2026 Kia Sportage review

The Kia Sportage is arguably Kia’s most enduring model. It’s not quite the most popular in New Zealand — that honour goes to the Seltos, selling just over 3000 units last year compared to the Sportage’s 1300 — but the badge has been around for so long (more than three decades!) that you could argue it remains the most common. 

It went hybrid in 2021 (but we didn’t get it until 2024), but you could only have the electrified Sportage with front-wheel drive, meaning those looking for a hybrid, all-wheel drive mid-size SUV typically went to Toyota. To rectify that, Kia has imbued its AWD Sportage with hybrid power as part of a larger update to the local range.

It’s a pretty expansive update too, with the most obvious change being a new front end, which pulls styling elements from the likes of the recently updated Carnival and Sorento. You’ve got a wider front grille area and L-shaped LED headlights, both of which serve to nicely integrate the Sportage within Kia’s new overarching design ethos.

How much does the Kia Sportage HEV Light AWD cost? 

Kia currently offers three Sportage trims: the Light, Earth, and X-Line. All are hybrid; gone are the diesel and pure-petrol models for 2026.

There’s a pretty clear trend there. The lesser AWD is priced exactly the same as the higher-specced 2WD, with the obvious exception of the range-topping X-Line AWD. That means Kia is offering you either all-wheel drive surety or more kit for your buck. 

The range also largely mimics the incoming 6th-generation Toyota RAV4, though the AWD X-Line is a grand more expensive than the RAV4 Limited Hybrid. We’re not testing that one though. This is the HEV Light AWD, the entry point to the all-paw Sportage models.

What’s the Kia Sportage HEV Light AWD like on the inside?

Modern, in a word. Gone are the piano black plastics from the older model and in their place is a nice matte grey plastic. A good move, because the piano black stuff really loved to fingerprint and show off dust. The circular drive selector is still there, which I quite like, as is the nifty dual control unit under the centre vents. At the touch of a button the panel switches between haptic air-conditioning controls and media buttons. It’s a clever solution for saving some space in the cabin, but can be an acquired taste with some customers.

Speaking of air-con, dual-zone is standard across the board for the Sportage. The steering wheel is a new, twin-spoke design as well, with a mode button to go along with the normal media/cruise control switches. This switches the car between Eco, Sport and Individual modes (largely unnecessary) while paddles behind the wheel change how aggressive the regenerative brakes are. Also, if you press and hold the Mute button for three seconds, the overspeed warning chime turns off, a nice feature so you don’t have to dive through the infotainment system menus every time you turn the car on.

Behind the wheel in the Light model is a digital screen with twin readouts, and a third 4.2-inch multifunction screen nestled in the middle. It’s a nice dash, retro and modern at the same time while being easy to decipher.

There’s more space inside for 2026 as well, with 633 litres of cargo space afforded, expandable to 1919 litres with the second row folded.

The Light is named aptly, coming with unheated, manually operated cloth seats, a rearview camera instead of a 360-degree camera, and a manual boot. There’s no wireless charger either, which is a bit of a shame considering the superb 12.3-inch touchscreen comes with wireless phone mirroring for both Apple and Android. This can drain a phone battery quite quickly, so wireless charging is almost a necessity for wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.

What’s under the bonnet?

Every Sportage now comes with a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine making 132kW/265Nm paired with a single electric motor which produces 47.7kW and an unspecified amount of torque. Put them both together and the Sportage HEV’s combined system output is 173kW/367Nm. 

The motor is fed by a 1.49kWh battery, which is large enough to allow electric-only drive for short periods of time.

A six-speed automatic transmission is the only option in the gear changing area. It’s a welcome alternative from the CVTs that seem to exist everywhere else in the market. But this is fairly old news. The pre-facelift Sportage had the same powertrain, though it’s comparatively down 3.7kW on electrical power, according to Kia.

How does the Kia Sportage HEV Light AWD drive?

Really quite well. The Sportage has generally been a good thing on the road, and the update hasn’t changed much in that regard. 

Starting with the powertrain, the hybrid system is very smooth. It starts in electric mode pretty much all the time, which means quiet and brisk getaways, and isn’t hesitant to stay there for as long as possible. It does eventually recruit the petrol engine, which is hushed and unintrusive. On downhill stretches and while coasting at speeds below 100kph the engine switches off and leaves the electric motor to get on with things. 

The transition from electric to petrol power is surprisingly smooth too, considering CVT transmissions generally pull this off better than gearboxes with actual gears.

All-wheel drive means you get more added grip on the road and a small degree of off-roadability, but it does come at the cost of added fuel consumption. Kia claims 5.9L/100km for the AWD model, compared to 5.4L/100km for the FWD variant. Expect low sixes in the real world, which really isn’t all that bad. It’ll be interesting to see how it compares to the new-generation Toyota RAV4 later this year.

Speaking of off-roading, this isn’t something we tried but with 181mm of ground clearance and the various off-road drive modes, you should be able to romp around a field pretty easily, not to mention bumpier gravel roads. 

Driving the Sportage around town is a genuine delight. Ride comfort is superb, nicely controlled over typical Kiwi roads. It’s really business as usual for the Sportage in this department. The instant poke from the electric motor makes taking off from a set of lights a breeze, not to mention quiet, and it’ll keep going for quite a while too before asking the engine to chime in.

While there is a Sport mode, it basically just sharpens the throttle response and artificially the the steering, and holding lower gears longer for improved acceleration and agility. May as well leave it in Eco and let the brains of the car do its thing. But if you do suddenly feel the urge, the Sportage’s chassis is quite a bit of fun to throw around, while hybrid power means it punches out of corners well.

What do you get?

The range for the Kia Sportage spans three models, the Light, Earth and X-Line. Each can be in front-wheel or all-wheel drive, and standard kit is the same across either drivetrain.

Kia Sportage Light highlights:

• 17-inch alloys
• Forward collision assist
• Multi-collision braking (automatically applies the brakes after an initial airbag-deploying collision to prevent or mitigate secondary impacts)
• Blind spot collision avoidance
• Rear cross-traffic assist
• Lane-keep assist
• Adaptive cruise control with stop/go
• Driver attention alert
• Automatic high-beams
• Automatic wipers
• Front/rear parking sensors
• Rearview camera with guidelines
• LED headlights (MFR type) and LED taillights
• LED daytime running lights
• Manually adjustable cloth seats
• Six-speaker audio system
• Wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto

Kia Sportage Earth adds:

• 18-inch alloy rims
• Composite leather seats
• Powered driver’s seat 
• Heated front seats
• Built-in satellite navigation
• 2 x USB chargers on front seat backs
• Wireless phone charging
• Interior ambient lighting
• Electrochromatic rearview mirror
• Powered tailgate 

Kia Sportage X-Line adds:

• Blind spot view monitor
• Reverse parking collision avoidance assist 
• LED headlights (four-cube projection type)
• Glossy black X-Line roof rails
• Panoramic powered sunroof
• Powered passenger seat
• Heated/ventilated front seats
• Front/rear ambient interior lights
• 12.3-inch digital driver’s display
• 8-speaker Harman/Kardon sound system

CarExpert’s take on the Kia Sportage HEV Light AWD

It’s good to see Kia taking a proper swing at the RAV4 with the all-wheel drive hybrid Sportage. This is a genuinely high-quality medium SUV with proper eco credentials now going with that typically brilliant Kia ride, cabin and fit/finish. While the Sportage HEV might not be quite on par with the RAV4’s low fuel consumption, it still does very well for itself. Honestly, it’s probably at the point where you wouldn’t see much difference in the real world, particularly in terms of refuelling costs.

Overall, Kia has a winner on its hands here. The range looks to be well thought out, with many bases covered. Stiff competition will come later this year with the revamped Toyota RAV4, which will likely improve on fuel economy, while there are plenty of other existing options in the medium SUV market like the Haval H6, Mitsubishi Outlander, Hyundai Tucson, and Mazda CX-5. 

If you can swing it, I would suggest pushing the extra $5k for the Earth model over the Light, as creature comforts like leather heated seats, a heated steering wheel, ambient and wireless phone charging would really make the package quite a bit bigger. Or you could scrap AWD and go for the 2WD Earth, netting you those extra amenities and reducing fuel consumption for the same price as the AWD Light. It really depends on your priorities.