2018 KIA Sportage Review

 

With a feature-rich line-up, let's break down the updated KIA Sportage.

 

Worthy cars and lengthy warranties, but there really wasn’t that much to shout about. Then, KIA dropped a reimagined model for its third generation family Sportage SUV back in 2010 and everything changed. 

It was a mildly successful model prior to its third-gen revision, but thereafter the Sportage helped KIA double its sales over the next six years that followed and they hit 2 million sales. 

Now, its fourth-generation model, having debuted in 2015, has become the most successful model already hitting sales of 1 million units within two years. The fourth-gen model has received a facelift in November 2018 that improved on driving dynamics and give it a stronger visual appeal than its predecessor to take on the sales battle against the likes of the Toyota RAV4, Volkswagen Tiguan, Hyundai Tucson and the Mazda CX-5.

 

Styling

The current Sportage is a very stylish SUV. Our test derivative was the top of the range 2.0 CRDI EX Plus model and was filled with all the bells and whistles imaginable that included a panoramic glass roof. Ah, I just love those, but you appreciate it more when sitting as a passenger as opposed to being a driver. I’m a major sky-lover, I could seriously lose time just staring at clouds or the stars, or well, even just thinking of staring at the clouds or stars... Focus Farzana! Back to the Sportage… It’s a well-built vehicle and the quality is excellent.

You can get a breakdown of all the specific and recent design changes made to this facelifted model here, read New vs old KIA Sportage: what are the top 3 differences?

 

The Drive

The Sportage has a good driving position and good vision all around the vehicle can be had from the driver’s seat which includes blind spots. It’s powerful on the road and provided enough oomph to keep up with me and what I require on my daily routes. I will admit it’s slow at take-off and needs a second to realize it needs to get going, but after that, it does pull enthusiastically, and from low engine speeds, and is fast enough to keep up with the pace of traffic.

Even in the wet, it was so stable on the road. In my mind, the Sportage is such a strong challenger (in terms of driving dynamics) to the Santa Fe that I drove some time ago because I was blown away by its driving behaviour in the rain and the Sportage was no different. 

I could definitely recommend these as family vehicles because of how safe you feel in them when you’re put into less than perfect conditions. With its grip on the road and stability in messy conditions, you can feel confident knowing the Sportage has you. It’s all this clever tech they’re putting into cars nowadays that you don’t even realize how many systems are working together under the bonnet in coordination with the driver’s inputs just to keep you safe.

The 2.0-litre diesel engine in our test derivative was paired to an 8-speed automatic gearbox and four-wheel drive as standard. The transmission is very intuitive, especially when using cruise control. The cruise control keeps the speed and power consistent through constant gear changes and doesn’t fight for gears when it's losing power as many vehicles do. 

Usually, and I’ve experienced this happening with a few different cars, the cruise control system allows the vehicle to lose power on an incline and then it will seek the right gear when it realizes it needs to kick up a notch by dropping a gear, and then you’ll see your revs flying up, the engine’s pushing hard and with that comes a lot of noise, and you’re thinking “what is this car doing!”, and then it finds its gear, the engine settles down, and you carry on as you were before. 

But the Sportage doesn’t do that. It doesn’t allow the vehicle to lose power on inclines and then seek the right gear to adjust accordingly, it constantly manages the power and the speed, not just the speed alone, and moves smoothly along.

Although I didn’t have anything to haul around and test this, I thought you should know that this particular model is also said to have the highest towing capacity (1900kg) in the Sportage range.

Read about other variants here: KIA Sportage Car Reviews

 

Performance figures of test derivative

Type: 2.0L Diesel

Valve System: 16 VALVE HLA

Acceleration (0-100km/h): 9.3 seconds

CO2 Emissions (Combined): 164 g/km

Displacement (cc): 1995

Fuel injection system: Common Rail Direct Injection

Max Power (kW): 131

Max Torque (Nm @ rpm): 400 @ 1,750-2,750

Max Speed: 201 km/h

Turbocharged: Yes

 

Fuel Consumption

The KIA Sportage has a 62-litre fuel tank capacity and doesn’t list any claimed fuel consumption figures. During my time with it, however, the Sportage displayed an average fuel consumption of 7.7L/100 km.

 

Space and Comfort

Doors on the Sportage open fairly wide and there’s sufficient space making entry and exit fairly easy. The seats are also roughly at hip height for the average-sized adult, adding to the ease of getting in. 

The Sportage has a spacious cabin and there’s good rear space even for tall passengers in terms of leg, head and elbow room.

The panoramic glass roof opens up the look and feel inside and makes it appear bigger and airy. I also like that it makes a vehicle seems less claustrophobic. 

All models have netted pockets behind the front seats, two coat hooks and a fold-down center rear armrest with two cupholders. Rear door pockets are sufficiently big and can hold 500ml bottles while in the front, larger bottles can be stored in the center console behind the gear lever. 

The Sportage has a good sized boot offering 466 litres, and 1,455 litres with the rear seats down. Its opening is conveniently large and square-shaped. The floor is flush and I loved that our derivative had a rubber floor mat that not only protects from moisture and dirt, but is also easy to clean, and what’s more, its grippy surface kept my items in the boot from flying around. Beneath the floor, a full sized spare wheel can be found.

 

Safety

My test derivative was equipped with driver assistance systems like the Electric Parking Brake, Hill-Start Assist Control (HAC), Downhill Brake Control (DBC), and not forgetting ABS (Anti-lock Braking System), and Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and to keep you steady and stable on the road at all times. Our EX Plus model also had front parking sensors and a reverse camera with Rear Park Distance Control. However, it's disappointing that Blind Spot Monitoring doesn’t feature on the Sportage as many automakers are now fitting this system.

There are six airbags that can be found around the cabin and children can be secured in their seats through the ISOFIX child seat anchorages.

 

Price

1.6L GDI IGNITE 2WD Auto               R389,995.00

2.0L IGNITE PLUS 2WD                      R399,995.00

2.0L IGNITE PLUS 2WD Auto            R413,995.00

2.0L Diesel IGNITE PLUS 2WD Auto   R464,995.00

2.0L EX 2WD Auto                                  R470,995.00

2.0L EX PLUS 2WD Auto                     R511,995.00

2.0L Diesel EX 2WD Auto                    R521,995.00

2.0L Diesel EX AWD Auto                   R549,995.00

2.0L Diesel EX PLUS 2WD Auto   R562,995.00

 

The Verdict

In the right spec, the Sportage offers good value. 

It has a practical and spacious cabin. 

Ride and handling are good.

And KIA resale values are also a little stronger when compared to some rivals.
 

 

Read more KIA Sportage News & Advice