00:00this is a 2026 facelift kia sportage it has new headlights and i'd like to say that's all
00:06but i promise you there are more changes and some of them are even for the better which isn't so
00:10obvious these days this is the front wheel drive non-electrified version the cheaper end of the
00:17spectrum which is exactly what you like or you say you like let's see if it's any good
01:04the kia sportage is more than 30 years old the first generation was based on the mazda bongo
01:12good old days the second generation which arrived in european showrooms around the beginning of my
01:17automotive career was produced in slovakia after the facelift from the third generation onwards the
01:22sportage features a grill in the shape that kia calls a tiger nose this is the fifth generation
01:29launched in 2021 and as expected it was due for a facelift aside from the new headlights and
01:36resulting revised grill little has changed on the exterior after carefully reviewing my old footage
01:42i found some differences at the rear the fog lights and the reversing lights have disappeared
01:48from the lower corners of the rear bumper and are now centrally positioned the taillight signature has
01:55also changed although the housings remain the same oh and from the side the satin finish on the sill
02:02is now thicker due to the revised bumper shape the sportage has grown two and a half centimeters longer
02:09but other dimensions remain the same the boot volume depending on the powertrain and trim is roughly also
02:17the same currently it ranges from 540 to 591 liters and five seat configuration this is the front wheel
02:25drive version without any sort of hybrid so this has the largest boot spoiler realistically it's about 100
02:32liter smaller than the data suggests why this is a kia poland press car and all non-phev models in
02:45poland
02:45come with a standard mini spare i don't know what it's like in your market but that peace of mind
02:50will
02:51cost you some underfloor storage even with the floor dropped to its lower position the boot is approximately
02:5785 centimeters long 104 centimeters wide and there's about 50 centimeters to the cargo cover the floor
03:05can be lowered or you can install the cargo cover beneath it however the lowered floor isn't completely
03:11flat it rises towards the rear seats on the one hand this means it's easier to push items onto the
03:18folded
03:18seats but on the other hand there is no full cargo depth across the entire length there are shopping bag
03:25hooks levers to fold the second row seat backs and a 12 volt power outlet the rear backrest splits 40
03:3420 40
03:35but that's nothing new the rear seats are also the same the doors cover the sills there are door pockets
03:44still quite tight there's decent leg room and headroom the backrest angle is adjustable
03:51there are cup holders in the armrest and there are hooks for clothes and maybe some shopping as well
03:57on the front seat backrests in the seat backrests are also usb-c ports ice fix anchor points are on
04:06the side seats and the side seats are heated there is a tunnel running through the middle and there are
04:12air conditioning vents above it third zone climate control is available in top trim models
04:19up front the biggest changes are the new steering wheel we have a new interface for the infotainment
04:25system and piano blacks disappeared from around the gear selector after a closer look at my old
04:32footage i also noticed that the air vents are different especially here on the sides now some
04:37brilliant mind decided that while heated ventilated electrically adjustable seats are on lower trims
04:45the memory function for said electric seats is only on the top of the line gt line trim previously it
04:51was an option on several trims now the key change is the infotainment system we finally have proper
04:57wireless apple carplay and android auto regardless of the trim previously hyundai and kia offered wireless
05:02android auto only on models without oem satnav and oem satnav required using a data cable unfortunately
05:09the cable remains because the wireless charger constantly interrupts charging so it maintains charge
05:16at best
05:20and those ventilated seats are very very effective
05:27as part of the infotainment system you can purchase access to digital services
05:32something tells me that someone saw those chinese cars with youtube access
05:36and decided to offer a product just like it but for a fee to see if anyone really wants to
05:43use it
05:44since this is a press car i don't have the opportunity to test the digital key but apparently
05:49it can be configured to unlock lock and start the car using your phone the digital key can also be
05:55shared
05:55with family members or friends this is another feature that sounds interesting but i don't know how many
06:01people will actually use it other than that there are no changes there are door pockets physical buttons
06:09on the steering wheel physical buttons on the tunnel much too large cup holders and a medium-sized
06:17storage compartment under the armrest as well as a medium-sized glove box unfortunately kia left the
06:25dual-function sat-nav climate control panel which i'm not a fan of
06:34yeah
06:56software changes are for the better firstly isa can now be turned off by long pressing the mute
07:01button on the steering wheel it's also worth to program one of the programmable buttons to
07:08take you directly into driver assistance systems sometimes it's worth going in there and disable
07:14something if the road conditions exceed the capabilities of for example the lane departure warning
07:21on narrow winding roads it can be bothersome cross the line a couple of times and it triggers
07:29that maybe you need a brake warning however it's still much better than what kia had a couple of
07:35years ago when the newly implemented mandatory systems were going mad and driving me mad for example
07:41here the driver attention monitoring system didn't go off once even though i drove the sportage for more
07:48than 1 000 kilometers and i was chatting with my passengers and fiddling with the settings so definitely
07:54not concentrating on the road 100 of the time the front emergency braking system now works when it's
08:01actually needed not when the driver in a car two lengths ahead in traffic touches the brake these are all
08:08positive changes kia must have listened to the feedback from customers and the media
08:14or maybe it was simply the time to update the software that shouldn't have been released in the
08:20first place now this isn't criticism of kia specifically because other brands are guilty of the same
08:27with relatively easy software updates car makers tend to release cars that back in the day
08:33wouldn't have left the factory or be subject to recalls and that would leave blemishes on the
08:39company's reputation today they simply release a software update that will probably improve
08:44something and maybe not even spoil anything else i know i know boomer okay moving on kia got rid of
08:53mild hybrids mostly because some markets get a front wheel drive diesel mhev instead we have
08:58non-electrified versions like this one hybrids and plug-in hybrids all powered by the 1.6 tgdi petrol
09:06engine with power ranging from 150 to 288 horsepower each powertrain variant is now available with
09:13front wheel drive or all-wheel drive which in my opinion makes no sense especially in case of the
09:18more powerful models even the 150 horsepower version can spin wheels when entering a junction let alone a
09:28239 horsepower hybrid or a 288 horsepower phdv for the non-electrified version we have front wheel drive
09:37150 horsepower with a manual transmission or a seven speed dct or all-wheel drive 180 horsepower with dct
09:46all hybrids have a six-speed automatic going from front to all-wheel drive costs about two and a half
09:52grand
09:52i'd take it especially if you live in a place where it rains or snows the sportage with this engine
10:00should consume around seven liters per 100 kilometers in a combined cycle in eco mode it's a struggle but
10:07achievable the promised zero to 100 kilometers per hour time for the 150 horsepower front wheel drive
10:14version with dct is 9.4 seconds i got nine and a half seconds in sport mode and 9.3
10:22seconds in normal mode
10:24initially you can feel the computer trying to cut power i don't know if this was due to traction
10:30control on slightly moist surface or it's more a matter of reducing emissions
10:38anyway even if you're not racing between the lights and simply need to merge quickly you'll
10:44almost certainly encounter a situation i remember from volkswagen about 10 years ago so you approach a
10:50junction stop for a split second to you know take a look around then hit the gas pedal and nothing
10:56happens for so long that the car that was on the horizon now flashes lights at you because you've cut
11:03it off
11:03and that's where all the wheel spin attempts come from instead of moving off when you hit the gas pedal
11:09the car is trying to figure out how much carbon dioxide it can release into the atmosphere so you floor
11:15it which uses up the clutch burns rubber and you emit even more but in testing the emissions are low
11:22i suspect the hybrid powertrain solves this problem because the electric motor allows for a dynamic start
11:27without forcing the combustion engine to contribute to global warming too much
11:33and one more piece of advice skip the plug-in hybrid sportage as it has a ridiculously small traction
11:38battery okay so how's the sportage to drive once it gets going it's very good the steering even in
11:46normal mode feels tight and precise it's definitely a matter of how the electric power steering is
11:51programmed but i consider this to be a pleasant feeling the suspension is comfortable and supple it takes
11:58big bumps for it to unsettle the sound insulation is very good only at higher speeds do you start to
12:05hear the engine but in the city when the engine is almost silent you are shielded from most of outside
12:11noises the adaptive cruise control works well i think the lane change assistant was added as part of the
12:18facelift it works only on highways but it's there the head-up display is clear and shows you also
12:24directions from google navigation not just oem subnav
12:41the price of the refreshed kia sportage started 35 190 euro for the base trim front wheel drive manual
12:48petrol model this test car is the second trim from the top front wheel drive dct with options it costs
12:5646 000 760 euro
13:01the refreshed kia sportage is a decent package for an almost reasonable price beside cosmetic changes
13:07there are software improvements which are crucial to making a car comfortable in everyday use i'd skip the
13:13the one-man-electrified version and the ph ev as well focusing on the all-wheel drive hybrid that
13:18unfortunately will take you into the 50s but i think it's worth it and what do you think about the
13:24kia sportage do you own one of the previous generations or maybe you have the pre-facelift model
13:29how's it to live with let me know in a comment section below
13:34if you like my sarcastic down-to-earth and possibly mildly amusing car reviews join me every friday 3 pm
13:41central european time and don't forget to subscribe and like this video as it helps me with the youtube
13:47algorithm thanks for watching and i will see you in the next one
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