2020 Kia Forte GT SedanJil McIntosh VICTORIA, B.C. Theres a snaky stretch of mountain road ahead of me, all quick turns and switchbacks, but my car is keeping up with it. It hugs in tight to the curves, its flat and well-balanced around the corners, and its fun. And its a Kia Forte.Yes, you read that right. After morphing the Forte into its third generation for 2019, Kia now adds a turbocharged GT version, as well as the return of the Forte5 four-door hatchback, last seen in 2018. That one is ours alone: in the hatchback-hostile U.S., where buyers wont look at a liftgate that isnt attached to an SUV, Kia only sells the Forte as a sedan.At this launch, I drove the GT in sedan form, and the Forte5 in the lower-powered version, but a Forte5 GT will be landing in showrooms in a few weeks. The hatchback carried this turbocharged engine before, when it was known as the Forte5 SX. This time around, it gets larger brakes, and a multi-link rear suspension in place of a torsion beam. The Forte shares its underpinnings and driveline with sister company Hyundai’s Elantra, and as luck would have it, I drove that version the week prior. It seems the two automakers are divvying up their offerings, and the Elantra is more about a smooth and comfortable ride. The Forte sharpens with a sportier feel, even in its 2.0-litre version, while the GT adds a sport-tuned suspension on top of that.In both sedan and hatchback, all non-GT trim levels use a 2.0-litre four-cylinder that makes 147 horsepower and 132 lb.-ft. of torque. The base LX sedan can be ordered with a six-speed manual. Everything else mates that engine to an automatic CVT, designed and build in-house, that Kia prefers to call an IVT, for intelligent variable transmission.The sedan comes in six trim levels, starting at $17,695 for the LX, and topping out at $26,995 for the EX Limited. The Forte5 comes only in EX trim and is $22,245. The GT steps up the pace with a turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder that runs on regular-grade gas, and churns out 201 horsepower and 195 lb.-ft. of torque. Its hooked to an automatic seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, and like the 2.0-litre, drives the front wheels. In sedan form, the GT is a single trim level at $28,995. The Forte5 GT starts at $27,395, but can be upgraded to Limited trim for $29,995.In the sedan, the six-speed manual is primarily there in order to advertise a lower price point. Its a different story when horsepower plus a stick equals more driving fun, and while the current Forte GT is automatic-only, a Kia rep said that adding a manual transmission is under consideration.Theres virtually no turbo lag to the 1.6-litre, and the dual-clutch transmission is a good fit, with quick but very smooth shifts that always keep it in the sweet spot. These units can occasionally stumble on downshifts, but I never felt any during my morning drive. The steering has good weight to it, and the car responds quickly to input just what you want when the road gets bendy. The engines growl is actually some electronically-generated noise thats added in, but it still sounds fine. I switched to the 2.0-litre Forte5 in the afternoon. The engines power numbers might not sound all that impressive on paper, but its all about seat-of-the-pants: it feels smooth and with enough grunt to get the job done. Kia held out with conventional transmissions long after many competitors went to CVTs, and it was worth the wait. This gearless unit uses a chain instead of a belt, and its equipped with eight artificial shift points. If you werent told it was a CVT, you probably wouldnt realize it, because it feels more like something with conventional gears. The big deal is fuel economy: while the previous 2.0-litre with six-speed automatic rated 8.3 L/100 km in city/highway driving, the new Forte manages 7.1 L/100 km.While interior styling is the same on all models, the GT sedan spiffs up with very comfortable sport seats, clad in fake cowhide with contrasting stitching; flat-bottomed heated steering wheel; and paddle shifters for sequentially rowing through the CVTs shift points. Features borrowed from some of the other trim lines include premium stereo, navigation, wireless charging, heated rear seats, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, blind spot monitoring, and lane-keep assist.Im always a fan of simple controls distraction should be minimal when driving and Kia delivers on that. There are buttons and dials for the climate control, and hard buttons to access menus in the intuitive centre touchscreen.If theres any real issue to the Fortes success, its that its a very good car in a segment that contains a lot of very good cars. It does just about everything right, but without an extra shot of spectacular to knock it to the top of the pack. For many buyers, itll be all about value: the Forte5 EX packs in more features than most competitors for less money. The fact that its fun to drive is one more cherry on
Origin: First Drive: 2020 Kia Forte5 and Forte GT