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Within my first mile in the original Kia Sorento I couldn’t help but wonder, “Is that a live rear axle I feel?” I stopped the vehicle, peered beneath it and, sure enough, there it was. The Sorento looked like a car-based crossover, but body-on-frame construction, a two-speed transfer case, and a live rear axle dwelled beneath the Mercedes-inspired sheetmetal. The upshot: superior off-road capability, but subpar fuel economy and ride quality. Well, the Sorento has been redesigned, and as with the Sportage before it the trucky bits have been tossed in favor of a Hyundai car-based foundation. Specifically, the 2011 Kia Sorento is now a Hyundai Santa Fe beneath the surface. Now that it’s much like all of the others, why buy the Kia?
Ironically, the second-generation car-based Kia has more angular, and so truckier, exterior styling than the original did. It looks more upscale and sophisticated than the utterly forgettable Santa Fe, but doesn’t induce double takes. Inspiration has been drawn from many other SUVs, including those from Acura, BMW, and Lexus, such that this time there’s no clear source. But there’s nothing obviously Kia here aside from the badge, either.
Interior appearance is a matter of trim level. The design itself is fairly plain, with a detail lifted here and there from the Lexus RX. In base trim the interior ambiance borders on cheap. The EX Package 2’s perforated leather does much to make the interior a place worth spending some time in. Even then the interior only seems upscale if you don’t touch anything or look at it too closely. Kia has turned out nicer interiors in the past.
Far more important to the Sorento buyer, we believe, is the ability to carry people and things in comfort without breaking the bank. Kia’s penchant for cramming a lot of features into a vehicle is demonstrated artfully in this crossover. The Sorento will be offered in base, LX, and EX forms, all of which get niceties such as a tilting-and-telescoping steering wheel, USB and aux inputs, Bluetooth connectivity, steering-wheel audio controls, and a full raft of safety equipment. EX versions add keyless ignition, rear parking assist, dual-zone climate control, and a list of luxury-grade options including navigation with real-time traffic updates, a 10-speaker Infinity audio system, leather seats, and, for V-6 models, a two-row sunroof.
Not that you’d ever mistake this for a Lexus inside. Indeed, the Sorento’s interior, which features red backlighting and conventional ergonomics, is as simple as its exterior. As with the Mitsubishi Outlander and Toyota RAV4, the Sorento has third-row seats in the cargo area that few people more than 12 years old will find tolerable for long. Optional on four-cylinder models and standard with the V-6, the extra seats are best suited for those with the occasional need to pile an extra two kids into the car when carpool duty comes around. You might have to make a choice, however, between kids and soccer balls, as the space behind the third-row seat is limited to nine cubic feet when it’s in use. Five-passenger models, however, can handle up to 37 cubic feet with all seats up and 73 cubic feet with the second row folded, making the Sorento among the most capacious utes in its class.
Many compact SUVs have become so car-like that I was surprised to encounter the seating position of a conventional SUV in the new Sorento. You sit high relative to the instrument panel, and the windshield is upright by current standards. As a result the cabin feels narrow, even though the specs sheet asserts an impressive 59.3 inches of front shoulder room. Those seeking the character of an SUV will prefer the high, upright driving position, those essentially seeking a tall wagon won’t. Only the shortest drivers will see a point to the driver seat’s height adjustment.
One nifty trick abandoned by the Santa Fe for 2010, but adopted by the Sorento: an available third-row seat within a relatively compact 184-inch-long exterior. To fit three rows within such compact dimensions, something’s got to give, and that obvious something is legroom and cargo room. Second-row legroom looks decent in the specs, but in reality it’s just adequate for adults, and the seat is a little low to the floor. The third row is very low to the floor, as is often the case, and my 5-9 self barely fits. For transporting kids, though, there’s more than enough space. Just don’t count on putting more than a single row of grocery bags behind the third-row seat.
All Sorento trim levels come standard with a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 175 horsepower and 169 pound-feet of torque. The base model has a six-speed manual transmission, while the others come with a six-speed automatic. Front-wheel drive is standard across the board, while LX and EX models are eligible for all-wheel drive. The AWD system comes with a locking center differential to improve low-speed traction in icy or off-road situations.
In our performance testing, the four-cylinder brought a Sorento EX from zero to 60 mph in a leisurely 9.9 seconds -- one of the slower times in the class. EPA-estimated fuel economy is 21 mpg city/29 mpg highway and 24 mpg combined with the front-wheel-drive automatic. It is 21/27/23 with AWD.
Optional is a 3.5-liter V6 rated at 276 hp and 248 lb-ft of torque; it comes only with the six-speed automatic and gets the Sorento from zero to 60 mph in an impressive 7.4 seconds, which is one of the quicker times in the class. Fuel economy stands at 20/26/22 with front-wheel drive and 19/25/21 with AWD.
The 2011 Kia Sorento comes standard with antilock disc brakes, stability control, hill-start assist, hill descent control, front-seat side airbags, full-length side curtain airbags and front active head restraints. In Edmunds brake testing, both four- and six-cylinder Sorentos came to a stop from 60 mph in 120 feet, which is very good for this class.
In the government's new, more strenuous crash testing for 2011, the Sorento earned an overall rating of four stars out of a possible five, with four stars for overall frontal crash protection and four stars for overall side crash protection. The Sorento earned a top score of "Good" for its performance in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's frontal-offset, side-impact and roof-strength crash tests.
Driving Impressions
As with the RAV4, the 2011 Kia Sorento is a tale of two engines. The base 2.4-liter four feels punchy enough around town and with light loads, but it struggles a bit with extra passengers and cargo. The 3.5-liter V6, on the other hand, is strong and smooth, and its fuel economy deficit isn't huge; too bad it's only available on the top-of-the-line EX.
At highway speeds, the Sorento's cabin remains impressively isolated from both road and wind noise. We're also fond of the Sorento's handling ability, as this crossover responds directly to steering inputs. This is indeed one of the more enjoyable small family crossovers to drive. The ride quality should be OK for most folks, but we've found that it gets overly harsh when the Sorento is driven over potholes and similarly broken pavement.
reference:www.edmunds.com,www.thetruthaboutcars.com,www.caranddriver.com
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