Paul Murrell tests the 2022 Kia Sportage GT-Line with pricing, specs, ride and handling, safety, verdict and everything the over-50 driver needs to know.
Summary: Once upon a time people bought a Kia because the price was so good. Now they buy them because the cars are so good.
2022 Kia Sportage GT-Line
Pricing: $51,990 (GT-Line AWD auto, driveaway). Sportage S 2.0 FWD manual from $34,690 (driveaway). Premium paint (everything but white): $520. (No longer bargain basement, but still good value)
Warranty: Seven-years, unlimited km (still leading the pack)
Safety: Not tested (but no reason to expect less than five stars)
Engine: 1.6-litre Smartstream turbocharged petrol four-cylinder
Power: 132kW at 5500rpm
Torque: 265Nm at 1500-4500rpm
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch automatic
Drive: all-wheel drive
Body: 4660mm (long); 1865mm (wide); 1680mm (high, inc roof rails)
Ground clearance: 181mm (unladen)
Cargo area: 543 litres (five seat mode), 1819 litres (rear seats folded)
Weight: 1643kg
Towing capacity: 1650kg
Wheels: 19-inch alloy
Tyres: 235/55 R19
Spare wheel: full size alloy (well done, Kia. Should be mandatory in Australia)
Turning circle: 11.4m
Fuel tank: 54 litres
Thirst: 7.2L/100km (combined, 91 RON unleaded)
seniordriver consumption: 9.4L/100km over 273km (actual consumption a long way from official figures)
[review]
Well within the memory of most seniordriveraus readers, people bought a Kia because it was cheap, cheerful, dependable transport. There were few frills, and few other reasons to choose one other than its bargain basement price.
How things have changed!
When the Koreans arrived on the local market, more established (European, and, to a lesser extent, Japanese) brands looked down their noses. They criticised the “cheap and cheerful” philosophy. They predicted a marketing disaster when Kia introduced its seven-year warranty. They scoffed when Hyundai and Kia introduced local suspension tuning to ensure their vehicles are fit for local conditions. One vocal local car company executive suggested the Koreans would never build an enthusiasts’ car because the Koreans didn’t have a motoring heritage. And their over-confidence has cost them dearly.
Welcome to the 2020s, and top ten sales figures
Kia and Hyundai sales are increasing year on year. Hyundai is firmly in third place and Kia not far behind in fifth. Almost every car company has had to improve its warranty offering, thanks to Kia’s ground-breaking initiative. Kia’s Stinger was voted best performance car by UK Top Gear, and last year, their pick was the Hyundai i30N. So much for motoring heritage!
Inevitably, there have been some developments: Kias and Hyundais are no longer bought solely on price. In fact, when I collected the Kia Sportage, the Kia spokesman proudly pointed out that Kia is rapidly becoming an aspirational brand. A few years ago, the only people who “aspired” to a Kia were people whose only means of getting around was public transport. This move upmarket has opened the door to the rising Chinese brands to undercut the Koreans and sell on price and value for money. What goes around, comes around.
Which brings us to the latest new Kia, the 2022 Sportage.
Bold, sometimes polarising design
Kia is demonstrating a new confidence, from its bold new logo to cutting edge designs that are both distinctive and, occasionally, polarising.
A starting price of $34,690 (driveaway) for the entry-level model seems sharp (although not as sharp as it initially appears: any colour other than white adds $520 to the price). However, most buyers will pay closer to $45,000 or $50,000 (the 1.6-litre GT-Line model we are testing is near the top of the range at $51,990, with only the diesel variant costing more). The Sportage’s Japanese competition (Honda CR-V VTi LX AWD, $52,300 driveaway, Mazda CX-5 Akera 2.5T AWD, $52,080, Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed Tourer AWS, $49,990, Subaru Forester Hybrid S, $47,190, Toyota RAV4 Cruiser AWD Hybrid, $46,415) are all around $50,000 in this spec, and even the Volkswagen Tiguan comes in at $51,790 (plus on road costs). In other words, the Sportage will have to compete on its merits, not a tempting sticker price.
And the good news is that it does so with aplomb. The GT-Line interior gets wood-look trim inserts, perforated leather seats (with power adjustment, memory, heating and ventilation) and suede accents. There are two 12.3-inch screens, with the infotainment screen slightly curved. The buttons and switchgear feel substantial and soft-touch surfaces (including padded leatherette inserts on doors and central armrest) deliver a suitably upmarket feel, although the piano black surfaces are sure to collect sticky fingerprints. The sound system is also appropriately luxe, being an eight-speaker Harman/Kardon unit.
There has been much thought put into interior storage, including for the eternally fiddly keys, wallet, small change and other essentials, and there’s a wireless charging pad (which, unsurprisingly, is a logical place for your phone). The larger external dimensions translate to much better second row space and legroom, enhanced further by seatbacks that recline a little, and better luggage space (up 68 litres to 543). Drop the seats and the space grows to 1829 litres, making it ideal for prams, walkers or even pushbikes.
Local chassis tuning a real advantage
The Sportage benefits from Kia’s chassis tuning to make it better suited to local conditions. Across broken surfaces, it scoffs at potholes and undulations, transmitting very little crash and thump through to the cabin. Impressively, this isn’t at the expense of handling. For an even more engaging drive, simply drop the mode selector into Sport. At highway speeds, the absence of road, wind and tyre noise, even over our notorious coarse chip road surfaces, is a highlight.
Minor whinges include a driveline that can occasionally be a bit snatchy (perhaps it’s the seven-speed dual clutch transmission), and active lane centring that is more obtrusive than it needs to be. And the rotary dial gear selector still feels more of a gimmick than a genuine innovation.
Well equipped, even at entry level
It’s become almost normal to expect even entry-level cars to arrive fully-equipped. Unlike the bad old days, it is no longer necessary to add an extra ten or 20 percent to the sticker price, just to get a vehicle up to an acceptable equipment level.
This is especially so with the Sportage.
Take a look at the standard spec on the base model S:
- 17-inch alloy wheels (machine face)
- 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment
- Apple CarPlay/Android Auto (wireless)
- DAB digital radio
- Six-speed audio system
- ‘Basic’ digital instrument cluster with 4.2-inch TFT display
- LED headlights (reflector-type)
- LED daytime running lights
- Partial-LED tail lights
- Full-size spare wheel
- Leather-accented steering wheel and PVC shifter
- AEB with pedestrian/cyclist/junction assist
- Blind-spot assist
- Rear cross-traffic assist
- Lane-keep assist
- Lane Follow Assist
- Intelligent speed limit assist
- Adaptive cruise control (not available on manual variant)
- Electric park brake (not available on manual variant)
- Reversing camera
- Rear parking sensors
- Tyre pressure monitoring
- Front-centre airbag
Step up one level to the SX and you can add
- 18-inch alloy wheels (machine face)
- 3-inch touchscreen infotainment
- Satellite navigation
- Apple CarPlay/Android Auto (wired)
- Power driver’s lumbar adjustment
- Rain-sensing wipers
- Dual-zone climate control with auto de-fog
- Auto up/down windows (front)
- Leather shifter
- Remote-folding second-row seats
Another step up to the SX+ adds
- 19-inch alloy wheels
- 8-speaker Harman Kardon premium audio
- Faux leather seat trim
- Heated front seats
- LED front fog lights
- Power driver’s seat with power lumbar
- Electric tailgate
- Electrochromic rear-view mirror
- Keyless entry with push-button start
- Steering-mounted paddle shifters
- Front parking sensors
- Rear privacy glass
At the top end, the GT-Line adds
- 19-inch alloy wheels (machine face)
- 3-inch digital instrument cluster
- Leather seats with suede upper
- Driver’s seat with memory function
- Power passenger seat adjustment
- Heated/ventilated front seats
- Bi-LED headlights (projector type)
- Full-LED tail lights
- Shift-by-wire gear selector (dial type)
- Wireless phone charger
- Ambient interior lighting
- LED interior lighting
- Panoramic sunroof
- Alloy sports pedals
- Blind Spot View Monitor
- Parking Collision Avoidance (reverse)
- Remote Smart Park Assist (diesel variant only)
- Surround-view cameras with 3D view
We can’t see too much that we’d add (although, to be honest, there are probably a few features we could live without).
No safety rating as yet
The 2022 Sportage is yet to be tested by ANCAP or Euro NCAP, but since the closely-related Hyundai Tucson scored five stars in both ANCAP and Euro NCAP, we expect a similar result for the Kia when it does get tested.
Once again, Kia is to be commended for including a full range of safety equipment on all variants:
- AEB with pedestrian/cyclist/junction assist
- Blind-spot assist
- Rear cross-traffic assist
- Lane-keep assist
- Lane Follow Assist
- Intelligent speed limit assist
- Adaptive cruise control (excludes manual models)
- Reversing camera
- Rear parking sensors
- Front-centre airbag
And a full seven-year warranty
The Sportage is covered by Kia’s seven-year unlimited kilometre warranty, and seven years of capped price servicing for even greater peace of mind. Also worth noting is that the Sportage is not particularly frugal (we averaged 9.4L/100km – the official figure is 7.2L/100km) but at least it’s happy on 91 RON unleaded.
As long as Kia keeps raising the bar, it will continue eating into sales of its Japanese competition and make it more of a challenge for the Chinese to steal sales away. Hardly sporting, but a win for buyers.
Summary.
Not so long ago, the concept of a $50,000 Kia was unthinkable. In 2022, the Sportage (and other models in the Kia range) comfortably justify their price tags.
As long as Kia keeps raising the bar, it will continue to challenge the European competitors and eat into sales of its Japanese competition. No doubt the company is looking a little anxiously at the rapidly evolving and improving Chinese competitors, but for the time being, it is still comfortably ahead.
The only problem for keen buyers is getting hold of one. According to our sources, supplies are comfortably sold out for months to come. But don’t despair … more stocks are coming soon.
If you’d like another opinion on the Kia Sportage (and more detail), we recommend taking a look at David Brown’s DrivenMedia video review here