Kia has released a trio of offical teaser images of its vital new Sportage mid-sized SUV ahead of a global reveal in July.
Set to hit Australian shores before the end of 2021, Kia’s fifth-generation Sportage will look and feel very different to the outgoing car, which was itself a design evolution of the third-generation model.
We also expect Kia Australia to slightly reposition the Sportage, since the outgoing model is dimensionally close to the big-selling Seltos sitting a rung beneath it in the company’s SUV line-up.
The teaser images show an exterior and – in particular – interior with clear relationships to the new EV6 electric crossover halo car.
“The all-new Sportage has been carefully crafted to establish new benchmarks in its segment – for its advanced exterior and interior design, connectivity tech, and responsive yet highly efficient powertrains,” Kia claims.
“The early images hint at an assertive and cutting-edge presence for the SUV – paying homage to nature’s perfection and simplicity whilst connecting with the brand’s new design direction.”
There’s the sharp and taut sheetmetal shaping with defined side character lines, wide grille with distinctive daytime lights, muscular shoulders, and new brand badging.
The cabin teaser shows that top-of-the-range Sportage variants will get a huge curved centre display, limited buttons, and more premium materials and trims.
“ …The all-new Sportage challenges the norm with an adventurous and contemporary exterior and a carefully conceived, beautifully detailed interior,” said Senior Vice President and Head of the Global Design Centre Karim Habib.
“With the all-new Sportage, we were fully focused on challenging ourselves and pushing our fifth-generation SUV to a new level.”
Under the skin the Sportage will share its platform with the latest Hyundai Tucson.
In Australia the Tucson is offered with either a 115kW/192Nm 2.0-litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder, or a 132kW/265Nm 1.6-litre turbo.
A 2.0-litre turbo-diesel with 137kW and 416Nm is also available.
While Hyundai won’t be offering hybrid or PHEV versions any time soon, Kia will investigate both drivetrains for this market. It has managed to secure both drivetrains in its larger and more expensive Sorento.
By year’s end Kia will have a fairly fresh range of SUVs from the small Stonic, up to the Seltos (which will cop some updates of its own in 2022), the new Sportage, large Sorento, and the EV6. Alas, the huge Telluride remains off the table.
It’s all action stations in the medium SUV market, with other brand-new generation models coming soon including the Mitsubishi Outlander and Nissan X-Trail twins.
Stay tuned to CarExpert for all the latest, and let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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