2023 Kia Sorento
| Fuel Efficiency | 1.6 - 9.7 / 100km |
|---|---|
| ANCAP Rating | 5-star |
| Warranty | 7 years |
About the Sorento
The fourth-generation Kia Sorento is the company’s answer to a large family SUV that can handle seven passengers in a safe and comfortable fashion packed with the latest technology and features.
With a base model front-wheel drive powered by a 3.5-litre V6 to an all-wheel drive plug-in hybrid electric that is nearly double the price, the Kia Sorento range is vast and caters to families of all sorts.
Summary
Spacious, practical interior
Petrol engine is a smooth mover, diesel is efficient
Long list of standard equipment
PHEV is $15,000 more expensive than diesel
Petrol is front-wheel drive only
Diesel misses auto start/stop
Price & Specs
Reviews
News
Sorento Range Guide
Simply put, the Kia Sorento is one of the best large SUVs in its price bracket, though rivals such as the Toyota Kluger, Mazda CX-9, Hyundai Santa Fe and Skoda Kodiaq all offer stiff competition.
If you’ve done your homework and decided the Sorento is the next family bus for you, you need to start whittling down the different variants.
Given there is a $18,000 price difference between the top-spec diesel GT-Line and the entry-spec S, you can be sure moving through the range brings a growing list of features and creature comforts.
We feel for most buyers the Sport or Sport Plus variants would be the way to go. For those on a tighter budget or after a no-frills car with excellent ride, the S is also a great option.
Of course, if you want it all and then some, the GT-Line is the sure winner.
Kia Sorento S models come standard with:
- 17-inch alloy wheels
- 235/65 Continental tyres
- Full-size alloy spare
- Front and rear parking sensors
- Reflector LED auto headlights
- Rain-sensing wipers
- Roof rails
- Seven cloth seats
- 4 x USB points
- 8.0-inch touchscreen
- Wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- Bluetooth phone and audio
- Digital radio
- Six-speaker audio
- Manual air-conditioning
- Second-row air vents
The ride quality in the S is the best in the Sorento range thanks to its high-sidewall tyres, but you know you’re in a fleet special because you have to put a key in the ignition barrel.
The touchscreen is also small relative to the rest of the range.
Kia Sorento Sport models gain:
- 18-inch machine finish wheels
- Tyre-pressure monitor
- 10-way powered driver’s seat
- Passenger sun visor sliding function
- 10.25-inch touchscreen
- Satellite-navigation
- Dual-zone climate control
- Third-row fan control, vents
Outside of fleet buyers this seems like an easy decision over the S.
The extra cost over the base model is justified by the better infotainment system and climate control alone.
For a further $4400, Kia Sorento Sport+ models gain:
- 19-inch machine finish wheels
- 235/55 Continental tyres
- LED combination rear lights
- Powered tailgate
- Tinted privacy glass
- Aero-blade type wipers
- Proximity key access and exit
- Remote engine start function
- Leather-appointed seats
- Heated front seats
- Auto-dimming rear mirror
- Heated steering wheel
- Safety function for all auto up/down windows
- 4 x extra USB points
For many people the leather seats, powered tailgate, and privacy glass for back-seat occupants will be highly desirable extras. Ditto the hands-free proximity key.
For a further $7600, Kia Sorento GT-Line models gain:
- 20-inch dark chrome alloy wheels
- 255/45 Continental tyres
- Projector LED headlights
- Blind-spot camera in instruments
- Electronic child safety lock
- Smart key with remote-control parking
- Kerbside auto-dipping side mirrors
- Panoramic sunroof
- Quilted Nappa leather seats
- Ventilated front seats
- Heated outboard second-row seats
- 14-way powered driver seat with memory
- 10-way powered front passenger seat
- Shift-by-wire rotary gear dial
- Paddle shifters
- 12.3-inch digital instruments
- Projecting head-up display
- 64 interior lighting colours
- Alloy pedals and door scuff plating
- LED interior reading lights
- Second-row sun shades
- Wireless phone charger pad
- Bose 12-speaker sound system
- In-car intercom system
While the 20-inch wheels and slim tyres won’t help the ride quality, the range-topping Sorento is best thought of as a genuine alternative to more expensive European fare in terms of its tech.
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Interior
The Sorento offers an appealing blend of style and practicality behind the wheel.
For the Sport+ and above, the driver and passenger sit in heated, leather-trimmed armchairs that offer plenty of support on longer drives. The driving position is good, with more than enough adjustment to accomodate lanky drivers – or to allow small drivers a good look at the road ahead.
With generously padded armrests and a quality steering wheel, it’s a plush place to spend time.
It’s heavy on black plastic, but the dashboard has a handsome design. The climate controls fall easily to hand, and the touchscreen infotainment system takes at least some inspiration from Mercedes-Benz with its gloss black housing.
We’ve had plenty of experience with the widescreen infotainment system featuring in the latest Kia and Hyundai models. It’s intuitive to use and responds quickly to inputs, although the shortcut buttons in the top corner of the screen are hard to reach.
With digital radio, factory navigation, smartphone mirroring, and some neat touches like a Sounds of Nature program that mimics footsteps in crisp snow or the crackle of an open fire, it’s not short on features. It’s a shame there’s no wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, though so you have to plug your phone in for that to work.
The GT-Line gets a slick digital dashboard thanks to its 12.3-inch infotainment system, but the models below have a more conventional analogue dials flanking a colour trip computer. It’s easy to read and still has essentials like a digital speedo, but misses out on the excellent blind-spot view camera offered on the range-topper.
Unfortunately there are no USB-C charge ports, so you're stuck with traditional USB (A/B). With that said, if you got a Sport+ variant or above, you’re not short on places to plug in; there are three ports up front, four in the second row, and two in the third row.
There’s an abundance of storage space up front, with a huge space for phones under the dashboard, two cupholders on the transmission tunnel, a deep bin under the central armrest, and spacious door pockets.
The second row can be moved forward or back, and the seat backs can be reclined.
In terms of numbers, there’s 994mm of headroom and 1034mm of legroom for middle-row passengers.
Third-row occupants get slightly less head- and legroom, 935mm and 752mm respectively.
Second-row legroom and headroom are both impressive for even leggy teenagers and full-sized adults, to the point where six-footers can happily sit behind six-footers. It’s impressive.
You’re not short on amenities, either. A fold-down central armrest is on hand to keep warring children separate, and there’s plenty of cupholders back there for road trips. Although there’s air vents, there’s no temperature controls for second-row occupants.
The third row is okay without being outstanding. As is usually the case in seven-seat SUVs, the rearmost seats are best reserved for small kids. Kia’s one-touch folding system for the second row makes access easier, but it’s a tight squeeze getting back there if you aren’t young and flexible.
Headroom is tight for adults, and the flat seats mean your knees will be up around your chin if you have long legs. Separate fan controls for the third row are a plus, as are the USB charge points and storage for a small bottle and phone.
Exterior
The Sorento is a gorgeous car from the outside, expressing the South Korean brand's latest design DNA. It's modern without being over the top and we really love the three-quarter view from the rear and the tail lights in particular.
While it may not be as modern in appearance as its smaller Sportage brother, the Sorento represents a very aesthetically-pleasing offering in what is a crowded SUV market.
Sorento Photo Gallery
Ownership Suitability
The 2022 Kia Sorento is suited to families that have at least three kids and want to seperate them by utilising the third row.
Parents with two kids who don't often need the back seats are likely better off with the Kia Sportage instead. Nonetheless, it's hard to argue that the Sorento wouldn't fit any family that values price, features, safety and practicality.
Sorento Colours
There are seven colours available for the Kia Sorento.
- Clear White,
- Silky Silver,
- Steel Grey,
- Mineral Blue,
- Aurora Black,
- Gravity Blue,
- Snow White Pearl.
The interior is available with Embossed Cloth for the base S and Sport variants while the Sport+ gets leather appointed interior and the GT Line comes with the higher grade Nappa Leather Appointed.
Cost of Ownership
Petrol and diesel models have 12 month or 15,000km servicing intervals.
Over seven years, a petrol Sorento will cost $3449 to service against $3463 for a diesel Sorento. That means the average service cost works out to be just $2 in the V6’s favour.
2.2L Diesel Service Costs
- 1 Year or 15,000 km – $335.00
- 2 Years or 30,000 km – $544.00
- 3 Years or 45,000 km – $408.00
- 4 Years or 60,000 km – $729.00
- 5 Years or 75,000 km – $377.00
- 6 Years or 90,000 km – $670.00
- 7 Years or 105,000 km – $400.00
3.5L Petrol Service Costs
- 1 Year or 15,000 km – $338.00
- 2 Years or 30,000 km – $533.00
- 3 Years or 45,000 km – $411.00
- 4 Years or 60,000 km – $725.00
- 5 Years or 75,000 km – $381.00
- 6 Years or 90,000 km – $657.00
- 7 Years or 105,000 km – $404.00
How it Drives
The driving dynamics are really dependent on the variant you pick. The front-wheel drive petrol models drive rather differently to the all-wheel drive diesel models. Meanwhile, the plug-in hybrid is a different beast entirely. We recommend reading the reviews of each model (look for review section above).
Even so, the main differences from a dynamics perspective are the various wheel and tyre packages (the Sport+ and GT-Line are worse at ironing out sharp bumps); the diesel’s AWD with locking centre and terrain-specific throttle modes; and extra tare weight.
All Sorento models have electrically-assisted power steering, MacPherson strut front and multi-link rear suspension with an Australian-specific damper tune, and 325mm-rotor ventilated disc brakes front and rear.
Sorento Safety Rating
All Kia Sorento models come with dual-front, front-side, and first- and second-row curtain airbags. They don’t extend all the way along the third seating row.
There are also five top-tether and four ISOFIX anchors, and Safe Exit Assist that warns you if someone is about to open their door into moving traffic or cyclists when parked.
All variants come with active safety features including forward autonomous emergency braking for cars, pedestrians, cyclists and junctions.
Also standard are a driver attention monitor, active lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and adaptive cruise control.
The Kia Sorento received a five-star ANCAP safety rating for both petrol and diesel models.
It earned a safety assist score of 89 per cent, along with 82 per cent for adult occupant protection, 85 per cent for child occupant protection, and 63 per cent for vulnerable road user protection.
Sorento Lifecycle
The current generation Kia Sorento was launched in August 2020 and is currently 58 percent through its lifecycle. The last update was a new variant that was launched in April 2024 with the next model expected in 2027.
Sorento Warranty
In addition to its seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, Kia offers seven years of capped-price servicing.
Sorento Stock Availability
The current global shortage of microchips and huge demand for new cars has seen a rather lengthy delay for customers looking for a new Kia Sorento with expectations ranging from six to 12 months depending on variant.
While some other competitors may be more readily available, those keen to stick with the seven-seater Kia would be best to reach out to their closest dealer and see if stock becomes available sooner as there is always a chance of a cancelled or unwanted order.
Sorento Infotainment
All models come with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, with the base model making use of an 8.0-inch touchscreen. Moving to the Sport and above gets you a 10.25-inch touchscreen with built in satellite navigation.
Sorento Boot Space
In terms of luggage space, the Sorento offers 187L with the third row in place, 616L in its five-seat layout and 2011L with the second and third rows folded flat.
All versions feature a full-size alloy spare under the boot floor, and there’s even space to spare to stow the rear cargo blind.
Sorento Fuel Economy
The 3.5-litre V6 engine has 200kW of power and 332Nm of torque. Fuel economy for the Front-wheel drive petrol is 9.7L/100km combined of regular unleaded (91 RON).
The 2.2-litre diesel has 148kW of power and 440Nm of torque with fuel economy rated at 6.1L/100km of regular diesel driven via all four wheels.
The top-spec all-wheel drive 1.6-litre hybrid model with its 192kW and 350Nm (combined petrol and electric) uses 1.6L/100km of regular unleaded petrol under the official limited testing cycle.
That would include its roughly 68km of full electric range. If the battery is flat the fuel economy figure would be substantially higher.
Depending on the variant, view the 2023 KIA SORENTO fuel usage below.
All Highway, City, and Combined figures below are litres per 100km
| Variant | Series | Style | Fuel Type | Highway | City | Combined | E10? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| S 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| SPORT 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| SPORT 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| S 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| S 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| SPORT 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| SPORT 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| SPORT+ 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| SPORT+ 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| SPORT+ 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| SPORT+ 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| GT-LINE 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| GT-LINE 7 SEAT | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| GT-LINE 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL | - | - | 9.7 | - |
| GT-LINE 7 SEAT HEV FWD | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL/ELECTRIC | - | - | 5.3 | - |
| GT-LINE 7 SEAT | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | DIESEL | - | - | 6.1 | - |
| GT-LINE 7 SEAT HEV AWD | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL/ELECTRIC | - | - | 5.8 | - |
| GT-LINE HEV FWD | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL/ELECTRIC | - | - | 5.4 | - |
| GT-LINE HEV AWD | MQ4 PE MY24 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL/ELECTRIC | - | - | 5.7 | - |
| GT-LINE 7 SEAT PHEV AWD | MQ4 MY23 | 4D WAGON | UNLEADED PETROL/ELECTRIC | - | - | 1.6 | Yes |
Sorento Dimensions
The 2023 KIA SORENTO measures 4810mm long, 1900mm wide and 1700mm tall, with a 2815mm tall wheelbase.
The 2023 KIA SORENTO has a braked towing capacity from 1350kg to 2000kg depending on the variant and an unbraked towing capacity of 750kg.
Sorento Market Fit
The Kia Sorento is categorised as a Large SUV There are currently 10 other options in the Large SUV segment, those that fit within a similar price range include:
Sorento Sales Data
In 2021, Kia sold 5126 Sorentos. This number would have been noticeably higher if not for delays and car shortages due to the pandemic and microchip shortages, although the same can be said across the industry.
Sorento Reliability
From the limited data available to us since the current-generation of the Kia Sorento launched in 2020, we have no reason to suspect there are any reliability concerns with purchasing the Sorento.
With its long warranty and tried and proven powertrain (petrol and diesel – hybrid remains to be seen), we would have no hesitation in recommending the Sorento.
Should you buy the Sorento
Ultimately, the Kia Sorento range offers a variant for everyone at a multitude of price points.
Unless you really want the benefit of a plug-in hybrid with a near 70km range, we recommend the Sport Plus as the best pick for the money.
Frequently Asked Questions
Enquiring through CarExpert is one of the easiest ways to order a new 2023 Kia Sorento. We connect you with an accredited dealer/s and equip you with information on current deals, what others have paid, plus, our independent reviews and ratings. You can also call our friendly Concierge team whenever you need support - they remain on hand throughout the process to ensure you get the service (and value!) we demand of our partnered dealers.
When you buy a new 2023 Kia Sorento through CarExpert, speed, confidence and great value come standard.