Used Kia Sorento Review (2015-2020) MK3
Independent review by Peter Hayward from Driving Force
4-minute read
Overview
- Top levels of practicality
- Plenty of models still covered by Kia's 7-year warranty
- Comfortable and well-equipped
- Less kerb appeal than some rivals
- Not the most dynamic to drive
- Limited range of engines
What's the Kia Sorento like?
The majority of Kia’s third-generation Sorento SUVs are still covered by the company’s superb 7-year or 100,000-mile warranty.
This marks it out as something special in a market where almost all the others only offer three years.
This model was replaced in 2020 and it makes an excellent used five or seven-seater with a huge range of plus points, not least of which is cheaper prices than the opposition but the same high specification.
It’s up against the premium brands of course, and this model did much to raise standards both inside and out.
Practicality
Make no mistake, this is a big, spacious vehicle, which is available with an extra pair of seats for children or adults, that pop up very easily from the boot floor.
So, it can carry seven in comfort, or five with all their luggage for a couple of weeks holiday.
Add excellent comfort over most surfaces, and an engine with performance enough to handle the weight, and you have a real contender to set against the Land Rover Discovery Sport or BMW X3, but at a fraction of their prices for the same spec.
Driving Experience
There is just one engine available in the UK, a 2.2-litre diesel with part-time four-wheel drive, and power goes through either a six-speed manual or six and eight-speed automatic gearboxes.
The smooth power unit produces a very good 197bhp, and even with a large body to pull around, acceleration of 9.3 seconds to 60mph is quite acceptable.
Soundproofing is very good, so that the engine note only becomes really noticeable at higher revs. But you rarely have to push it that far so it’s never a problem.
Road and wind noise are also very well subdued, and this means that occasional bump-thump from the very large wheels and tyres over bigger road blemishes is all that comes through to the cabin at speed.
For a big 4x4, the handling and road holding are also particularly good, with much better body control than some others.
This means that it takes the corners neatly and very safely, only getting a little wayward when seriously provoked, which few owners are likely to do.
Equipment
Comfort is excellent over almost all surfaces. It brushes off speed humps, and takes rough country roads with nothing more than a slight increase in tyre noise.
Long wheelbase and excellent head and legroom, plus very good seats, mean that even with seven people on board, they all ride comfortably.
A high-quality interior is up with the best. Soft touch plastics cover every surface, and the switches and controls are all satisfyingly smooth.
Peter Hayward
Equipment in the mid-range KX-3 is truly excellent. It includes an alarm system, sat nav with an eight-inch screen, Bluetooth, aux-in and USB, parking sensors and a rear-view camera, and heated and electrically adjusted leather seats.
It also has a multi-function steering wheel, heated mirrors, active cruise control that speeds up and slows down automatically in traffic, DAB radio, blind spot detection, sunroof and even a self-parking function.
Some of the big 4x4 opposition would be nearly twice the price when given the same spec from the extras list.
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