I've had a fair sized adult (my dad) in the 3rd row for about a 20 minute ride.

I would say the 3rd row seating is for "emergencies" and not for everyday life. When the 3rd row is up, you have no trunk space so you would either have to tow a trailer or put a roof rack up for storage on longer trips.

Depends how important a 3rd row is to the buyer. For me, it's a nice convenience but not a very important feature of the vehicle.

 

Decided I may have to keep my 07 a bit longer. In any case regarding exterior being nicer in Outlander, I would have to agree, but personally I think interior feel is more important now because that's where I spend most of the time.

 

I don't think the Outlander interior is horrible. In 2006 I would have said it's top of the class. However, comparing it with the 2011 Kia, it definitely loses out. It certainly does beat the ugly Fisher Price RAV4/CR-V interior IMO.

 

Test drove both cars. It's a tough decision. Kia offers a more luxury feel, while Outlander GT is going for sporty. I loved the extra power Sorento v6 had, but it felt like I was driving a coffin. Oulander on the other hand felt like a sports car with underpowered engine. I find it a bit silly that people would trade in 07 xls for 10 GT as sales guy mentioned . The "upgrades" are not worth it for me personally.

 

Never driven the KIA, but I have driven several boring SUVs such as GM's Acadia and Honda's CR-V. Driving the GT is like driving a sporty sedan. I don't think I would live with myself if I traded in my 2 seater sports car for a very mundane straight line performer. Yea, the GT's V6 is kind of lacking power, but take it through the windy back roads and you begin to understand why Mitsubishi named this car Outlander. This thing is made to take you and your family on an adventure whether it be through snow, windy roads, gravely roads, ice, sand, mud, ...

Buy the GT.

 

Well... I owned 07 XLS for 3 years almost, so GT is not much different in terms of performance. Needs more power to be a worthy upgrade.

 

Doh. After I had read your original post, I have to agree with you. There is not much reason to go for the 2010 other than the new front and s-awc.

 

I did test drive a 2011 Kia Sorento in the auto show in Kansas City yesterday. It is great! Size, horsepower, comfort... the transmission goes smoother than the one on my Outie, but the engine wasn't sporty enough, I didn't have the joy driving that car while comparing to test driving the Outie. The acceleration wasn't that good while comparing to the Outie. Also I personally do not like a car putting the parking brake as a foot brake. I am a driver who always put the car to neutral, pull the hand brake when my car is stopped at the traffic light/when I park my car.

 

Other alternative I will be looking forward is 2011 Kia Sportage. It will be more comparable to Outlander

 

I was about to write something to that effect, the Outlander is not in the same category as the Sorento. The Sorento would probably comepare more to the Endeavor and the Outlander to the Sportage. IMHO