Sulu

I don't know about the Niro, but my ESh offers a manual regeneration-braking feature: If I manually downshift (6-simulated gears), the car offers increasingly strong electric motor braking, and it will not turn on the engine if it is off. The manual regeneration-braking can be very strong; when I tap the shift lever left into the manual mode, it defaults at 4th-gear so if I am going downhill and want to downshift, there is sudden and strong braking.

Mike: All cars with an automatic stop/start system, including full and mild hybrids (that I am aware of) come with a stronger starter. IMO, it would be irresponsible for an automaker to offer a usual (weak) starter on vehicles that offer auto stop/start systems. Hybrid vehicles may use the electric driving motor/generator as the starter motor (Toyota hybrids use one of the motor/generators as the starter).

mmarshall

Yes, I know that some hybrids come with beefed-up starters (and that some use the electric motor itself to start the gas engine). In this age of cost-cutting, though, my point is that you never know what automakers are going to skimp on. Hyundai and Kia seem to be as good or better at providing quality parts than many others, at least where it shows....but you can't always check everything under the skin. The 10/100 drivetrain warranty, of course (and to to mention the fact that some hybrid parts are covered 8-10 years by Federal law anyway) is a strong incentive for the company to use high-quality parts....but exactly what parts are covered, and for how long, is sometimes unclear. With a Hyundai or Kia product, it could (?) mean the difference between 5/60 and 10/100 years...a long time.