Kia Sorento Review & Prices

The Kia Sorento has always been a bit like English wine. Sure, years and years ago it was just plain bad, but these days it’s really quite tasty - yet, snobbery and familiarity means many people won’t even consider it, and will spend more on something they know already, like a Land Rover Discovery, an Audi Q7, or a nice fruity cab sav from Bordeaux.

The Sorento may be a Kia, but as a seven-seat SUV with more than a touch of premium quality to it, it’s a genuine alternative to those more expensive European models. At the same time, it’s budget-friendly enough to go on the list next to the slightly smaller Skoda Kodiaq or Peugeot 5008. Its main competition is the fantastic - and stylish - Hyundai Santa Fe, with which the Sorento shares engines and some of its technology.

The Sorento has become more expensive in recent years, though, so nobody’s going to put it next to true budget seven-seaters like the Dacia Jogger. But it’s become more upmarket to match the price tag. It’s also rather more distinctive, with bold headlights inspired by the Kia EV9 electric SUV and a more minimalist interior.

What’s not changed is the space on offer. The Sorento is a seven-seater as standard, and there’s genuinely room in all three rows for adults. Seats six and seven are a bit tight for a longer journey, but there’s more room than you’ll find in a Land Rover Discovery Sport or a Skoda Kodiaq. There’s also a massive boot.

Up front, the new dashboard is really good-looking, with two screens set underneath a seamless sheet of glass for a cohesive look. There’s a nice strip of physical controls for the air-conditioning - much easier than having it routed through a touchscreen - and loads of storage, too.

There’s also a trio of engine options. A regular self-charging hybrid is a great option, which delivers strong fuel economy for a car this size - there’s also a company car tax-friendly plug-in hybrid, which is the same engine but with more power and a bigger battery.

Interestingly, Kia still offers the Sorento with a diesel, even though sister company Hyundai doesn’t have one for the new Santa Fe. It’s the same 2.2-litre engine that’s been used in Kia’s larger cars for ages, and it’s not exactly the smoothest or most economical - but it’s the pick of the range if you want to tow things or cover mega-mileage.

Driving the Sorento is pretty much what you’d expect from a big, heavy SUV. It’s not quick, and if you try and have too much fun on a twisty road you’ll make your passengers feel sick. But it’s pretty comfortable, and great for covering long distances in - and that’s what matters, right?

If this seven-seater SUV sounds like it’s up your street check out our best Kia Sorento deals on Carwow here. You can see our best prices on other Kia models here, or find a used Kia for sale here. And remember that when the time comes for car-changing, Carwow can even help you sell your old car.

The Sorento range starts at just under £42,000 for a diesel model. You’ll pay an extra £1,000 for a self-charging hybrid, or a bit over £5,000 extra if you want the plug-in hybrid, but all three models come in the same simply named ‘2’, ‘3’, or ‘4’ trim structure.

You don’t have to go with a top-end model for a healthy level of standard equipment, either. The 2 model has heated front seats and steering wheel, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, keyless entry and start, a reversing camera and 17-inch alloy wheels, though it does get basic LCD dials in place of a fully digital driver display. Step up to the 3 and you get the 12.3-inch driver’s screen plus a Bose audio system, LED lights and electric front seats, while the range-topping 4 comes with a panoramic sunroof, Nappa leather upholstery, ventilated front seats and a head-up display.

The Sorento is more expensive than a Skoda Kodiaq or Peugeot 5008, but it’s a larger car than either with more room in the third row of seats. It undercuts anything from premium brands - a Land Rover Discovery Sport is much smaller and a few thousand pounds more expensive, and the Discovery or an Audi Q7 are significantly pricier. The biggest competition comes from sister company Hyundai and its Santa Fe, which is pretty close on price but arguably a cooler, more eye-catching car.

A great long-distance cruiser and really easy to drive, though it can be firm over bumps

​​In town

The Sorento is a big car, but it doesn’t feel too clumsy around town. It helps that you can set the driver’s seat very high, even by SUV standards, for a really clear view out.

If the budget stretches to the plug-in hybrid, this is the Sorento to choose for town driving. It has an all-electric range of up to 35 miles, so you can commute or do the school run in near silence. Despite weighing more than two tonnes, the plug-in is quite lively away from the mark when running on the electric motor.

The regular hybrid won’t run on electricity alone for long, but it’s still a quiet and relaxing car to drive around down. The diesel can be a bit gruff, but the automatic gearbox makes it just as easy to drive as the hybrids.

Considering the Sorento’s size, parking isn’t all that difficult. Light steering helps, as does reasonable visibility thanks to fairly slim pillars and large rear windows. It could well be worth optioning one of the higher trim levels for a full 360-degree camera if you regularly park in tight spaces.

Comfort around town could be better, though, as the car tends to fidget over imperfect road surfaces. This is worse on higher-end models with their larger alloy wheels.

On the motorway

The Sorento’s ride smoothes out at speed. On motorways and dual-carriageways, the big Kia is comfortable and controlled.

It’s reasonably quiet, too. There’s some wind noise, but not enough to really get on your nerves. At a steady cruise all three versions keep engine noise to a minimum.

There’s enough punch to accelerate quickly into any gap in the outside lane, though you shouldn’t expect it to hold a candle to any truly premium SUV like a Land Rover Discovery.

If you are going to spend a lot of time on the motorway, give the diesel careful consideration. It may not be a popular type of engine any more, but you can expect better long-distance economy from the diesel than either of the hybrids. It is, however, quite gruff under acceleration.

On a twisty road

Choose ‘sport’ mode, and the Sorento’s steering adds more weight and the throttle response is sharper. Even so, it’s a competent and tidy car to drive on a country road rather than a thrilling one.

The Sorento doesn’t lean too hard if you corner enthusiastically, but you couldn’t describe it as agile. You are always aware that this is a big and heavy car, especially the plug-in hybrid which carries some extra timber compared with the other two models.

Sprint between corners in the hybrids and you’ll wake up the petrol engine, which sounds strained at high revs.

The Kia isn’t a bad car to drive on a country road, not by any means. Just don’t expect a convincing sports car impression when the road starts to twist and turn.

A big, comfortable interior with lots of space and loads of storage - but the third row is tight for adults

The Sorento is a big car, and it makes the most of its size with a generous interior that has genuine space for seven people. Front seat occupants get the best time of things - the front seats are heated, electrically adjustable from the mid-trim upwards, and ventilated on the top-spec ‘4’ car. They’re also wide and comfortable, with plenty of adjustment.

Storage up front is good too. There are big door bins, a huge centre cubby and a couple of roomy cupholders which can be folded away if you want just an extra tray for odds and ends. There’s also ample provision for devices - not only do most Sorentos get a wireless charging pad, but there are enough USB sockets for every occupant to keep their gadgets topped up.

Space in the back seats

The middle row of seats is roomy, with plenty of space for six-footers. The centre seat is appreciably narrower than the outer two, so three adults might find it a bit of a squish - but it’s fine for short journeys. The floor’s also nice and flat, so everybody gets somewhere to put their feet. This row of seats also reclines, which is relaxing for long trips.

There are cupholders, air vents and aircon controls, and USB ports all easily accessible, plus pull-up sunblinds.

Accessing the third row is okay - the middle seats fold and slide out of the way, but the floor’s quite high. It’s certainly easier to do this on an MPV with sliding doors. Once back in seats six and seven, there’s a decent amount of space. It’s not as roomy as a Land Rover Discovery, but it’s more spacious than a Peugeot 5008 or Skoda Kodiaq. The main issue for adults will be that the floor is quite high, so they’ll be sat with their knees up - not very comfortable for long trips, though short hops around town are okay.

Boot space

With the third row of seats raised, there’s 179 litres of space. That’s about as much as you get in a Fiat 500, which means it’s suitable for a row of shopping bags or maybe a couple of carry-on suitcases but not much else. That’s par for the course with seven-seat SUVs, though.

Fold the third row of seats and you get a much more roomy 813 litres of space (809 in the plug-in hybrid). That’s even bigger than the cavernous Skoda Kodiaq (780 litres for the seven-seat model) and the Land Rover Discovery Sport (754 litres). Both of those cars are available as five-seaters with 900+ litres of space, though, so if you don’t need the extra seats there are more practical models out there.

Fold both back rows of seats and you get a van-like 1,996 litres (1,988 for the PHEV) across a totally flat floor. There’s no loading lip, either, so it’s easy to slide items right to the back.

A much more stylish interior than before, but it can feel quite dark and there are some cheaper materials about

The old Sorento felt like a bit of a mish-mash, with lots of different materials and design choices. The new model feels much more cohesive, and adopts a similar approach to Kia’s other recent designs, particularly the Sportage and the EV9.

That means you get a wide element across the top of the dash which encompasses the infotainment screen and the driver display under one sheet of glass. The base ‘2’ model has regular instruments with a small display between them, while ‘3’ and ‘4’ models have another 12.3-inch driver display to go with the 12.3-inch infotainment screen.

Underneath this you’ll find slim air vents and then a touch-sensitive climate control panel. While this isn’t quite as good as a proper set of physical buttons, it does mean you can adjust the temperature or fan speed on the move without having to disturb the touchscreen.

Wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto is standard, which is great - but Kia’s own interface is also pretty good if you want to use the car’s built-in functions too. The screen is bright and responsive and the menus clear. There are also two customisable shortcut keys, one of which we’d recommend setting to the ADAS menu so you can quickly turn off the car’s safety functions.

Base spec cars get cloth upholstery, mid-spec gets leather and the top-spec gets posher Nappa leather. All of them are black, though, which combined with the black trim makes the Sorento quite dark inside - even in cars with a panoramic sunroof. Some of the materials do feel lower in quality than you’d like, too, especially considering the higher-end Sorentos are well over £50,000.

On the plus side, build quality seems excellent, and there are no creaks or rattles.

The diesel engine offered in the Sorento is becoming a rarity, with increasing numbers of large SUVs offered with hybrid power only. Don’t go expecting fantastic fuel economy, as the Sorento’s 2.2-litre diesel is quite an old design, but it still claims over 40mpg - and that should just about be achievable with a light right foot and on a long run. CO2 emissions range from 170-174g/km, so this isn’t a great company car pick. It is, however, a good tow car - it’ll pull 2,500kg, vs just over 1,000kg for both hybrid models.

The regular petrol hybrid model isn’t much more expensive than the diesel and actually offers slightly poorer fuel economy on paper, but it should be the model you choose if you spend most of your time in town or doing short journeys. It’ll be much more efficient than the diesel in these scenarios, which wouldn’t give it much time to warm up - but on the flip side you’ll see poorer economy over long distances. Consider which type of driving you do most of before selecting between these two.

The plug-in hybrid model is the pick of the range for company car drivers, thanks to its official CO2 figures of just 37g/km. It can run for up to 34 miles on a full charge - we saw closer to 25 miles in the real world - which means it’s great for short trips, providing you have the means to charge it up at home. It’s much more expensive than the other two engines, though, so it may take you some time to recoup the cost difference as a private buyer.

The Sorento scored five stars out of five when it was tested by Euro NCAP’s safety experts in 2020. It earned an 82% rating for adult occupant protection, 85% for protecting child occupants, 63% for pedestrian protection, and 87% for its safety assistance systems.

All models come with a whole alphabet soup of safety kit, including DAW (Drive Attention Warning), FCA (Forward Collision Avoidance Assist), ISLA (Intelligent Speed Limit Assist), and LFA (Lane Follow Assist) to name just a few. There’s also TSA (Trailer Stability Assist) to help keep your caravan or horsebox rubber-side down and pointing in the right direction.

It’s a shame that there’s no quick shortcut to safely turn off some of the more annoying safety features, though. While you can map one of the Sorento’s shortcut keys to the driver assistance menu, you’ll still need several presses on quite fiddly touchscreen buttons to turn these off.

Security equipment includes an alarm, an immobiliser, and locking wheel nuts.

There shouldn’t be anything to worry about when it comes to Kia Sorento reliability. The brand came third in the 2024 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, and in the 2023 results the pre-facelift Sorento actually came second overall - quite an achievement.

With Kia’s standard seven-year, 100,000 mile warranty acting as an extra layer of reassurance, you can be fairly confident that the Sorento will be a reliable car.