Kia Sportage S Diesel 2022 Review

The 2022 Kia Sportage S Diesel is a pretty well-equipped medium SUV for a base model – with some exceptions.

It has roof rails, a reversing camera, rear parking sensors, LEDs for the headlights, tail-lights and daytime running lights, and 17-inch alloy wheels with a matching full-size alloy spare under the rear compartment.

It does, however, lack a few frills that are becoming more of an expectation among buyers, such as rear privacy glass and keyless entry/start. The air-conditioning also doesn’t have a climate control function.

Some might also be considering an SUV like this for light-to-medium towing duties. While the 1900kg (braked) towing capacity is pretty decent, the catch is that the Kia Sportage Diesel can take only 100kg maximum on the tow ball.

The price is $39,845 plus on-road costs, with another $520 extra for the optional Fusion Black mica paint on the test car, making this a $40,365 proposition before ORCs are added.

Of course, you do get Kia’s seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty and capped-price servicing at $3624 over seven years, meaning an average of $518 each annual service.

There is also a year’s complimentary roadside assist, which is topped up every year for up to eight years when you service the Sportage with a Kia dealer.

Importantly, given the current stock shortages afflicting the car industry, Kia Australia has indicated that base models and turbo-diesel powertrains in particular are faring better than others in terms of availability across its popular range.

There are plenty of safety features fitted standard in the new 2022 Kia Sportage, even in this base S model.

It has adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go functionality, trailer stability assist, adaptive high beam dipping, blind spot collision avoidance assist, rear cross traffic collision avoidance and an electronic park brake with auto hold.

It’s worth noting that these above features are not the standard equipment for all new Sportage models – they are not available in the base-grade petrol manual, but standard for all automatics such as the diesel tested here.

There’s also seven airbags, autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with vehicle, cyclist and pedestrian detection, along with junction/intersection braking assist, a safe exit warning system, multi-collision braking, hill start assist and lane following and keeping assist, plus tyre pressure monitoring.

As you might expect with a family-oriented mid-size SUV, you get three top-tether child seat mounts and two ISOFIX mounts for the back seat if you need to carry little ones around.

The Sportage is available as a five-seater only; if you want a seven-seat SUV for a young family and friends, you’ll need to go up to the larger Kia Sorento.

There is no ANCAP safety rating as yet for the new Kia Sportage. Given it shares the same all-new platform with the Hyundai Tucson, you’d hope the new Sportage would have a full five-star rating, but we won’t know until ANCAP does the test.

The Sportage S dashboard is dominated by a long, flat panel that displays the instrument cluster and infotainment screen in two separate segments.

The central touch-screen measures 8.0 inches and offers AM/FM radio and wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto as well as multi-connection Bluetooth facility.

There’s USB-A and USB-C ports up front as well as a 12V accessory charging port.

Working the screen is quite simple, without any confusing menus or lagging to contend with.

The 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engine in the 2022 Kia Sportage S is responsive, economical and generally quiet; in short, it’s a good thing.

However, the off-idle response does suffer a half-second of delay if you floor it for that traffic gap (although it’s far better than turbo-diesels of old).

The fact that this is a compression-ignition engine won’t be lost on occupants; while not by any means annoyingly loud, the diesel rattle coming from the engine bay is a reminder that this is not the pinnacle of diesel engine noise suppression.

The engine is efficient though, with an average of about 6.6L/100km of mixed use and 8.0L/100km in city use.

The eight-speed automatic is a good one, either upshifting or downshifting without fuss according to your driving environment and needs.

It’s a reminder of how far we’ve come with ‘smart’ transmissions that, for example, will hold just the right lower gear around town to help keep the engine in the torque band, help you to not over-speed and give some engine braking when needed.

The wet weather that has dogged Sydney for months was useful for assessing the worth of the Sportage’s all-wheel drive system, standard when you pick the diesel engine option.

There’s no worries there, with an imperceptible transfer of drive to the axles. The Sportage simply grips and goes in most instances.

The ride and handling compromise is a good one for a family SUV too. It doesn’t demand to be driven or require a certain level of commitment; rather, it can be driven for enjoyment or for comfort as required.

This is not a given with an SUV, especially the enjoyment bit.

No, the steering is not razor-sharp and these aren’t the most grippy tyres on the planet. But the Sportage still has a fine chassis balance for an SUV.

While the 17-inch, 65-series tyres seem out of place in an age of rubber-band-thin tyres, they no doubt help to build the foundations of the lovely, compliant ride quality in the Sportage S.

The sense of the 2022 Kia Sportage S being a premium SUV with the abundance of important safety and tech features and the quite lush look of the exterior – especially in the test vehicle’s black mica paint – doesn’t quite follow through to the interior.

Despite the use of some bright aluminium and gloss black finishing touches, it still looks and feels a bit sparse inside.

Items such as the numerous centre console switch blanks remind you that you’re missing out on some gear.

At least you’ll be comfortable in the supportive seats and enjoy the ample space.

The interior feels huge compared to the previous generation, and the driver is treated to a simple, clear layout of dash and controls.

The Sportage also appears noticeably bigger for back seat legroom and cargo area in particular.

It’s worth noting that the high hip point, relatively narrow sills and wide-opening doors and door apertures make this one of the easiest SUVs to step in and out of.

While the doors open very wide to make access easy, the reach to close the door pull by the handle is a long one. There’s a small raised section on the front end of the door arm rest that is probably intended as a grab point for such occasions. In any case, this worked quite well.

There were no rattles or poorly fitted parts in the test car; it might not look like sheer luxury inside, but there is a sense of quality in the way the Kia is screwed together.

There are also some clever design elements in this SUV you’ll either love or dismiss as sheer frippery, such as the dash vents emulating the shape of the front daytime running lights.

Styling is a very personal thing, but the Sportage appears contemporary without verging on either too bland or too avant-garde.

One of the problems with some SUVs has been large side mirrors (what our friends in the UK call ‘wing’ mirrors, even though they are no longer fitted to the ‘wings’). These oversized ears are great for seeing along the sides of the SUV, but they are a big blockage when trying to see past them turning into certain corners.

The Sportage’s small front-side quarter windows and set-back side mirrors suddenly make a lot of sense. There’s no need to peer around them to see what you’re about to drive on when turning a corner.

The Kia Sportage was recently named carsales’ Best Mid-Size SUV for 2022, so we rate it highly, but sometimes the gloss wears off when you look specifically at a base model in the range.

Happily, that’s not the case with the 2022 Kia Sportage S Diesel.

It provides ample interior space and comfort, a great compromise between ride and handling for a family SUV and a great deal of tech and features for the money.

Crashworthiness is still an unknown on this SUV until we see independent testing, but in terms of its significant safety specs at least the prospect of a five-star ANCAP result for the new Kia Sportage is promising.

The diesel powertrain does not wow on refinement or performance but it all works well together and fuel economy is good.

If there was a way of subtly making the interior feel just a little less basic, then the Kia Sportage S would be even better.

How much does the 2022 Kia Sportage S Diesel cost?
Price: $39,845 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 137kW/416Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 6.3L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 163g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested