- The Kia Sorento is a midsize three-row family SUV that's also available as a hybrid and a plug-in hybrid.
- I was impressed by the Sorento's punchy turbocharged engine, rugged styling, and great tech.
- I found the Sorento's third row to be cramped and the climate controls cumbersome.
The Kia Sorento is one of a handful of SUVs that fill a very specific niche in the market: a midsize slotted in between compact crossovers and large three-row midsize SUVs like Kia's excellent Telluride.
While most others in this segment, like the Subaru Outback and the Honda Passport, come with two rows of seats, the Sorento and its corporate sibling, the Hyundai Santa Fe, are in the unique position of having three rows.
Even though that extra row is a bit short on space, the Sorento features rugged looks, a punchy engine, and a comprehensive suite of tech features.
I recently spent a week with a 2024 Kia Sorento in X-Line SX-Prestige trim.
The base 2025 Sorento LX starts at $31,990, while the range-topping X-Pro SX Prestige AWD trim starts at $47,390.
With fees, my top-of-the-line, Georgia-made test car came out to $48,285.
The 2025 Sorento is pretty much unchanged, with the most significant update being black instead of silver badging on X-Line trim models.
The current fourth-generation Sorento debuted in 2021 and received a mid-cycle refresh in 2024 with some updated styling and tech.
The revised front end, with its squared edges, vertical LED headlights, and rectangular grille, looks bold and rugged. It draws heavily from the brand's flagship Telluride SUV.
At 189.6 inches long, the Sorento splits the difference between the compact Sportage and the Telluride.
My test car boasted a limited 6.9 inches of ground clearance, less than the Subaru Outback and Honda Passport, both of which offer more than eight inches of clearance.
The Sorento is available in four different powertrains, including a hybrid and plug-in hybrid options.
My high-end test car was powered by a 281 horsepower turbocharged engine with an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.
The Sorento can also be had as a hybrid with 227 horsepower and as a plug-in hybrid with 261 horsepower and 31 miles of electric range.
My all-wheel-drive, turbocharged test car boasts EPA fuel economy figures of 20 mpg city, 27 mpg highway, and 23 mpg combined, pretty par for the course in this part of the market.
The Sorento's punchy turbocharged engine really shines.
Kia's 2.5-liter turbocharged engine and eight-speed DCT combine to make the Sorento a surprisingly peppy SUV. Power delivery felt immediate, consistent, and pretty smooth for a turbocharged four-cylinder.
The SUV's responsive steering makes it one of the better-handling midsize SUVs I've driven.
According to Kia, my 4,250-pound test car could accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in 7.5 seconds with a top speed of 131 miles per hour.
The Sorento's interior feels modern and upscale.
The updates to Sorento's interior really helped keep it competitive with newer entrants to the segments. The centerpiece of the new cabin is the curved panoramic display sitting atop the front dash, made up of a 12.3-inch instrument panel and a 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen.
The Sorento's overall interior material and build quality are solid. It's also thoughtfully designed with intuitively located controls. My only real gripe is with the small center stack display that houses both audio and climate controls. The screen switches between the two sets of controls and can be ungainly to use.
The large panoramic glass sunroof really brightens up the cabin, especially on a gray, cloudy day.
The panoramic roof is available on all Sorentos except the base trim.
My test car's heated, leather-wrapped steering wheel felt great on a cold winter day.
The Sorento's 12.3-inch digital instrument display looks crisp but offers limited configurability. It's also home to one of my favorite features, the blind spot view monitor, which uses a camera mounted to the side mirrors to give you a live video feed of your blind spots anytime the turn signal is activated.
The sage green leather seats in my test car were heated and ventilated.
The seats, with decorative stitching, not only looked fancy but were also very comfortable.
The Kia's touchscreen is responsive and easy to navigate.
The latest version of Hyundai/Kia's corporate infotainment system provides an excellent overall user experience.
The screen is also home to Sorento's 360-degree surround-view camera system.
Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on all trims.
The optional captain's chairs reduce passenger capacity from seven to six.
Regardless of seating configuration, the Sorento's 41.7-inch second-row legroom is impressive, eclipsing the larger Toyota Highlander and getting close to its big brother, Telluride.
The Kia's third row comes in handy but may be tight for adults, especially on long trips.
With 29.6 inches of legroom, the two-person bench is comparable in space to an economy seat on a low-cost airline. Amazing, it actually beats the Toyota Highlander by 1.6 inches.
The Sorento cargo-carrying ability is severely limited when the third row is in use, with just 12.6 cubic feet of space in the back.
Fold down the third-row bench, and cargo capacity expands to an impressive 45 cubic feet. In total, the Sorento offers up to 75.5 cubic feet of cargo space with both rear rows of seats folded.
Forward collision avoidance assist, blind spot collision avoidance warning, and lane keeping assist are all standard
Adaptive cruise control is also standard across the board, but high-end models get fancier navigation-based systems with machine-learning capability.
My verdict: The Sorento is a practical, handsomely styled midsize SUV with the flexibility of third-row seats and a broad choice of engines.
The Kia Sorento offers shoppers an intriguing proposition: a handsomely styled, tech-laden family SUV with the people-carrying ability of a larger, midsize SUV like the critically acclaimed Telluride, but for about $5,000 less.
While you will have to make certain concessions, such as reduced interior and cargo space, a less refined ride, and a four-cylinder engine isn't as smooth as the Telluride's V6.
Even still, the Sorento will make a lot of sense for many families, especially those who like the flexibility of a third row and the choice of hybrid and ICE engines.
