2022 kia sportage teaser 1
2022 kia sportage teaser 2
2022 kia sportage teaser 3
2021 kia sportage spy 003
2021 kia sportage spy 008
Carsales Staff31 May 2021
NEWS

Next-gen Kia Sportage revealed

High-tech interior and sleek exterior for Kia’s all-new Toyota RAV4 rival – and hybrids are on the horizon

First official images of the fifth-generation Kia Sportage have been released, confirming Kia’s next answer to the top-selling Toyota RAV4 will bring a bold new exterior look and, inside, an ultra-wide all-in-one infotainment screen and digital instrument cluster.

But unlike its Korean cousin, the newly launched fourth-generation Hyundai Tucson, a powerful turbo-petrol/electric hybrid powertrain is on the agenda for the Aussie-market 2022 Kia Sportage, although it’s yet to be officially confirmed.

Set to arrive in Australia from around November 2021 after its global reveal in July, the smarter, safer and larger Kia mid-size SUV will attempt to steal sales from popular vehicles like the RAV4, Mazda CX-5 and Nissan X-TRAIL.

The exterior design is bolder and sportier than before, as previous spy photos of the all-new Kia Sportage also attested to, but these three new images show more details including sleek new LED headlight and tail-light designs.

2022 kia sportage teaser 2

The 2022 Kia Sportage’s chunkier exterior styling adheres to the Korean car-maker’s new design language, dubbed ‘opposites united’, which chief designer Karim Habib says combines nature and technology.

“Taking inspiration from an ethos we created where nature meets technology, the all-new Sportage challenges the norm with an adventurous and contemporary exterior and a carefully conceived, beautifully detailed interior,” said Habib.

“With the all-new Sportage, we were fully focused on challenging ourselves and pushing our fifth-generation SUV to a new level.”

The most audacious design cues are arguably in the vehicle’s interior, which will be punctuated by a huge all-in-one curved digital screen. It takes up more than half the Sportage’s dashboard and while it’s likely to be offered only on top end models, the integrated infotainment and instrument cluster display will give the SUV an upmarket, high-tech edge over its rivals.

2022 kia sportage teaser 3

The 2022 Kia Sportage will also benefit from upgrades to comfort, connectivity and safety tech, including indicator-operated blind-spot video feeds, wireless phone charging and all the usual necessities like USB ports, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

It may even get a remote parking function, where owners can exit the vehicle and control basic vehicle movement via the key fob. Autonomous acceleration, braking and steering will also be offered via adaptive cruise control, lane keeping, lane following and highway driving assistance systems.

The new Kia Sportage will be a bigger SUV than the current model, with more room for all five occupants and increased boot space. Based on the same platform as its sister vehicle, the all-new Hyundai Tucson, it should offer similar dimensions (4630mm long, 1865mm wide, 1665mm tall).

Increasing the Sportage’s size also helps distance the vehicle from the smaller and more affordable Kia Seltos, which has proved very popular with Aussie buyers.

2021 kia sportage spy 006

Hybrid powertrains for Sportage in limbo

It’s not yet clear whether the new Kia Sportage will get carry-over engines or all-new powerplants in Australia. The current vehicle offers two petrol and one turbo-diesel engine.

The hotly-anticipated SUV will not be available with hybrid powertrains from launch, meaning Kia is not about to introduce a direct rival for the hugely popular RAV4 Hybrid.

However, after Kia Australia initially said it was not considering offering any sort of hybrid Sportage here, a spokesperson for the brand today said petrol-electric powertrains are “not completely off the agenda but definitely not confirmed either”.

Both mild-hybrid and more expensive plug-in hybrid versions of the Kia Sportage are now under consideration for Australia. In contrast, the new Hyundai Tucson is at this stage all but certain to miss out on any form of hybrid powertrain in the Aussie marketplace.

2021 kia sportage spy 012

The Kia Sportage’s hybrid powertrain is expected to be the same set-up from the European-built Hyundai Tucson hybrid, which combines a turbo-petrol 1.6-litrefour-cylinder engine with a small electric motor to generate a handy 171kW/350Nm.

Expect it to command a price premium over conventional versions of the 2022 Kia Sportage, which will bring price increases over the outgoing model ($29,490-$48,990) to go with its seven-year warranty.

Kia Australia is currently pushing hard into the electric space with the just-launched Niro EV, which will be followed by its first plug-in hybrid large SUV, the Sorento PHEV, around September this year.

The fully-electric Kia EV6, based on the brand’s dedicated new EV platform, has also been given the green-light for sale in Australia.

Before these electrified models and the new Sportage arrive, Kia will next month release an upgraded version of its top-selling model, the 2021 Cerato hatch and sedan.

The Sportage is currently Kia Australia’s third most popular model, notching up 2820 sales during the first four months of 2021. The Cerato (5993) and Seltos (3207) round out the sales podium for Kia so far this year.

Share this article
Written byCarsales Staff
See all articles
Our team of independent expert car reviewers and journalistsMeet the team
Stay up to dateBecome a carsales member and get the latest news, reviews and advice straight to your inbox.
Download the carsales app
    AppStoreDownloadGooglePlayDownload
    App Store and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.
    © CAR Group Ltd 1999-2024
    In the spirit of reconciliation we acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.