SA Road Tests

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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Many of the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

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Fifth Generation: 2023 Kia Sportage EX

Suitably Sportagey

Pics supplied
Posted: November 17, 2022

The numbers
Prices: EX @ R593 995 Others range from R539 995 to R734 995
Engine: 1598 cc, DOHC 16-valve, inline four, turbocharged
Power: 132 kW between 4900 and 5600 rpm
Torque: 265 Nm between 1500 and 4500 rpm
0-100 km/h: 8.8 seconds
Top speed: 201 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 7.7 l/100 km
Tank: 54 litres
Luggage: 562 – 1751 litres VDA
Turning circle: 10.92 metres
Ground clearance: 170 mm
Standard tyre size, EX: 235/55R18
Spare: Full size
Warranty: Five years, unlimited km, including roadside assistance
Service plan: Six years, 90 000 km

“All-new” is overused but sometimes it’s accurate. Take the 2023 Kia Sportage: New build platform, new designer, new body, new interiors, new models, new engine. I hear a dissenting voice saying, “But it’s still got the 1600 turbo.”

Yes. But not that one. Generation Four’s Gamma motor displaced 1591 cc, developed 130 kW with 265 Nm, and sported CVVT valve control. The new engine is from the Smartstream range, has different bore and stroke measurements to increase capacity to 1598 cc and uses Continuously Variable Valve Duration (CVVD) that allows it to adjust how long its intake valves remain open; independently of timing and lift. Hyundai claims a four-percent increase in performance, five-percent improvement in efficiency, and 12-percent lower tailpipe emissions. Power outputs are much the same; just two kilowatts more power, starting and finishing 100 rpm higher up the range, and the same maximum torque figure.

Inward and outward appearance has changed completely, so I won’t even try to give details. The new body is 30 mm longer on a wheelbase stretched by 10 mm, 10 mm wider and 15 mm taller. Ground clearance decreased by 2 mm and it now turns eight centimetres more tightly. I’m sure no-one will notice. Seatbacks-up luggage capacity increased by 59 litres.

The previous range’s two-litre petrol and diesel engines, 1600 cc naturally aspirated motor, and the 160T awd model are no longer available here. Kia SA now offers only the new 1600 turbo with seven-speed DCT. The range consists of five models - all front-wheel drive - LX, EX, GT-Line, GT-Line Plus and GT-Line S. Our test car was a mid-range EX with almost everything.

LX comes standard with LED headlamps with auto light control, LED daytime running lights and LED fog lamps. Taillights and rear fog lamps combine LEDs and bulbs. Outside mirrors are electrically adjustable and foldable, with indicator repeaters. Wheels are 17-inch alloy.

Inside, it has cloth upholstery with height adjustment and two-way adjustable electric lumbar support for the driver’s seat. Both front chairs feature an innovative clothing hanger integrated into the front seat headrests. Steering can be adjusted for rake and reach, while the second-row seatback splits 40:20:40 with top tethers on the outer chairs.

Both sun visors feature illuminated vanity mirrors and an electro-chromatic rearview mirror is standard. Driver and front passenger windows feature one-touch and auto-stop. Dual-zone automatic temperature control is standard.

The 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system incorporates a reverse camera (including standard rear parking assist sensors), Bluetooth connectivity with voice recognition, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Steering wheel buttons control telephony, audio and cruise control. Six speakers are standard. So are a USB port in front and two USB-C type charging ports, integrated into the front seatbacks, for rear passengers.

Included are Drive Mode Select with Comfort, Eco, Sport or Smart sub-settings and Blind Spot Collision Warning.

EX adds a glossy black front grille and front parking assist sensors. Wheels are 18-inch alloys. Upholstery becomes a combination of cloth and artificial leather, with front seats gaining electric adjustability, two memory settings for the driver’s seat, and warming. The steering wheel can be warmed too. There’s a phone charging pad. The second-row seatbacks fold remotely. Rear passengers enjoy privacy glass and heated seats.
 
How she goes: The DCT performs almost intuitively without hesitation or flaring. Power reduces when the brake pedal is touched, so left-foot brakers can get caught out if they remain engaged a split-second too long and find themselves trapped in a temporary power vacuum. That aside, performance, for a midsize family SUV, is suitably "Sportagey".

How she loads: Onto a flat floor 70 cm above ground level; with one light, four rings, a pull-out cover, 12-volt power point and those remote tippers mentioned earlier. The baseboard permits height adjustment, but we in South Africa get the full-size alloy spare that takes up both levels. Who’s complaining?

Accommodation: Backseat riders enjoy generous headroom, reclinable seats, nice knee space for those in the outer chairs (but the middle passenger needs short legs) and comfortable accommodation for feet. Two map pockets, two bag hooks, the clothing hangers that I originally mistook for additional panic handles, bottle bins in the doors, armrest with cup holders, vents at the rear of the central console, those Type-C USBs, an oddments box, a second courtesy lamp and full sets of belts and head restraints, cover amenities.

The pilot enjoys simple HVAC controls and plenty of storage space but supplementary screens and menus are complicated. The glossy black parking brake tab, on the lower dash to the right of the steering wheel, blends in and is easily overlooked. The car goes and handles well, is solidly built and parks easily. Unfortunately, the newly-styled rear side windows are narrower than on the old one, restricting outward view a little.

Would I buy one? This new Sportage is potentially brilliant but a few details spoiled it for me.

Test unit from Kia SA press fleet

We drove a Sportage 1.6 TGDI awd in 2017

And a 1.6 TGDI GT-Line S in 2022



What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is thoroughly researched, given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads or goat tracks as well. As a result, my test cars do occasionally get dirty. It's all part of the reviewing process.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles.  And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.

Comments or questions?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you completely disagree with what I say? If you want advice or have a genuine concern, I will be happy to hear from you. All I ask is that you write something in the subject line so I know which vehicle you're talking about.