Stoic.
That’s how I’d sum up our first drive of the 2016 Kia Sorento.
It’s
not just because this completely redesigned, third-generation Sorento felt
mostly unfazed, driving through a Sierra Nevada winter "storm of the
decade" that brought 100-mile-an-hour wind gusts and made some stretches
of steep highway quite slick indeed.
It’s
this: Kia has built what feels,
almost, like a German car. In terms of ride and interior ambiance, it might be
mistaken for a vehicle with a VW badge. Or perhaps, from the inside, the Jeep
Grand Cherokee.
The
2016 Sorento takes aim directly at the Grand Cherokee, and the Toyota
Highlander. You might recall that the Jeep was one of the targets of the
ill-fated Borrego, a quite good body-on-frame utility vehicle that arrived on
the market a bit too late, too thirsty—and right at the cusp of the recession.
Meanwhile,
the Sorento has grown—more than three inches in wheelbase and overall
length—and the result is a vehicle that’s no longer awkwardly in with the Honda
CR-V and Toyota RAV4, albeit slightly larger. Now, it sizes right in line with
the Grand Cherokee and Ford Edge, and within a few inches of the Toyota
Highlander, Honds Pilot, and Ford Edge.
It’s
also grown more refined. Much more refined—to the degree that in a
top-of-the-line Sorento SX-L we'd be hard-pressed to name a luxury model in which
the whistling of strong sidewinds and the noise of wet, slushy roads would have
been better isolated. Considering the tremendous attention paid to interior
surfaces, it feels like it could have a luxury badge—definitely more
successfully than the Cadenza sedan.
We’ve
mused that Kia has had the
Sorento on a constant improvement plan; but it couldn’t be more true. Kia just gave the second
generation of the Sorento—around since 2010, when it shed the old body-on-frame
layout—a major refresh for 2014, with a new V-6, much-improved interior
refinement and, according ot the automaker, about 80 percent new parts. Now Kia has given this model a
complete redesign, and with the 2016 model the Sorento’s changes go well beyond
incremental improvements.
Mark 3 for one of Kia’s best-known nameplates
The
exterior of the Sorento has such soft, evolutionary change that you need to
look at the new model a detail at a time. Ultimately, it’s the blunt, more
upright grille and front end, the somewhat higher hoodline, and the greater
overall length that let you override the urge to conclude that these are
carry-over lines. Inside, there’s far more convincing change, with a completely
new instrument-panel layout offering controls for audio/infotainment and
climate control bunched in horizontal ‘pods’ and loads of impressive soft-touch
trims and materials.
The Kia Sorento carries over its two
engines from last year—a 2.4-liter in-line four-cylinder engine and a 3.3-liter
V-6—but for 2016 it adds a new turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine.
Base
2.4-liter four-cylinder models make 185 horsepower and 178 pound-feet of torque
and, like all Sorento models, come with a six-speed automatic transmission and
can be equipped with front-wheel drive or so-called DynaMax all-wheel drive—which
ties in with inputs like yaw and steering angle and can apportion torque
without wheelspin, definitely something we appreciated up on slick mountain
passes. 2.0T models step up to 240 horsepower and 260 pound-feet, while with
V-6 models you get ratings of 290 hp and 252 lb-ft.
V-6 and
base four-cylinder engines remain offered in the Sorento as last year; but the
new addition to the lineup—and the best pick, in our opinion—is the new 2.0T
model, offering a direct-injection, turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine
making 240 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque. While the V-6 might have 50
more horsepower, the 2.0T model is the one that actually felt perkier in most
types of driving—all but off-the-line acceleration. There’s a bit of turbo lag
in some situations, but it’s entirely forgivable and peak torque comes on
strong at just 1,450 rpm; as such, the six-speed automatic seems to work better
with it than with the V-6 and doesn’t downshift nearly as much or as
dramatically.
Sport Mode, yes, but don’t get your hopes up
A Drive
Mode selector provides Sport, Normal, and Eco modes. But don’t get too excited
by the thought of a sport mode; it only changes the shift points, and the
steering bost, nominally—not accelerator tip-in, which still should feel a
little more linear and easier to finesse in tight traffic or slippery
conditions. And fundamentally, the Sorento just doesn’t feel like a sporty or
particularly sharp-reacting vehicle. Which is fine, considering the mission.
One
thing that’s been a Kia
weakness throughout most of its model line—a ‘restless’ steering feel, on
center—has been mostly quelled here, as far as we can tell. During times when
strong crosswinds let up, on our drive, we found a good sense of center and
impressively confident tracking.
Sorento
models with the four-cylinder, oddly, have an entirely different power-steering
configuration. Models with the 2.0T engine have a rack-mounted electric power
steering system, while those with the four-cylinder and V-6 get a
column-mounted one. We’ve heard good arguments for favoring both of these
setups, so the takeaway isn’t that one’s superior but that Kia’s made some good
tuning decisions—better ones, it seems than in the Sorento’s Hyundai Santa Fe
cousin.
We’d
much rather be behind the wheel of the Sorento than the Toyota Highlander, with
its rubbery responses and unremarkable, sea-of-plastic interiors. On the other
hand, it gets fuzzier when you compare the Sorento, and its upgraded interior,
with the lavish Grand Cherokee—and, of course, with the Grand Cherokee’s
available tough off-road ability. The Grand Cherokee has a heftier driving
feel, and some might prefer the Sorento’s somewhat more responsive feel to it;
and the current Grand Cherokee has never won kudos for being space-efficient.
Our gripes
are relatively few, and other than that second-row seat and the headroom
situation they mostly have to do with the odd limitations in builds. For
instance, you can’t get what we now see as the best engine in the lineup—the
turbo four—with a third-row seat. And if you want the V-6—for its higher towing
capacity, for instance—you have to accept a third-row seat. So in other words,
it’s not much different from the Hyundai builds.
And if
you want the top active-safety equipment (Lane Departure Warning System,
Forward Collision Warning System, Around View Moniror, and Smart Cruise
Control), it’s only offered on the top-of-the-line SX-L, as part of an option
package. So those who don’t want all the luxury items (like the power tailgate,
the moonroof, or the chrome wheels) but do want top safety, the Sorento is not
a particularly good pick or strong value.
Moving up a size, without moving up much in
price
Base L
models, at around $25k, are an absolute steal if you want the most vehicle for
the money—essentially Honda CR-V money for a vehicle that’s a size larger, and
somewhat better equipped. But at the top of the model line it seems that the
Sorento costs just as much as rival models. After taking a look at some of the
trims in person, and seeing what you get with each, we tend to think that the
best-value pick is the EX model, where you step up to all the refinement
upgrades that make the Sorento so refined and sophisticated-feeling. and where
you get items like dual-zone automatic climate control, heated leather seats,
and backup warning, and can opt for blind spot detection and lane departure
warning.
SX and
SX-L models get excellent driver’s seats, with extendable thigh bolsters that
are godsends for long-legger drivers like this one. But the second-row seats
are a little short and lack contouring that might help for adult use. Oddly,
the third row is doable, for those up to about 5’-10”.
Kia has indeed added more noise
insulation throughout the Sorento, and most versions include acoustic glass for
the windshield and side glass. But the key to the Sorento’s unflustered,
German-car ride might be its all-new body structure, which has more than twice
as much high-strength steel and is far stiffer; and the reengineered front and
rear suspensions are a key partner in keeping the ride rather firm but very
absorbent.
The
2016 Kia Sorento goes on sale
in January, and we hope to post an expanded set of driving impressions soon
thereafter, with some of it on dry pavement. Until then, what you need to know
is that the Sorento has grown and grown up—and it’s definitely worth the wait.
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