Kia Sorento Platinum CRDi AWD 2017 Review

Packed with features, and with all the bells and whistles, I was keen to see if the Kia Sorento ticks all the family-car boxes. What lies ahead is a week of errand-running, shopping, swimming lessons, day care and, yes, maybe the odd spirited drive. This truly is testing the Sorento in its natural habitat.

I strap in bubs, entice child number one with my best tantrum-reducing, three-year-old reasoning skills to climb in also, throw in the pram and the baby bag, and climb behind the wheel. The all-too-familiar daily challenges that the majority reading this article can empathise with.

What’s needed in this situation is a car that makes the experience a whole lot easier. But one that also offers decent on-road performance and a luxurious cabin. So far, that’s a tick in the Sorento’s favour.

The everyday niceties Sorento offers are fantastic. Heated and ventilated front seats (heated in the second row), a heated steering wheel, rear-seat sunshades for the kids, and my personal favourite: front sunvisor extensions. These are little things that are often lacking in vehicles that I typically deal with, and that truly make a difference in a family car.

Standing on the outside…
Styling is always subjective, but I'm pretty sure I'm not alone in saying that the Kia range has lifted its ‘looks’ game. The third-gen Sorento is 95mm longer, its roof line 45mm lower and body 5mm wider than the predecessor; but somehow it manages to hide its bulk. To my eyes, it’s sleeker than before.

The Schreyer-penned Tiger Nose grille, Platinum Silver 19-inch alloy wheels (with matching spare), low-line roof rails and discreet rear spoiler add sophistication nearing that of prestige brands. So too does the higher beltline, raked roof and muscular stance.

I reckon the Sorento is only a few steps away from looking like a family race-car. Pump those guards, add some 21-inch wheels, lower the suspension and add the 272kW twin-turbo V6 from the Kia Stinger and this could easily be an M or AMG rival!

Room with a view
In addition to the heated/ventilated leather upholstery I mentioned earlier, I found the level of adjustment offered up front terrific. The range of seat and steering wheel settings offered a ‘just right’ fit behind the wheel, the memory function of the seats ideal when returning to the captain’s chair after my wife had been at the wheel.

The Sorento’s instrument panel displays all the information I need in an easy to decipher manner; so too the 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment array incorporating sat-nav, reversing camera and 10-speaker audio system. And let’s not forget the plethora USB and 12-volt power outlets – great for charging the kids’ iPads.

The Platinum grade on test arrives as standard with a panoramic sunroof, which proved a big hit with the family. We also found the third-row seats handy when picking up the grandparents from the airport. It’s roomy enough to accommodate grown-ups, my six-foot frame finding plenty of head and legroom. Impressive! Equally impressive is the number of cup-holders and ventilation outlets; and separate air-conditioning controls for the third-row seats.

The versatility of the seat configurations is fantastic, and I found the controls easy use and easy to find. The second-row seats fold flat in a 40:20:40 split and also slide and recline. The third-row is also able to be split 50:50, and folds flush with the cargo area floor when not in use.

With the third-row seats folded flat the Sorento offers 605 litres of cargo capacity, up from 515 previously. The under-floor storage of the cargo blind is a brilliant idea, as are the built-in shopping-bag hooks – perfect for keeping the groceries in check with a V8 Supercar drivers at the wheel!

The cargo area is accesses by a handy Smart Power tailgate which automatically opens when you’re in close proximity to the rear of the car – very handy when your hands are full.

The feel at the wheel
We’ve written a lot about Kia’s localised suspension tune, and in the Sorento it pays obvious dividends. The refinement of the strut front / multi-link rear suspension means it’s kept flat in corners and offers good turn-in response – a fact helped by the rigidity of the new high-tensile steel body. The Sorento handles rougher surfaces well – even large potholes.

Kia has worked well to isolate road and mechanical noise from the cabin. There’s increased insulation on the firewall while the transmission and rear suspension bushes are reinforced to further improve noise, vibration and harshness levels.

Steering feel is slightly on the heavy side, but not so much so that it makes driving tiresome. If anything, the ‘sportier’ feel gives the Sorento the eagerness of a sedan in the bends, a product of Kia moving the electrically-assisted steering module directly on to the steering rack (it was previously mounted on the column).

Under the bonnet we find the Hyundai/Kia 2.2-litre ‘R Series’ turbo-diesel engine. The four-cylinder mill is a refined creature, Kia saying it has improved ‘smoothness and efficiency’ over the previous unit, while also bettering low and mid-range torque. To that extend there’s 441Nm on board from 1750-2750rpm and 147kW at 3800rpm. I wouldn’t say that translates to push-you-back-in-the-seat performance, but it’s certainly nippy enough for everyday situations.

The Sorento on test drives all four wheels via an on-demand all-wheel drive system with centre differential lock. The automatic transmission is a six-speed unit aided by a Sport mode that increases throttle response and holds gears longer when compared to the default setting. For me, I’d prefer the first and not the latter. It’s best to shift the gears yourself if you aim to get the most out of it.

Safety First
As we touched on earlier, the third-generation Sorento’s body-shell has been beefed up to incorporate 52.7 per cent high tensile steel components. As well as aiding body rigidity in the corners, it also helps improve occupant protection in the event of a crash. Kia scored a full five-star result in 2015 ANCAP testing.

The standard safety features fitted to the Sorento Platinum are almost too numerous to mention. So let’s just say all the big-ticket items – anti-lock brakes, stability and traction control, six airbags, autonomous emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, lane departure and forward collision warning – are accounted for.

While not safety items per se, I did find the inclusion of adaptive cruise control and the brake-hold function made trips a little easier – the brake-hold system also improving my reaction time when the lights go green!

Ticking boxes
Australians have embraced the seven-seat SUV with gusto; and after a week with the Kia Sorento, I can see why.

It drives and rides so well you forget you’re in a full-size SUV; and with a generous feature list, good looks and a long seven-year warranty, break-down and capped-price servicing program represents great value for $56,590 (plus on-road costs).

When you consider the quality of the build on top of everything we’ve listed above, I’m convinced the Sorento is something of a bargain.

It stood up to every test my family could throw at it, and it’s fair to say my wife and kids were sad to see it go.

Did the Kia Sorento tick all the Youlden family boxes? Absolutely!

2017 Kia Sorento Platinum CRDi AWD pricing and specifications:
Price: $56,590 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 147kW/441Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.8L/100km (ADR Combined) / 9.0L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 205g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP

Related reading:
>> Kia Sorento International Launch Review
>> Kia Sorento Australian Launch Review
>> Seven-seat SUV Comparison Test