SPY PICS: Kia's next Sportage shows off new look

As its expected Frankfurt motor show debut in September nears, so the veils of disguise are being stripped away from Kia’s fourth-generation ‘QL’ Sportage compact SUV.

Expected on sale in Australia by the end of March 2016, the new Sportage will have a revised exterior look that retains strong elements of its widely lauded predecessor, a much more dramatically overhauled interior and the availability of a series of significant drivetrain updates including downsized turbocharged engines and a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

These photos shot in the Swiss Alps by Automedia show the new Sportage’s styling has been influenced by the KX3 small SUV sold in China with a bigger and lower ‘Tiger Nose’ grille, more prominent foglights and new wraparound headlights.

The rear, which features a new set of LED tail-lights, also seems to be also inspired by the KX3.

But the overall body shape appears to stick quite closely to the third-generation car designed by former Kia designer (now at Jaguar Land Rover) Massimo Frascella under the direction of automotive design legend Peter Schreyer.

For instance, the compact glasshouse and distinct vertical edge of the rear side window is familiar from the old car.

Kia Australia media and corporate communications general manager Kevin Hepworth told motoring.com.au that the big styling and design breakthrough for the new Sportage was inside the cabin.

“The biggest change I have seen in that car from what I have seen of the models is the interior, and that is something that is becoming common across the Kia range,” Hepworth said.

“The biggest upgrades are in the interiors, in the materials they are using, in the quality of the interiors and the style of the interiors.

“The QL looks fantastic, really good. The exterior has a few changes, but it still retains the Sportage look so Massimo’s DNA has stayed with it. But they have made it a bit more aggressive.”

The Sportage’s interior design is expected to include a sizeable touch-screen within an all-new dashboard.

Under the bonnet, the new-generation Sportage will get improved 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre Hyundai group four-cylinder engines for the diesel line-up, while the petrol side is expected to add the all-new 1.2-litre T-GDi engine, an upgraded 1.6-litre unit as well as a 2.0-litre turbo.

Automedia says the car-maker's new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission will also be offered at launch, at least in Europe.

One technical aspect of the new Sportage that remains unclear is how new its underpinning architecture is. Some international reports say it is an evolution of the Hyundai-Kia platform the ‘SL’ Sportage debuted in 2010, which was also used by the Hyundai ix35.

However, Hyundai is claiming the ix35 replacement, next month's new Tucson, uses an all-new platform. Quite what’s all-new, updated and modified will no doubt emerge over time, but it would seem a wasteful exercise for the Sportage and Tucson not to have fundamentally the same architecture.

The current Sportage is offered in Australia with a choice of 135kW 2.0-litre turbo-diesel and 2.0-litre naturally-aspirated 122kW petrol four-cylinder engines. It comes in four model grades, is available as both front- and all-wheel drive, with six-speed manual and automatic transmissions in a price range from $25,990 to $41,590.

Despite its advancing years, the current Sportage is Kia’s second best selling model in Australia, bested only by the Cerato small car. In the first six months of 2015 its sales are up 13 per cent compared to the same period in 2014, to 4025.