Rather than just adding a petrol engine to the Sorento, Kia has leveraged its industry expertise in electrification to give the model both plugin hybrid and ‘self-charging’ hybrid options. You can still get a Sorento with a diesel engine for the time being, though, and every version has four-wheel–drive and an automatic gearbox as standard.
Equipment, options and extras
Both the Kia Sorento’s trim levels come with relatively hefty price tags, but they’re excellently equipped so you get what you pay for. The entry-level Vision brings a raft of superlative kit, including a power tailgate, keyless entry and start, and heated front and outer rear seats. With the Edition you get remote park assist, Nappa leather upholstery, ventilated front seats, an upgraded parking camera, a customisable heads-up display, and a blind spot monitoring system.
Costs, insurance groups, mpg and CO2
The Kia Sorento has a higher starting price than the top-spec versions of its rivals the Škoda Kodiaq and Peugeot 5008, and in fact it’s roughly equal to the Land Rover Discovery Sport. However, it does cost less than the Audi Q5 and BMW X3.
As big four-wheel–drive SUVs go, the self-charging hybrid version of the Sorento has low CO2 emissions, but company car drivers would best opt for the plugin hybrid version for its awesome 38g/km and respectable electric-only range, which helps reduce BIK tax. The plugin hybrid takes 3.5 hours to charge from empty using a home wallbox.
Safety and security
Euro NCAP awarded the Kia Sorento a full five stars for safety, with the car scoring well for both child and adult crash protection. All models come with active safety features which significantly reduce your odds of an accident in the first place, including lane-keeping assistance and automatic city emergency braking, which can detect not only other vehicles but also cyclists and pedestrians. They even come with parking collision avoidance, which is effectively an extremely low-speed version of automatic emergency braking, helping drivers avoid parking mishaps in conjunction with the blind spot camera system.
Reliability
The Sorento comes with Kia’s 7-year or 100,000-mile warranty, as long as you service your car annually at a franchised dealership. In its class of big SUVs, this warranty is beaten only by Toyota’s 10 years or 100,000 miles.
The Car Planet verdict
The Kia Sorento is a fantastic SUV, pricey but extremely well equipped and boasting exceptional practicality. Most buyers would be advised to go for the self-charging hybrid model, but the plugin hybrid will be the best bet for most company car drivers.
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