Legroom won’t be an issue in the back either, thanks to a low transmission tunnel for a middle-seat passenger as well as plenty of width in the cabin for people to get comfortable.
The Sportage is chunkier than rivals like the Renault Kadjar and Nissan Qashqai, but doesn’t really feel it when manoeuvring into parking spaces. A reversing camera is standard which really boosts visibility, while higher up the range, all-round parking sensors and cameras become available. The camera isn’t the highest quality, however. If you’re not interested in making use of these systems, the chunky pillars and small rear window make visibility out of the rear of the car a little limited.
The boot measures a useful 491 litres with the rear seats up which expands to 1,480 litres if you fold them down. This is only for the petrol versions, however. If you go for the 1.6 CRDi, boot space is 467 litres due to the AdBlue tank needing space, while the 2.0 CRDi is the smallest at 439 litres.
The rear seats don’t fold entirely flat, however, and while the boot floor itself is flat from the loading lip to the backs of the rear seats, the lip itself is relatively high, which might make loading heavier items problematic. The good news is there’s space beneath the boot floor to store the load cover.
We’d like to have seen levers in the boot area to fold down the rear seats (instead of having to open the rear doors as on the Sportage), and if the driver is particularly tall or sits a long way from the steering wheel you’ll have to remove the rear headrests too before folding.
Safety
Five-star Euro NCAP safety rating
Driver assistance tech available higher up the range
Should prove to be a safe family car
The level of safety kit on-board depends largely upon trim level, but it’s fair to say the Kia Sportage is a strong offering in this respect. It scored a maximum five stars in Euro NCAP crash testing.
Even base-spec cars come with cornering headlights, heated door mirrors, Trailer Stability Assist (which uses the stability control system to keep trailers pointing the right way), hill-start assist (which holds the parking brake on momentarily to prevent rolling backwards when setting off on a hill), downhill brake control (to keep the car stable when descending steep hills) and cruise control with a speed limiter. All Sportages come with at least six airbags and two Isofix child seat anchors.
Moving further up the range nets you extra driver assistance tech including traffic sign recognition, adaptive cruise control, blindspot warning, lane-keep assist and adaptive front lighting systems.
Unlike most blindspot warning systems, the one on the Sportage goes one step further and emits an audible sound when it detects a vehicle in place. It is quite sensitive however, and its eagerness to warn the driver every time they indicate for a lane change on the motorway can make for a less relaxing journey.
The standard-fit LED headlights generate a good spread of light immediately ahead of you and yet they’re not as strong as some would hope - the distance range is quite disappointing. It’s also a shame that those driving in the opposite direction at night can sometimes think you’re on the high beam setting as well, something we suspect relates to the positioning of the lights on the bodywork being to blame.
Basic equipment
The basic equipment list includes equipment that is standard across all versions of the Kia Sportage.
3x3 point rear seat belts
ABS
Alarm
Alloy wheels
Audio remote
Driver`s airbag
Electric mirrors
Folding rear seats
Front electric windows
Height adjustable drivers seat
PAS
Passenger`s airbag
Remote locking
Side airbags
Steering wheel rake adjustment
Steering wheel reach adjustment
Traction control
Equipment by trim level
To view equipment options for a specific trim level, please select from the following list:
Equipment included on some trim levels
Air conditioning
Body coloured bumpers
CD
Cloth seat trim
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Front fog lights
Headlight washers
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Metallic Paint
Parking sensors
Partial leather seat trim
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
GT-Line equipment
GT-Line standard equipment
Cruise control
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
GT-Line optional equipment
Space saver spare wheel
1 equipment
1 standard equipment
Air conditioning
Cloth seat trim
Cruise control
Front fog lights
Isofix child seat anchor points
1 optional equipment
Body coloured bumpers
CD
Parking sensors
Rear electric windows
Space saver spare wheel
2 equipment
2 standard equipment
Cloth seat trim
Cruise control
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Isofix child seat anchor points
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
2 optional equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Heated seats
Rear electric windows
Space saver spare wheel
3 equipment
3 standard equipment
Cruise control
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
3 optional equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Rear electric windows
Space saver spare wheel
4 equipment
4 standard equipment
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
4 optional equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Headlight washers
Rear electric windows
Space saver spare wheel
Edition 25 equipment
Edition 25 standard equipment
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Lumbar support
Metallic Paint
Parking sensors
Partial leather seat trim
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Edition 25 optional equipment
Air conditioning
Body coloured bumpers
CD
Cloth seat trim
Space saver spare wheel
First Edition equipment
First Edition standard equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Front fog lights
Headlight washers
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Metallic Paint
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
First Edition optional equipment
None available
GT-Line equipment
GT-Line standard equipment
Cruise control
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
GT-Line optional equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Front fog lights
Rear electric windows
GT-Line Edition equipment
GT-Line Edition standard equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
GT-Line Edition optional equipment
Air conditioning
CD
Cloth seat trim
Rear electric windows
GT-Line S equipment
GT-Line S standard equipment
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
GT-Line S optional equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Front fog lights
Headlight washers
Rear electric windows
Space saver spare wheel
JBL Black Edition equipment
JBL Black Edition standard equipment
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
JBL Black Edition optional equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Isofix child seat anchor points
Space saver spare wheel
KX-1 equipment
KX-1 standard equipment
Air conditioning
Body coloured bumpers
CD
Cloth seat trim
Cruise control
Front fog lights
Isofix child seat anchor points
Space saver spare wheel
KX-1 optional equipment
None available
KX-2 equipment
KX-2 standard equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Cloth seat trim
Cruise control
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Isofix child seat anchor points
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
KX-2 optional equipment
None available
KX-3 equipment
KX-3 standard equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Cruise control
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
KX-3 optional equipment
Electric sunroof
KX-4 equipment
KX-4 standard equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Front fog lights
Headlight washers
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
KX-4 optional equipment
None available
KX-5 equipment
KX-5 standard equipment
Body coloured bumpers
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Electric sunroof
Front fog lights
Headlight washers
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Space saver spare wheel
KX-5 optional equipment
None available
Platinum Edition equipment
Platinum Edition standard equipment
Cruise control
Electric driver`s seat
Electric passenger`s seat
Front fog lights
Heated mirrors
Heated seats
Isofix child seat anchor points
Leather seat trim
Lumbar support
Parking sensors
Rear electric windows
Roof rails
Sat Nav
Platinum Edition optional equipment
Air conditioning
Body coloured bumpers
CD
Cloth seat trim
Space saver spare wheel
Euro NCAP Rating – 5 stars
The Kia Sportage was tested by Euro NCAP in 2015 and was awarded a 5 star overall rating.
This overall rating is calculated from the following individual ratings:
Euro NCAP provides motoring consumers with a realistic and independent assessment of the safety performance of some of the most popular cars sold in Europe.
The safety ratings are determined from a series of vehicle tests, designed and carried out by Euro NCAP.
These tests represent, in a simplified way, important real life accident scenarios that could result in injured or killed car occupants or other road users.