UK Drive: Can Kia improve its ever-popular Sportage?

What is it?

The Sportage has become the jewel in Kia’s crown after selling nearly 400,000 units in the UK over the last 32 years.

It’s also one of Britain’s best-selling cars and for good reason. Its practical interior, decent equipment levels, impressive quality and seven-year warranty has led many families into this great all-round SUV.

So, it’s impossible for Kia to improve it, right? Well, the Korean firm has made a few updates to ensure the Sportage retains its ‘best-selling’ status. Has this midlife facelift caused the car’s bubble to finally burst? Let’s find out.

What’s new?

The refreshed Sportage range now benefits from Kia’s ‘Opposites United’ design language with vertical front headlights and ‘Star Map’ LED daytime running lights. There is a larger front grille, new alloy wheel designs and some fresh paint colours.

At the back, the car boasts a redesigned bumper and taillights, a new skid plate and black trim around the window frames.

There is a choice of three trim levels, while Kia has ditched the plug-in hybrid powertrain, with only petrol and regular hybrid engines now available.

What’s under the bonnet?

Under the bonnet, the Sportage can be equipped with a petrol engine or as a hybrid, like the car we’re driving.

It features a 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine mated to an electric motor to produce 235bhp and 265Nm of torque. In terms of acceleration, the car can get from 0-60mph in 7.5 seconds and it will go onto a top speed of 121mph.

Kia claims the car can achieve a combined fuel consumption figure of 50.4mpg and that the emissions are 128g/km of CO2.

If you go for the standard petrol model, it comes equipped with a six-speed manual gearbox, while all hybrid versions come as standard with an automatic transmission.

What’s it like to drive?

You can see why so many people love the Sportage here in the UK, because it drives very well.

The hybrid setup is smooth and does a great job of switching between petrol and electric power when it needs to, while at higher speeds the cabin is well-insulated from tyre and road noise, with only a little bit of wind whistle creeping in from around the window area.

When it comes to handling, the Sportage feels more like a normal car, with a great turn-in, nicely weighted steering and limited body lean.

The only drawbacks are that the car’s ride is unsettled over larger potholes and the engine tone is rather rough at higher revs.

We also took the standard six-speed manual petrol version for a spin and found the gearbox to be slick and precise, while this setup is just as relaxing to cruise around in with a refined cabin and impressive driving credentials. However, the standard 1.6-litre engine needs to work hard on a twisty road, with you finding yourself stirring through the gears a lot more often.

How does it look?

The Sportage is a rather handsome-looking SUV, and this latest update gives it that distinctive Kia design, which is shared with the firm’s electric models such as the EV3, EV6 and EV9.

Our GT-Line car comes with larger alloy wheels, body-coloured wheel arch extensions and gloss black trim.

The low bonnet and ‘Tiger Nose’ radiator grille give it a more purposeful look, while the side profile’s kick-up rear window, gloss black roof bars and deep body line make the Sportage just that little bit more interesting to look at.

At the back, the extended lower gloss black trim and curved rear spoiler add a sportier touch on the GT-Line model, while the ‘Star Map’ lighting design continues into the taillights.

What’s it like inside?

The Sportage’s interior has been updated too, with a new two-spoke steering wheel that is borrowed from the firm’s EVs; there are dual 12.3-inch screens, and our test car comes fitted with a 4.2-inch digital driver’s display.

The centre console is now finished off in a brushed aluminium-effect material and the buttons that control the different driving modes have moved from the centre console to the steering wheel.

In terms of storage, there are loads of cubby holes, including large door bins, a decent-sized glovebox, an under-armrest storage compartment and automatic variants get an added compartment located in front of the gear selector.

In the back, the rear doors open wide, while there is plenty of head, leg, foot and knee room for average-sized adults, plus the rear seatbacks can recline, allowing passengers to really stretch out.

The boot space is impressive too, with the Sportage petrol swallowing 591 litres or 587 litres in the hybrid model. The rear seats fold completely flat, which bumps the overall size to 1,780 litres and 1,776 litres, respectively.

That’s more than the 521 litres of room that is on offer in a Skoda Karoq, but less than the 652-litre capacity found in the Volkswagen Tiguan.

What’s the spec like?

No matter which Sportage you go for, it’s going to come with plenty of bells and whistles alongside Kia’s seven-year or 100,000-mile warranty.

The entry-level ‘Pure’ features LED headlights, a 12.3-inch infotainment screen and climate-controlled air conditioning. Our ‘GT-Line’ car boasts heated front seats and steering wheel, aluminium pedals, GT-Line exterior and interior styling and gloss black roof rails. Meanwhile, top-of-the-line ‘GT-Line S’ cars come with an eight-speaker premium Harmon Kardon sound system, a powered tailgate, ventilated front seats and heated outer rear seats.

When it comes to price, the Pure model comes in at £30,885, which undercuts the competition, such as the Skoda Karoq, which starts at £30,940.

Our GT-Line car starts from £33,385, and comes fully-loaded with kit; however, the top-of-the-range GT-Line S model starts to get rather pricey at £40,285, which is £2,100 more than a range-topping Hyundai Tucson.

Verdict

It’s easy to see why Britain loves the Kia Sportage, as it’s a difficult car to fault. Thankfully, everything that people loved about the older car remains present in this updated version.

It looks good, it’s smooth and easy to drive, has lots of  practical touches, is efficient and comes with a seven-year or 100,000-mile warranty.

This new and improved model only adds to the appeal and because of that, we think the Sportage is still the go-to choice for those looking for a practical and easy to live with family SUV.