That one is set to come out in December of 2020. So very, very shortly essentially at the time of this video I should say, but that was of course all pricing for the front wheel drive configuration. There are two trim levels that come available with all wheel drive being the LXS and GT line. If you wanted either of those LXS, you are going to add $2,100 to that price. And the GT line, you're going to add $3,700 to that price then. But to go along with all of those trim levels for the K5, there are actually two different engine configurations that will come with this one. First one being a 1.6 liter turbocharged inline four cylinder, putting out 180 horsepower at 5,500 rpm, 195 pound-feet of torque available from the power band of 1,500 to 4,500 rpm, again sent to front wheels for all wheels through an eight-speed automatic. Zero to 60 time for that one comes in at approximately 7.5 seconds. With MPG numbers coming in at 29 in the city, 38 on the highway for the front wheel drive configuration, 26 on the city, 34 on the highway for the all wheel drive configuration. Either way, taking regular unledded fuel so this could save you a little bit of money there. By the way, that is the engine configuration that we do actually have here today. But then the other engine configuration belonging specifically to that GT trim that is going to be a 2.5 liter turbocharged inline four cylinder putting out 290 horsepower at 5,800 rpm, 311 pound-feet of torque available from the power band of 1,600 to 4,000 rpm, power sent to front wheels only through an eight-speed dual clutch with paddle shifter. So a little bit of a difference there when it comes to transmissions as well. Zero to 60 time for that engine configuration comes in at 5.8 seconds. That is pretty darn cool. Top speed, 145 miles per hour, and MPG numbers coming in at 24 in the city, 32 on the highway. But so then before we do any kind of acceleration test here in our new K5, do want to mention to you guys there are some drive modes. There's actually a drive mode dial located directly behind the shifter. Those drive modes will include Eco, Sport, Sport Plus, and Comfort, adjusting things like the shift points, the throttle response, and actually the steering sensitivity as well. And so now having mentioned all that, what do you guys say? I'm just going to turn that little dial to the right. And by the way, there is a custom driving mode. I almost forgot to mention that as well. If you didn't want all of the characteristics of Sport, let's say, with the increased throttle response and all that, you can actually set that custom driving mode to maybe include a heavier steering sensitivity, but not as much of the throttle response increase as with the Sport mode basically. But having said all of that, what do you guys say? Let's go ahead and find a straight away here. And let's do a quick little acceleration test here in our K5. And let's see how quickly this one is going to get us up to speed. All right, we've got a little bit of wet roads here you guys, but rolling start. A little bit of spinning. Dang, Revan high. There it is. There it is, man. Once you get grip, I will say there is plenty of acceleration. No issues emerging onto the highway, but having said that, it did just get done raining. So it is a little bit slippery here today, but plenty of an acceleration. Trust me on that one. It's essentially the same acceleration that I've tested in the Hyundai Sonata, as I actually mentioned there. So it really is a plenty of acceleration for anything really that you're looking for. So no issues there for me, but to go along with that acceleration, as always, braking is equally important. And so what did I mention? The brake configuration is going to differ slightly amongst the trim levels. For example, if you were to go with the 1.6 liter engine setup, you're going to get 12 inch ventilated front discs, 11.2 inch solid rear discs. However, if you jump up to that GT trim level with the upgraded engine, you then get 13.6 inch ventilated front disc, 12.8 inch solid rear disc. All in all, when it comes to that 60 to 0 stopping distance, it actually comes in at 131 feet, which on paper really doesn't sound all that great. But I will say, oddly enough, in testing this thing out for a week or so, it definitely doesn't feel that bad. It really bites quite good. And certainly no issues with brake pedal delay or anything like that. So no issues with the braking feel whatsoever is what I'm trying to get out there. So braking feels just fine for me. Then touching on suspension and handling up front, you're going to get a McPherson strut front suspension in the back independent multi link rear suspension, front and rear stabilizer bars. Did want to also mention that GT trim level with upgraded engine, that is going to add to that a sport tune suspension with better handling. So if you want a little better handling around the back roads, that's how you're going to get there. But all in all, as far as steering sensitivity goes, I would say definitely very nice when you have it in that sport driving mode, or again, you could put it in the custom driving mode and increase the steering sensitivity that way. But much heavier feel to the steering in that sport driving mode, I will say that, without it in that sport driving mode, it is kind of on the looser side, I will say that. If you wanted that better steering feel, I would say put it in sport or custom driving mode, it's going to give you a better feeling of being in control of the K5, better helps point you in the direction that you want to go really. But without it, it's kind of loosey-goosey. But when it comes to ride quality, that has been perfectly fine, not the smoothest I've ever felt in a sedan, but certainly not the worst either. So I've personally had no issues when it comes to ride quality. Cabin noises, pretty much as expected. You get a slight bit of wind noise at higher speeds at least, but at lower speeds, definitely no issues there either. Then touching on visibility, I could see perfectly fine out the back, and I love that those second row headrests are pushed down quite substantially. So sometimes the headrests protrude up a good bit and it kind of hinders visibility a little bit, but not in the K5. So certainly no issues with visibility there as well. But that about rounds out the performance segment of this review, guys. We'll now go ahead and take a look at the exterior of this beautiful 2021 Kia K5. All right, so here she is, you guys, the new 2021 Kia K5. Let me start by giving you the night shots here. Up front, you're going to find multi-reflector LED headlights that do come standard across the board. That's always nice. Little better illumination at night, like you guys are seeing right now, of course. Also, automatic feature does come standard, meaning when it starts to get dark at night, those headlights will turn automatically for you there. LED daytime running lights also coming standard. And actually, just below those headlights, LED fog lights coming with the GT line trim level and up. So you guys do see those as well. That was definitely pretty cool to see there. Love the headlight design specifically, the LED daytime running light portion of those headlights, because I love how they are illuminated in that orangeish amber looking color, just like the Kia Telluride on the upper trim level. Definitely love that look. It just stands out and pretty much demands your attention. It's such a cool look. Anyways, that's just my personal opinion. Also at night here, LED integrated turd signals come standard with GT line trim level and up. LED tail lights, again, with that GT line trim level and up. So a little better illumination at night. That's always a good thing. Very nice design to the tail lights too. It's not a solid LED light bar, like you see in a lot of other manufacturers. It's kind of broken up, but it's unique and different than every other car that you see on the road. So for that reason, I absolutely love it and overall just plenty of illumination for night driving. So within my week of driving this thing, waking up early in the morning to get to my day job, definitely no issues with visibility whatsoever. I could see perfectly fine driving at night and everybody else could see me perfectly fine thanks to LEDs all the way around essentially. So you got to love that. It's a little added safety feature, quite honestly as well. But now let's go back to the daytime here. All right. So now welcome back to daylight as I am walking up to this 2021 K5. Amazingly aggressive looking front end. It looks like nothing else on the road. Some European look to it, if you ask me. And I absolutely love it. It looks definitely quite nice up there. Let's go ahead and start with the front grille on the K5. Front grille is actually going to differ amongst the trim levels that you go with. You will find that Hyper Silver Catnose Cascading style front grille for the LX, S and EX trim levels. However, you will get a GT specific front grille if you were to go with the GT line that you're looking at right now or the standard GT. So this is essentially how that is going to look like. And again, it looks like nothing else on the road is definitely a very unique style front grille that continues out underneath those front headlights as well. So you got to love that. I do at least. And front face is actually going to follow that same theme when it comes to differentiating amongst the trim levels. It's going to be slightly different for the GT line and GT comparatively speaking to those other trims. So do want to mention that as well. But since I've already covered the headlights, let's go ahead now and make our way to the side of the K5 here. So forgive me, you guys, I have jumped in the woods to get a better view of the side of the K5 here. First thing I want to mention is the upper chrome window trim that flows into the back portion, flows into the trunk, I should say. It's a kind of continuation of that chrome trim all the way around the trunk and back around to the other side. It's definitely a unique design. I'm not sure I've ever seen anything like that before in any other vehicles out there. But then again, that's kind of what Kia is known for. They're known to do it different. So it may be a somewhat polarizing design, but in the end, I love different. And I kind of don't mind that look. It actually is starting to grow on me since I first picked this one up. Illuminated door handles are going to come on the LXS trim leveling up. So essentially when you walk up to the K5 at night, they will illuminate onto the ground. So less likely to step in a puddle, I guess you could say. When it comes to those side mirrors, they are body color, power adjustable side mirrors. They will compete it as well for every single trim level across the board with LED integrated turd signals for the GT line trim level and up. Then take a look down at the wheel setup, 16 inch alloys coming with the LX and LSS trims, 18 inch alloys for the EX and GT line. And lastly, 19 inch alloys. If you were to go with that GT trim level then, and I do like the two tone finish to the wheels that we have here today on our GT line being the gloss black and aluminum look to it. So definitely looks quite nice on this one. But now let's go ahead and make our way to the back of the K5. So now making our way to the back first thing I want to mention to you guys is that black rear lip spoiler coming with the GT line and the GT trims. That is the only two ways you're going to get that. It kind of ties together well with the gloss black sharkmen antennae. You guys probably see that up top as well. Like I mentioned to you guys before, rear LED tail lights, definitely a super nice design to them unlike anything else on the road right now. Gotta love that broken up light bar. Also you got some GT line badging back there, K5 badging of course. And just below it all, a rear diffuser which I absolutely love on this one. However, one thing I am not a huge fan of are the fake exhaust outlets. You guys could probably see that chrome trim look around the bottom corners there. Those are not exhaust outlets. The exhaust is actually hidden up underneath the passenger side. So it is tucked away where you cannot see it. Having said that though, you guys do know what we have to do next. As always, here is that exhaust clip. All right. So now since we are around back of the Kia K5, when it comes to opening that rear trunk, there are a few different ways to go ahead and do that. There is a button on the key fob itself. There is also a button by the driver's side left knee. And there is of course a button on the trunk itself as well. And by the way, that button is kind of incorporated pretty nicely. I almost can't even tell that it's there, but it's going to be located just to the right of that rear view camera. You could probably see that though. But once opened up cargo capacity comes in at 16 cubic feet even. If that was not enough space, there is a 6040 split. If you were to go with the LXS trim level and up actually, that's how you're going to get that. But meaning simply fold the rear seats down by pulling the two levers in the trunk itself. Once you do that, there is a ton more cargo space back there if you needed it at least. Also wanted to mention that when the cargo area, if you lift up underneath the cargo floor, you will find a spare tire back there as opposed to a tire inflator kit. So want to mention that too. And even within that, there's a decent amount of space so you could probably put a tire inflator kit within there as well if you wanted to. But anyways, wanted to mention that because sometimes people ask, but making our way now to the rear legroom that is going to come in at 35.2 inches. So for reference, I mean even six feet tall. This is how much space I had in the back there. Also two rear USB charging ports are going to come with the GT line trim level and up. That is what you guys are looking at right now. Rear ventilation coming with the EX and GT trims, meaning we don't have it today. So do want to mention that as well. Rear center armrest with cup holders coming with the LXS trim level and up. And of course, you will find front seat back map pockets for every single trim level across the board. That's always nice. But so then making our way to the front seats, manually adjustable cloth seating coming with the LX and LSS trims, syntax upholstery or a leatherette seating really coming with the GT line EX and GT trims, 10 way power adjustable driver seat with two way power lumbar coming with the GT line trim level and up heated and ventilated front seats coming with the EX and GT trims, heated front seats only with the GT trim. And you can actually get ventilated front seats with that GT trim. I did want to mention that because that is of course the most expensive trim. So it wouldn't make sense that it was at least available as an option there for you. And it is. So another thing I wanted to mention though, the GT line badging found in the upper portions of those seats. I found that pretty cool. And overall extremely comfortable seats. It actually surprised me. I would even say more comfortable than the Hyundai Sonata, but definitely very comfortable seats. I can easily see myself going on a long road trip in the K5. So well done Kia for creating some comfortable seats there. But then taking a look up front at the steering wheel. It is tilt and telescoping and will come with a flat bottom. If you were to go with the GT line trim level, that of course is what you're looking at again right now. Leather wrap steering wheel with the GT line trim level and up and heated steering wheel is going to be optional for the GT line trim level and up but does not come standard on any particular trim level. So I do want to mention that to you guys as well. But now let's go ahead and make our way to the startup here. Let me of course first start by showing you guys the key. It is a typical Kia key, which I actually like. They have some of the coolest looking keys, but you do have your Kia logo on the one side. Nothing on the other side. Essentially all of your buttons are going to be located on the side of the key with the exception of one. And I'll show you guys that in a second here. But you do have lock unlock, that button to pop the rear hatch and the panic button. Of course the lock button is going to be located on the top and that is going to be for your thumb. But then on the side of the key above the Kia logo, that is actually going to be your remote start, which is going to be available on the K5. So gotta love that as well. But essentially it is all keyless entry with the push button start. If you were to go with the LXS trim level and up. So therefore all I am going to do here is simply put my foot on the brake and press that engine start button located just to the left of the climate vents there. And so, but then once started up, you will be greeted by a nice K5 digital display front and center. Tachometer is all the way to your left speedometer, all the way to your right. And to control what is on that center display, there are steering wheel mounted controls on the right side of the steering wheel, giving you a bunch of different information you can scroll through, including a digital speedometer. That is pretty cool. Tire pressure information, how many miles you have left until you hit empty. Fuel economy and any given time, it is always nice when you need your next oil change, some safety information. The list really goes on outside temperature as well. So ton of different information, pretty much everything you could possibly want. I will say one of the things I would have liked to have seen though with the K5 is a digital gauge cluster. So we don't have that today. I know in the comparable Sonata SEL Plus, they do have that. So would have liked to have seen it on the GT line that we have today. So they just want to point that out. Anyways, make your own way now to overall interior quality. A panoramic sunroof is going to come with the EX and GT trim levels. It is going to be optional for the GT line. Love that we have it here today. It really does extend all the way into the back. It lets in a lot more light for videos like this on super dark days like we have here today in Pennsylvania. But anyways, wireless phone charger coming with the EX and GT trims. Again, optional on the GT line. Kind of interesting the way this wireless phone charger works. You guys, let me show you. You actually place it down in here. It almost looks like there's not a whole lot of room, but you place it down vertically. And then there's this little slot that opens up when you push your phone down in there. And that is essentially how you're going to charge it wirelessly. And then the little icon on the top portion of it is going to light up in orange if it is actually charging. So that is a pretty interesting and different way of doing it. And I don't mind it. One of the little quirks of the K five, I guess you could say, then dual zoom climate control is actually going to come standard on every single trim level of the K five. Gotta love that LED interior lighting with the EX and GT trims optional on the GT line. And we do have it here today. Wasn't able to find any homeland controls. I was kind of looking for that as well, but was not able to find it. Then just in front of the shifter, you have a 12 volt power outlet to USB charging ports, just to the right of the shifter. You have two cup holders, of course, lecture mechanical parking brake located just behind the shifter and just behind it, all behind that wireless phone charger, I should say, there is a decent amount of storage within that center armrest as well. But overall, when it comes to interior quality of this one are some hard textures on the doors, I will say that I do like the silver lining that goes throughout the doors onto the passenger side or just above the passenger side glove box and continues into the air vents here. And speaking of the air vents, I love the little ridges on the bottom portion of those air vents. You don't see it like that that often and it's different. And for that reason, I kind of like it. So I do like that as well. But overall, it's finished pretty much as I would expect the K five to be finished. Also like how everything is tilted slightly towards the driver, it makes it more of a driver centric car. And I'm definitely a fan of that and that being the climate control information infotainment screen, all that stuff. So I do like that. But speaking of, let's go ahead now and take a look at that infotainment screen. Eight inch color touchscreen display is going to come standard on every single trim level. But there is an optional 10 and a quarter inch color touchscreen display that's going to be optional on the GT line trim level and up. So not standard on any particular trim, but it's there for you. If you wanted it, Bluetooth and audio streaming coming standard either way, also Android Auto Apple CarPlay will actually get wireless Android Auto Apple CarPlay only for that 10 and a quarter inch screen. That's always pretty convenient. You don't have to deal with the wires now, which is pretty cool. Factory navigation system again, coming with just the 10 and a quarter inch screen. Honestly, you really don't need it these days anyways, as long as you have a smartphone because you're going to get that splayed up on that infotainment screen anyways, all you got to do is just connect it via USB cable. And you can also like and dislike your Pandora songs up there. And there's a couple other compatible apps as well. So Android Auto Apple CarPlay is definitely nice for that. You can also check out your radio information, of course, up there as well. And by the way, when it comes to the sound system in the K5, you will find six speakers across the board. Every single trim level is going to give you a six speaker sound system. But there is an optional 12 speaker Bose sound system that is going to be available, but we don't have that option today, unfortunately. So what do you guys say? Let's go ahead and turn on the radio, see what we got playing today. And let's test out the six speaker sound system we have here in our K5. All right, couple things with that sound system. Bass was more than expected. I loved the bass, actually, at least when it comes to a six speaker sound system. But clarity could have been a little better. I will say that. But then again, six speakers, you can't expect too much there. But bass definitely took me by surprise, a little bit more than I expected there. So that was nice. But last thing I want to mention to you guys on that tech display at least is when you do put the K5 in reverse, you will find a rear view camera coming standard across the board. Every single trim level is going to get that. It is a relatively high definition camera as well. Not all of them look as good as this one does right now. So I did want to mention that as well. But it's always that is going to lead us into safety. And so first thing I wanted to mention to you guys, it's kind of hard to say this, but the 2020 Kia Optima was an IIHS top safety pick plus, which is the very highest designation. This isn't the Optima, obviously. But typically cars only get better throughout the year. So I would imagine the K5 would have that exact same rating when IIHS finally gets around to testing it. So I did want to say that. By the way, the brother or sister of this car, being the Hyundai Sonata is an IIHS top safety pick. So I wanted to mention that as well. But anyways, front side side Cournere bags do come standard drivers near back up front as well. In the back, you're going to have latch aka lower anchors, tethers for children for the rear car seats, rear child door locks back there as well. Tire pressure monitoring system, it's all pretty basic and boring stuff at this point. But it gets better. Also when it comes to the advanced safety features that do indeed come standard for every single trim level across the board, they will include four collision avoidance assist with pedestrian detection, driver attention warning system, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, lane following assist, high beam assist and rear occupant alert as well. And then if you were to go with the LXS trim level and up, you will also get a blind spot monitor with rear cross traffic alert. It's going to let you know if somebody is in your blind spot, you know, turning into anybody that's always a big plus as well and safe exit assist. It's also going to be added with those trims. Then if you were to go with the EX or GT trims, you're going to get rear parking sensors and adaptive cruise control is going to be optional for the GT trim level and up. But we actually do have that option and I did play around with that is pretty freaking cool. The way that works is there's some steering wheel mounted controls on the right side of the steering wheel. When you set that essentially breaks for you, it hits the gas for you when it steers for you, at least on the highway. So don't try it on any back roads, but it is a pretty cool feature. Get to relax a little bit. It's one step above your standard cruise control essentially. So it was quite nice. Overall, when it comes to my final thoughts here of the new 2021 K5, love the all wheel drive availability on this one. That's really one of the main benefits in my opinion to getting the K5, let's say over the Hyundai Sonata. Also, you got America's best warranty on the K5, being that five years, 60,000 mile bumper to bumper 10 years on the power train. That is a very long time for a company to warranty things like the engine, like the transmission, things like that. So we got to love that for peace of mind. Great styling on this one, especially the front end looks absolutely amazing. So aggressive. Even the tail lights, I love that as well. So very good styling Kia, well done there. Really wish I could have been looking at a digital gauge cluster right now. Maybe that's a little bit of room for improvement there. So a lot of manufacturers are going that way, including Hyundai and I know actually Kia has done some as well. So I would have loved to have seen that rather than the typical analog gauges that I'm looking at. But overall, an insanely solid pick here with the K5. If you are looking for very aggressive styling and available all wheel drive as well, that's really a big one here in Pennsylvania because it is going to snow eventually here. This really is a super solid pick, especially when you take into consideration the fact that it's an extremely safe vehicle if you have kids in the back and also the warranty itself that comes with this one. Overall, let me know what you guys think of the K5 here in the comments section below. That is about it for this one, you guys. Thank you so much for watching. Thank you Kia for lending me this for a week. I do appreciate it. Do appreciate it. All you guys, feel free to follow me on social media at the bottom of the screen there. If you want to see what's coming next on the channel, be sure to hit the subscribe and the bell notification button. If you're in a new car reviews, that is what we do here after all. Do appreciate you guys watching more than you know and I will see you guys all in the next video. Stay Gold.