Kia Sportage 2.0 CRDi

By Joaquim Oliviera

May 2010

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Is the Sportage finally living up to its name? The third generation of Kia’s compact SUV lands in the UK this summer - and style is top of the agenda. We travelled to Korea to test one of the first cars off the production line.

The overhauled exterior is a sleeker and more enticing proposition. Up front the new family grille gives the car an uncluttered nose, while a dynamic shoulder line and tapered roofline help to create a sporty profile. At the rear, although the styling is neat and tidy, there’s clearly inspiration taken from Audi - former employers of design boss Peter Schreyer.

Video: watch CarBuyer's video review of the Kia Sportage

Longer, wider but lower - by six centimetres - than the car it replaces the new Sportage has a noticeably more stable stance. On first impressions it has a presence closer to a car than a lofty off-roader.

Inside our Korean-spec test car the dash plastics were harder and scratchier than we’d hoped for. However, Kia insisted though that the quality would take a leap for European-spec cars built in Slovakia. Other than that the dash is well laid-out, there’s an abundance of storage spaces and there’s impressive roominess and boot space.

From launch two 2.0-litre engines will be available, a petrol with 161bhp and the diesel tested here. Both have the option of two or four-wheel drive and a six-speed manual or automatic gearbox. Later in the year a 138bhp direct-injection 1.6 GDI and a 113bhp 1.7 CRDi will also arrive in showrooms.

Our top-spec diesel punched hard from 1,800rpm but the torque tailed off quite quickly after 2,500rpm. It was fairly refined though and the impressive economy figures speak for themselves.

Suspension settings in the Korean Sportage have been tuned for comfort, whereas European cars will receive stiffer dampers and springs as well as bigger anti-roll bars. But even our softly-sprung test car managed to resist body roll well – which means UK models have a chance of being among the best-handling cars in the class.