Kia Sportage – What you need to know

The shapely fifth-generation Kia Sportage has landed, taking its place at the pointy end of the popular mid-size SUV segment.

A quantum leap forward in refinement, style, safety and tech, the Sportage which garnered a Highly Commended award in the carsales 2021 Car of the Year will no doubt continue to attract plenty of buyers.

With three drivetrains, front- or all-wheel drive, and four trim levels, there’s no shortage of choice when picking the Sportage that’s right for you. Let’s take a closer look at the line-up.

The range kicks off with the entry-level Sportage S followed by the SX then the SX+ trim level, with the most lavishly equipped variant being the Sportage GT-Line.

Headlining the features and standard equipment list of the entry-grade front-drive Sportage S with petrol engine and manual transmission (priced from $32,445 plus on-road costs) are:

• Rear-view camera and parking sensors
• Leather-clad steering wheel
• LED headlights and tail-lights
• Cruise control
• 8.0-inch infotainment touch-screen display
• Android Auto/Apple CarPlay with wireless play
• Bluetooth connectivity
• 17-inch alloy wheels
• Full-size alloy spare

Extras for the new Kia Sportage are confined to exterior colours, of which there are eight. Four are new, with just Clear White standard and the rest attracting a $520 premium.

Safety-wise, all Kia Sportage models have autonomous emergency braking (AEB) that helps avoid collisions with other vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists in front of the vehicle plus junction (intersection) assist which applies the brakes if a potential collision is detected when turning right across an intersection.

Standard equipment also extends to seven airbags (including a central airbag up front), anti-lock brakes with multi-collision braking, downhill brake and hill start assist, electronic stability and traction control, a rear-view camera and rear parking sensors.

There’s a raft of driver assist aids as well, such as lane follow and lane keep assist, a speed limiter, driver attention alert with lead vehicle departure, safe exit warning and tyre pressure monitoring.

Automatic models also benefit from auto high-beam headlights, adaptive cruise control, blind spot collision assist and rear cross traffic collision assist.

Stepping up a level, the Sportage SX adds rain-sensing wipers and front parking sensors, while the Sportage SX+ has an auto-dimming rear-view mirror.

If you select the GT-Line you get the full gamut of safety kit with the addition of blind spot and surround view monitoring, rear cross traffic collision assist and reverse parking collision avoidance.

Also exclusive to the Sportage GT-Line diesel is remote smart parking assist that helps the driver to remotely park or exit a parking spot from outside the vehicle.

Standard on the Kia Sportage S is an 8.0-inch infotainment touch-screen with AM/FM radio, six speakers, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android auto functions plus the usual Bluetooth and music streaming.

Head over to the Sportage SX and your infotainment touch-screen grows to 12.3-inch and includes satellite navigation plus digital radio for a higher-quality sound.

With the Sportage SX+ comes a premium eight-speaker Harman Kardon sound system.

Keeping the best till last is the Sportage GT-Line with its wireless phone charging pad plus a curved 12.3-inch infotainment screen that seamlessly joins the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster.

All Kia Sportage variants have air-conditioning with vents in both rows, however the entry-level S is the only one to miss out on dual-zone climate control and auto windscreen defogging.

Are you after heated front seats? Head to the Sportage SX+, and if you want to be cooler in summer the only one offering ventilated seats is the Sportage GT-Line.

What about power-adjustable seats? While the Sportage SX has lumbar support the Sportage SX+ is what you need for an eight-way powered driver’s seat with power lumbar support.

But if you want both front pews power-operated, sign up for the Sportage GT-Line.

Everybody likes the prestige of leather trim. All variants come with a leather-wrapped steering wheel and the Sportage SX+ and GT-Line feature paddle shifts as well.

The Sportage S and SX both wear cloth trim but the Sportage SX has an artificial leather-cloaked shift knob. So does the Sportage SX+ and added to that is artificial leather seat trim.

Only the Sportage GT-Line comes with leather and artificial suede upholstery, along with woodgrain hydrographic dash garnish, elevating the look and feel of the cabin.

Distinguishing each inside, the Sportage S has a gunmetal grey dash garnish, the Sportage SX brushed metal and the Sportage SX+ a premium weave pattern.

Outside, all variants come with LED headlights and tail-lights. LED fog lights are yours if you go for the Sportage SX+ as a starting point, along with privacy glass and the handiness of a powered tailgate.

Exclusive to the Sportage GT-Line are projector-type LED headlights together with full LED tail-lights.

If your wish list includes a sunroof then the GT-Line is the only Sportage to fit the bill with its standard panoramic unit. Also exclusive to the Sportage GT-Line are 64 colours of ambient interior LED lighting, alloy sports pedals and metal scuff plates.

Nineteen-inch alloy wheels underpin the sportier appearance of Sportage GT-Line models, an upgrade over the 18-inch rims on Sportage SX and SX+ Premium and the 17-inch rims found on the Sportage S variant.

Every Kia Sportage variant is available with a petrol or diesel engine.

If you want to change gears yourself, the choices are the Sportage S or SX variants with a six-speed manual gearbox tied to the 115kW/192Nm 2.0-litre petrol engine driving the front wheels.

A six speed auto is available with the 2.0-litre petrol engine as an option in the front-wheel drive Sportage S and SX. It’s standard in the SX+.

The Sportage SX+ and GT-Line are both offered with the 132kW/265Nm 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine with a seven-speed dual-clutch auto in all-wheel drive form.

And the 2.0 turbo-diesel is only available with an eight-speed auto and all-wheel drive, but you can have it in all variants.

What a giant leap forward in every way. The Kia Sportage is very impressive and the one thing carried over from the previous generation is the vast number of choices on offer.

If the budget was constrained the one for me is the Sportage SX 2.0-litre petrol with auto, driving the front wheels. However, if the finances allowed, the Sportage SX+ turbo all-wheel drive gets my money.

The standard comfort and convenience features are plentiful as is the safety kit, and you can drive it away for well under $50,000.

How much does the Kia Sportage cost?
S petrol manual – $32,445
S petrol auto – $34,445
S diesel auto – $39,845
SX petrol – $35,000
SX petrol auto – $37,000
SX diesel auto – $42,400
SX+ petrol auto – $41,500
SX+ turbo-petrol DCT – $43,500
SX+ diesel auto – $46,900
GT-Line turbo-petrol DCT – $49,370
GT-Line diesel auto – $52,370
*Prices exclude on-road costs