Kia Sportage

By Luke Madden

October 2010

• Latest deal price: from £6,433 to £9,606

The Sportage is riding high after beating Nissan’s class-leading Qashqai crossover in its first test in Issue 1,129. But the car we rated then was a top-of-the-range AWD 2.0-litre diesel. So is the two-wheel-drive 1.7-litre oil-burner equally impressive?

It’s certainly just as striking. A narrow glass area and muscular styling mean the Sportage lives up to its name. To boost bragging rights even further in this class, there’s a chrome grille and door handles, plus tinted windows, LED daytime running lights and 17-inch alloy wheels.

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

Inside, the design can’t quite match the drama of the exterior, although buyers get lots of kit. The seats are part-leather and there’s a panoramic sunroof, air-con, Bluetooth, reversing sensors, sat-nav
and USB connection. If only the plastics in the door panels weren’t so hard and scratchy.

There’s ample space for three adults in the back and the boot is incredibly spacious, offering a 564-litre capacity even though there’s a full-size spare wheel under the load floor. Fold the rear seats and the luggage area grows to 1,353 litres – that’s 493 litres more than in the Qashqai!

On the road, the new 113bhp 1.7-litre diesel engine is relatively quiet and has a welcome dose of low-down torque. But under full throttle it can sound harsh, and the unit could do with a bit more power. The 0-62mph sprint takes a rather sluggish 11.9 seconds.

It’s efficient, though. Kia’s ISG stop-start comes as standard, meaning 54.3mpg combined fuel economy and 139g/km of CO2. The latter allows the car to wear the ‘green’ ecoDynamics badge reserved for sub-140g/km Kias.

Through corners, body roll is kept in check well and there’s plenty of grip. The car is also comfortable, with a class-leading balance of ride smoothness and handling. And that’s before you look at the price. In its most basic two-wheel-drive 1.6-litre petrol form, the Sportage costs only £16,645. Even our well equipped model carries a great-value price tag of £20,020. And as with every other version in the new range, buyers get Kia’s excellent seven-year/100,000-mile warranty included as standard.