Introducing a two-wheel drive only version of the Sportage has allowed Kia to offer an even cheaper off-roader and starting prices are similar to a Ford Focus. Both the 2.0-litre petrol and diesel models offer good economy while facelifted cars come with an unrivalled seven-year warranty which means that any unexpected costs are taken care of for a large part of the cars life.

Kia servicing is generally good value and insurance is reasonable too – between groups 9 and 12.

The Sportage isn’t particularly environmentally friendly with average emissions of 198g/km CO2 across the model line-up. The 2.0-litre CRDi engine is the greenest engine – on cars with four-wheel drive it emits 187g/km of CO2 and returns 40mpg.

Kia has a good reputation for reliability and its dealers offer a good service should anything go wrong. When the model was facelifted in late 2007, Kia moved production from Korea to its plant in Slovakia (which also produces the Ceed). As a result of the stringent quality controls in place, the Sportage now comes with a seven-year warranty as standard.