In this video, I talk about the 2021 Kia Sportage, compare it to the competition, go over the pros and cons, reliability, resale value, pricing, and trim information.
Basics
Exterior Styling
Interior
Size
Reliability
Resale Value
Pros
Cons
Price & Trim
Conclusion
Basics - The Sportage is Kia’s compact SUV that competes with the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V and the Hyundai Tucson. In Kia’s SUV lineup, the Sportage sits above the subcompact Seltos and below the midsize Sorento.
The Sportage was refreshed in 2020 so the 2021 model year is a carryover. For 2021, a special Nightfall Edition is available on the S trim which features unique blacked out badges and alloy wheels with blacked out wheels.
Prices for the Sportage start at $23,990 and go up to $35,150.
The Sportage comes in two engine options with the base engine being a 2.4L normally aspirated 4 cylinder producing 181 horsepower and 175 lb-ft of torque. The uplevel engine is a 2 liter turbocharged 4 cylinder producing 240 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. Both engines are mated to a 6 speed automatic transmission. The Sportage comes standard with front wheel drive while all wheel drive is a $1500 option.
The uplevel turbo engine makes the Sportage one of the most powerful in this class and makes it significantly quicker than the base engine. The 0 to 60 mph in the base engine is around 8.8 seconds while the turbo gets there in 6.7 seconds. The base engine should provide adequate speed for most drivers.
Fuel economy for the base engine Sportage comes in at 23 city, 30 highway, and 26 MPG combined for the front wheel drive. All wheel drive drops the MPGs to 21 city, 25 highway, and 23 combined. The fuel economy in the CR-V, the RAV4, Rogue, and the Forester are 15 to 30% better than the Sportage so if that’s important to you, then you may want to look elsewhere.
The towing capacity for the Sportage is 2000 lbs.
Interior - I am a big fan of Kia’s interior layout. There are physical buttons for climate control. The central infotainment system is nicely integrated into the dash. It’s also one of the better systems in the market in terms of speed and ease of use. There’s a traditional gear selector.
Size - The Sportage is average when it comes to passenger space. It has 39.3” of front headroom and 39.1” of rear headroom. The Sportage has 41.5” of front legroom and 38.2” of rear legroom. Those numbers are almost identical to its corporate cousin Hyundai Tucson. You should have plenty of room for taller passengers to sit in the front and back seats.
As for cargo space, the Kia Sportage has 30.7 cubic feet behind the rear seats and 60.1 cubic feet of space with the rear seats down. While that’s similar to the CX-5 and the Tucson, you’ll get 10 to 15 more cubic feet in the CR-V, the RAV4, the Rogue, and the Forester.
Reliability - According to a leading nonprofit consumer publication, the Kia Sportage is expected to have average reliability. No major problems were reported for the 2018 and 2019 model year Sportage.
Resale Value - Resale value is an important consideration for many shoppers when they are considering a vehicle. The 2021 Kia Sportage is pretty average when it comes to expected resale value. The 3 year expected resale value of the Sportage is 63.6% of original price. The 5 year expected resale value is 48.3% and the 7 year expected resale value is 42.6%.
Pros - There are several things that stand out for the Kia Sportage. Second, you have an optional engine that is one of the more powerful ones in this class.
Cons - The only major negative for the Sportage is the fuel economy is not competitive in this class.
The Sportage also has only 6.4” of ground clearance on the front wheel drive version and 6.8” in the all wheel drive version.
Price and Trim - The 2021 Sportage LX is the base model and starts at $23,990.
The S trim starts at $26,490 and adds outside mirrors with LED turn-signals, fog lights, 18” wheels
The Sportage EX trim starts at $27,290 and adds power liftgate, windshield wiper de-icer, rear USB port, push button start
The top end Sportage SX Turbo starts at $33,650 and adds the 240 horsepower turbo engine, radar cruise control, panoramic moonroof, LED headlights,
Conclusion - The 2021 Kia Sportage is a strong contender in the compact SUV class with its good looks, refined interior, easy to use controls, and good value for your money.
The Sportage is mechanically similar to its corporate cousin Hyundai Tucson but their styling is very different.
One more thing to keep in mind is that the average discount for the Kia Sportage is bigger than that for the Hyundai Tucson. I was easily able to find them for $2000 to $2500 off of the MSRP for the Sportage.
Let me know what you think of the Sportage in the comments. Thanks for watching.
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