For decades now Sports Utility Vehicles or SUVs have drawn favour over the family sedan and wagon, with the mid-sized SUV in particular proving itself to be perfectly suited to this the preferred high-driving family lifestyle. But as we move toward a less emissions intensive future the need to reduce the fuel use from these ever-popular vehicles is becoming more important than ever.
In responding to this, Kia have recently released their urban mid-size SUV reimagined in the form of the Sportage Hybrid, which fuses innovative technology, next level refinement, and impressive fuel efficiency. To deliver exceptional car-like handling with comfort and dependability to suit our roads, the Sportage Hybrid offers the same smooth Australian-tuned ride and handling performance as Kia’s petrol and diesel Sportage models.
Both Sportage Hybrid variants are powered by a 1.6 litre In-Line 4-cylinder turbo petrol engine with a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor and a Transmission Mounted Electric Device. The maximum combined power from this system is 169kW of power and 350Nm of torque. The official combined fuel consumption for the Sportage Hybrid is 4.9L/100km and I used 6.1L/100km of regular unleaded petrol for my week with this Sportage. For comparison I used 8.2L/100km in the diesel powered Sportage SX+ I drove last year.
There are three drive modes available, Eco, Smart, and Sport and my go to mode for the week I drove the Sportage was the Eco mode as it just felt best suited to this hybrid SUV and is also the default drive mode that the vehicle starts in. Therefore, the Sportage silently awakens in electric mode and softly sings as you reverse it in Eco mode, perfect for early morning starts in suburbia.
The Smart drive mode felt like it was trying too hard to be clever and Sport mode doesn’t really apply to this SUV. Likewise, I felt no need to use the plastic wheel mounted paddle shifters for the 6-speed automatic transmission. I was happy to engage Drive using the Dial Type Shift by Wire gear selector and let the Sportage do the rest. I found the Sportage was a comfortable vehicle to drive and I did not feel it was limited in any way by the fact that it is front-wheel drive. The Sportage is not a SUV that you are going to want to push hard in, as its preferred habitat is the urban environment, and that’s the perfect place for a hybrid vehicle to shine.
This Gravity Grey Sportage Hybrid is the GT-Line, which is the higher spec of the two variants currently available and comes with a Smart Key Remote with keyless entry. That means you simply push the button on the front door handles to open vehicle and there’s no need to fuss about with the small buttons on the side of the key fob. Keyless start also means there is no need to remove the key fob from your handbag, which can be stored out of sight behind the front seat and hung on the hook there so it doesn’t fall over.
The seats in the GT-Line are leather appointed with artificial suede on the upper portions and it also has a leather appointed steering wheel. Both front seats are heated and cooled and have powered adjustment for recline, forward/back and seat height front and rear. The driver’s seat also has 2-way lumbar support and two memory positions.
Dominating the dash is the large curved display that incorporates the 12.3″ Digital Driver Cluster and the 12.3″ Touch Screen Infotainment system. The digital driver’s screen can be customised to your personal preference and changes its look depending on the drive mode that you have selected. The infotainment screen can also display multiple menus with a smaller window on one side, which is showing the energy flow here. To minimise the number of buttons on the dash there is a two-way panel below the infotainment screen that switches between either the climate controls or the infotainment menu selection.
Wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto enable you to integrate your smartphone with the Sportage and use the voice control, which only works when these are connected. The GT-Line comes with an eight Speaker Harman Kardon Premium Sound System and the media sources include AM/FM radio, DAB digital radio, Sounds of Nature, and Bluetooth all of which can be curated into your own personalised profile with radio favourites or Bluetooth priority, for example.
At front of centre console under the sliding gloss black cover there is a wireless charge pad, one USB-A port, one USB-C port and one 12V socket. I don’t like the use of gloss black plastic on the centre console or door handles as it attracts dust and gets bad finger marks on it, but the dashboard garnish in Woodgrain Hydrographic in the GT-Line is a stylish touch to the cabin.
I also really like the Kia-style flip out cup holders in the centre console that can be pushed back to create one large storage space. The only downside of this design is there is no removeable mat for easy cleaning at the base of the cup holder area. The drink bottle storage in the front door cubbies is tightly moulded and only suitable for slimmer medium sized drink bottles.
The rear seats have manual recline adjustment and a good amount of leg room for adults, but headroom would most likely be tight for taller individuals. For younger passengers there are two ISOfix/three rear tether child seat restraint points. The centre seat can also be folded down as an arm rest and has two rigid cup holders at the front of it. The drink bottle storage in the rear door cubbies is also on an angle and only suitable for medium sized drink bottles.
Rear seat passengers get two central rear air vents with individual direction and on/off controls and one USB-C port is located on each side of the front seats. To keep cords out of the footwell area and reducing the trip hazard potential Kia have designed the front seat headrests so that a device can be hooked over them to occupy the youngsters, if required.
The tailgate has handsfree gesture open only or you can open/close the powered boot lid using the button on the tailgate, the small button on side of the key fob or the button in the cabin. The boot offers a good amount of space and boot floor can be lowered down giving you an extra 10cm approx. of height in the boot. There are four plastic tie down points with a cargo net, one light, and one 12V socket in the boot space and a steel temporary use spare tyre is located under the boot floor. If extra room is required then the rear seats can be folded down via a 40:60 split fold mechanism with the release located on the side of the boot.
The new Kia Sportage has an updated ANCAP safety rating of 5-stars (2022), which is based on testing of Kia Sportage variants that are supplied to the European market and also applies to hybrid variants. Dual frontal, side chest-protecting and side head-protecting (curtain) airbags are standard. A centre airbag which provides added protection to front seat occupants in side impact crashes is also standard. The Adult Protection Score is 33.43 points out of 38 (87%) and the Child Protection Score is 42.73 points out of 49 (87%).
The Kia Sportage Hybrid GT-Line comes standard with a long list of active driver safety features including Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) – Car, Pedestrian, Cyclist & Junction Assist, Lane Keeping Assist, Lane Following Assist, Blind Spot Collision Avoidance Assist with Rear Cross Traffic Collision Avoidance, Adaptive Cruise Control, and Blind Spot View Monitor that displays the side camera in the driver’s dash when you indicate. The surround view camera is paired with a standard rear-view camera and front and rear parking sensors and for convenience you get auto lights, high beam assist and auto wipers.
ANCAP tests of the AEB (Car-to-Car) system showed ADEQUATE and GOOD performance with collisions avoided or mitigated in most test scenarios. The AEB Junction Assist system, although standard on Australian and New Zealand variants, was not fitted to the test vehicle, and hence AEB Junction Assist tests were not conducted. Overall, effectiveness of the AEB (Car-to-Car) system performance was rated as MARGINAL. Tests of the Lane Support System functionality showed GOOD performance in lane keep assist tests, with the system intervening in some of the more critical emergency lane keeping test scenarios with overall performance classified as GOOD with a score of 74%.
All new Kias come with a 7-Year Unlimited Kilometre Warranty (or 150,000km for the Li-ion Polymer battery) and one year of complimentary Roadside Assist. Owners can renew their Roadside Assistance package yearly, for up to eight years, by simply returning their vehicle to an Authorised Kia Dealer for its annual scheduled services. For the Sportage Hybrid, service intervals are once a year or 15,000km, whichever comes first, and the total cost for the first seven services is capped at $4,502.
There is no escaping that the SUV is now the go-to choice for most modern families and the Kia Sportage Hybrid GT-Line has plenty to offer with the added advantage of a more fuel efficient powertrain. Prices for the Sportage Hybrid GT-Line start at $55,420 excluding on-road costs and as tested with the optional Gravity Grey Premium Paint ($520) this Sportage Hybrid GT-Line was $55,940 plus on-roads. You can Build and Order your new Kia Sportage on-line or visit your preferred Kia dealer for more information.
| Pros | Cons |
| The fuel-efficient powertrain | The gloss black trim |
| It’s very suited to the urban environment | Voice control only works with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto |
| The flip-out cup holder design | The small buttons on the side of the key fob |
Photographs by Driven Women Magazine.