What’s this new car all about then?
The latest incarnation of the current generation Kia Sportage has added something that nicely fills a big Toyota RAV4-sized hole in the mid-size SUV’s otherwise solid line up - an AWD hybrid option.
While the Sportage has otherwise lined up nicely alongside the Toyota‘s specs, that lack of a hybrid with all-paw capability has been something of a glaring weak spot in the Korean SUV’s battle with the segment-dominating Japanese offering.
But the latest incarnation has fixed all that, with the Sportage now offering the hybrid/AWD combo across three of its four model local line up, along with a few updates and tweaks to keep it nicely up to date.
Regardless of model, the Sportage is powered by a 132kW/265Nm 1.6-litre turbo petrol four-cylinder engine, but only the entry FWD LX model uses this powerplant alone, with all other models adding a 1.49kWh lithium-ion battery and an electric motor that adds a further 48kW to proceedings for a total combined output of 173kW and 367Nm.
How much is it?
The Sportage comes to NZ in four model trims with straight ICE and hybrid offerings, but no diesel in the line up.
The range starts with FWD petrol-only LX at $43,990 before the hybrid models kick off with the HEV Light in either FWD at $49,990 or AWD at $54,990. The HEV Earth models are next, with the FWD costing $54,990 and the AWD $59,990, and finally the HEV X-Line models start with the $59,990 FWD model and topping the range with the $64,990 AWD model.
What’s it like to drive?
The Sportage remains one of the class leaders in terms of ride, handling and general on-road manners, taking it right to the RAV4 and then beyond that, as the Kia’s six-speed automatic transmission pushes it ahead of the RAV4’s CVT in terms of refinement and general driveability.
The hybrid system isn’t quite as brutally thrifty as the Toyota’s however, but it is still frugal enough to see our time in the AWD hybrid return a decent 6.4l/100km, compared to Kia’s 5.9l/100km claim and Toyota's claim of 5.3l/100km for the RAV4.
The Sportage remains one of the class leaders in terms of ride, handling and general on-road manners.
But the punch it adds down low is well worth a slight fuel cost trade off, as it makes the Sportage a effortless delight to drive around town, with the electric motor handling a surprising amount of low down travel before the ICE needs to kick in.
When it does, the transition is impressively smooth and utterly seamless, something that CVT hybrids generally find easier to do than traditional automatic and dual clutch transmissions.
What’s the pick of the range?
While I only drove the HEV Light AWD, I am confident in saying that any hybrid model would easily be the pick of the line up, regardless of specification.
That said, while the Light AWD was well-equipped for its $54,990 asking price, it was missing a few things that would be nice to have at that price point - wireless device charging (which is almost compulsory if you have wireless phone projection), being an obvious candidate.
However, the $5K jump to the HEV Earth AWD model gets you the aforementioned wireless charging, as well as more USB ports, ambient interior mood lighting, a power tailgate, rear privacy glass, composite leather seat trim, heated seats and steering wheel, powered seat adjustment, and bigger alloy wheels (18-inches versus the Air's 17-inches).
Somewhere in that Light AWD to Earth AWD spread is the sweet spot though, depending on your priorities.
Or you could forget AWD and just get the FWD Earth for the same price as the AWD Air. Which probably makes the FWD Earth the most solid value-for-money pick in the range, although the surety of AWD is still probably a better bet than extra trinkets. Though wireless charging and a heated steering wheel are hard to pass up... Somewhere in that Light AWD to Earth AWD spread is the sweet spot though, depending on your priorities.
What other cars should I consider?
While there is certainly no shortage of mid-size SUVs on the market, the Sportage's most obvious competitor is the Toyota RAV4 which, even though there is a new one due soon, is still a strong contender in this ultra-competitive segment. It is also spectacularly frugal (easily beating Toyota's claim, even without trying, in our experience), albeit not as engaging to drive as the Sportage.
Other options include the Ford Escape, which is actually more engaging to drive than the Kia and also offers a plug-in hybrid option, if ultimate frugality is your main requirement from your mid-size SUV. It is considerably more expensive, however.
Then there is the Kia’s almost-in-house competition in the form of its cousin, the Hyundai Tucson Series II. The Tucson is, however, more slightly more expensive than the Kia, with the entry Active FWD model kicking things off at $45,990 and the range-topping N-Line Limited AWD closes out the line up at a rather hefty $71,990.
