Forget the car, just feel the warranty. For seven years or 100,000 miles you can drive this Kia Sorento safe in the knowledge that it’s covered.

That’s incredible. It’s partly down to Kia having confidence in its cars and partly due to the company wanting to eliminate remaining vestiges of prejudice.

True enough, early Kias were a little lacking in substance and style but that was nearly 40 years ago. Today’s versions are prettier and have greater substance yet still pack an enormous amount of value for money.

It’s true that Kia tends to occupy the mainstream market with city cars, hatchbacks, saloons and 4x4s, but it also has a very well regarded people-carrier, the Sedona.

It is, unusually, a seven-seater. If you have a big family (or lots of friends) then you will already know how difficult it is to find big-capacity cars.

Sedona is good because not only does it carry lots of people, but it does it with rather more style than a minibus.

And while it is obviously a chunky piece of metal, it does drive rather like a car. Economy is good (32mpg around town and more than 50mpg on a run) and it looks and feels like a much smaller vehicle.

It appeals to people shopping on a budget with practical needs and it appeals to private and business customers in almost equal measure.

At the heart of this car is a 2.2 litre diesel engine. All versions, Sedona 1, 2 and 3, come with the same unit which is powerful and refined. It zips to 60mph in 11.3 seconds and cruises very nicely at motorway speeds.

It’s not perfect. As you might imagine a car this size is a collection of compromises.

It has sliding doors at the back, which are good for car parks but they do give the car a van-like appearance.

They do open and close at the touch of a button, which is good, and they do make for easy wide access.

The options of the Sedona are simple to navigate. Sedona 1 is available only as a manual, while Sedonas 2 and 3 offer six-speed automatic gearboxes.

Sedonas 2 and 3 also come with rear-facing camera and an LCD screen built into the rear-view mirror (neat idea), plus privacy glass. All come with an MP3-compatible six-speaker stereo with USB and AUX ports. The 2 and 3 versions also have an iPod cable and steering wheel-mounted controls.

Kia does not believe in change for change’s sake, so the Sedona features which have served it well over the years remain. It has a 2-3-2 seating system which allows an incredible number of permutations of luggage-passenger ratios.

Within a length of 4.8 metres, Kia has managed to squeeze in a vast amount of space.

With all seven seats in use it has 214 litres of luggage space, which can rise to 3,423 litres in two-seater space. Even as a five-seater in manages to hold 1,485 litres which is double the amount of most big estates.

Every Sedona has six airbags and anti-lock brakes, electronic brakeforce distribution, stability control, traction control and brake assist.

The 2 and 3 versions also have multi-zone air conditioning and a DVD player is a dealer-fit option.

It feels incredibly well put-together and is sensible, yet fun to drive, which is an incredible achievement. What’s more, buy one today and you don’t have to worry too much about repair bills until 2019.

Sedona and co are doing well for Kia. The company sold 5,176 new cars in May which is a 33 per cent increase compared to May, 2011.

The year-to-date sales are up by 24 per cent on the same period in 2011 and market share tops three per cent for month and year to date. Globally, Kia increases sales by 15 per cent year on year.

This continued sales success comes as Kia replaces it all-European Cee’d model – the new car went on UK sale on June 1. And the May record was reached despite the previous version of the five-door hatchback being in run-out mode.

Kia’s global sales for the year were up by almost 12 per cent compared to 2011 thanks to sales increases in all major regions including the Korean market – up by seven per cent, Europe up 28 per cent, China up 21 per cent and North America up nine per cent.

l Kia is getting ready to launch a new version of Sorento in September.

It will have a new chassis, LED lights and new 19in alloy wheels.

It will also have much-improved engine for best-in-class fuel economy with lower emissions, improved ride, handling and refinement, additional convenience and safety features, plus a fresh, new look for the exterior.