2020 Kia Sportage

Kia has slightly reshuffled the nomenclature of the trims of the 2020 Sportage. The base LX, S and the EX trim, source their power from a 2.4L Naturally aspirated Motor and the New Top of the Line SX Turbo trim, sources its power from the powerful 2.0L Turbocharged 4 Cylinder motor. You will get an 8” Touchscreen Infotainment system as standard across the range, as well as Apple Car Play and Android Auto. You can opt for the AWD on all of the trims and an FWD setup is standard across the range.
 

Trim	LX	S	EX	SX Turbo
MSRP	$23,990	$25,990	$27,190	$33,490
MSRP(AWD)	$25,490	$27,690	$28,690	$34,990
Key Features	Forward Collision Avoidance Assist, Lane Keep Assist	Adds/Upgrades to LX	Adds/Upgrades to S	Adds/Upgrades to EX
	8” Touchscreen with Rear View Camera	Flat Bottom Steering wheel with paddle shifters	Dual-Zone Auto Temperature Control	8” Touchscreen Infotainment System with Navigation, Wireless Charger
	Android Auto, Apple Car Play	Power Folding ORVM’s and Roof Rails	Smart power liftgate	Panoramic Sunroof
	Fog Lights with Gloss Black Trim and Black Chrome Bar	Dark Chrome Trim 18” Alloy Wheels	Smart Key with Push-Button Start and Smart Welcome	Front and Rear Parking Assist System
	The unique front fascia on AWD version with 28 Degree approach angle	Blind Spot Collision Warning with Rear Cross-Traffic Collision warning	Auto De-Fog System	Harman Kardon Audio System with Subwoofer
		Sofino Premium Leatherette Seats with Heated Front Seats	Heated Front Seats, 10 Way Power Adjust Driver’s Seat with 2 Way Power Lumbar	Leather Seat Trim with Ventilated Front Seats, Front Power passenger seats

Which trim to choose?

If you are not a performance-hungry guy and want a well balanced and decently powerful SUV, the S trim will suit your bill the best. It offers a good mix of creature comforts and convenience features and is loaded with Safety tech.

Mechanically, the 2020 Kia Sportage remains unchanged over its predecessor. The Sportage continues to be offered with 2 Engine Options- A Naturally Aspirated 2.4L Motor and a 2.0L Turbocharged Motor. However, unlike last year, the Powerful 2.0L Turbocharged Inline-4 Motor that pushes out 240hp and 260lbs.-ft. Of torque can be just found on the top of the line SX Turbo trim only.
The Turbocharged Motor feels the punchier of the two motors on offer and is definitely the one to go for if you are looking to make your office commutes, a tad more exciting. The Base 2.4L Naturally Aspirated Motor feels decently powerful and offers decent power delivery for your daily commutes.

All the trims and the Engines come paired to the same 6 Speed electronically controlled Automatic transmission with overdrive mode. The unit feels decently quick to respond although, not as quick as the DSG’s found in the VW’s.

Models	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
MSRP	$25,035	$25,395	$25,395	$25,290
Engine	2.4L Naturally Aspirated Inline-4	2.4L I-4 16-Valve DOHC i-VTEC	2.5L DOHC 16-Valve 4-Cylinder	2.0L TSI DOHC Turbocharged 4-Cylinder
Transmission	6-speed automatic	CVT automatic	6-speed automatic	6-speed automatic
Horsepower	181 hp @ 6000 rpm	184 hp @ 6400 rpm	187 hp @ 6000 rpm	184 hp @ 4400 rpm
Torque	175 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm	180 lb-ft @ 3900 rpm	185 lb-ft @ 3250 rpm	221 lb-ft @ 1600rpm

*2019 Figures used for reference purposes only

In comparison with its rivals, the Sportage stands at par with the others in the segment. The CX-5 offers the most power among the base trims of all the cars and is followed by the VW and Honda. The Kia stands the last in terms of power but not by a big margin. The VW offers the most torque, considering the turbocharged motor as standard. The Mazda comes in next and is followed by the Honda and the Kia respectively.

How fast is it?

The Sportage lives up to its athletic name and doesn’t really disappoint us when it comes to sportiness and vigor. Despite having lower power and torque figures than it’s rivals, the 2020 Kia Sportage is much faster than its competitors. The juicy acceleration of the Sportage allows it to go from 0 to 60 mph in just 8.0 seconds. Moreover, the quarter-mile time of the Kia Sportage is the best at 16.0 seconds followed by 16.6 seconds of the Mazda CX-3 Sport.

Models	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
0-60 MPH	8.0 sec	8.6 sec	8.9 sec	8.3 sec
Quarter mile	16.0 sec	16.7 sec	16.6 sec	17.0 sec
Engine	2.4L	2.4L	2.5L	2.0L
Emission (Tons/yr of CO2 Emissions @ 15K mi/year)	6.8	6.3	6.5	8.0

From the emissions point of view, the Kia Sportage is at 3rd less polluting vehicle with 6.8 tons/year emissions. On the other hand, Honda CR-V LX is titled as the least polluting car among the competition with an annual emission of 6.3 tons. 

What about Ride and Handling?

One of the main features of the Sportage is that it handles like a charm. The South Korean car offers a sweet balance between the ride and handling quality. Along with a responsive throttle response, the SUV performs extremely well while talking on corners. Additionally, in comparison with the previous models of the Kia Sportage, the suspension system of the 2020 version gets modified and eliminates typical impacts from reaching inside the cabin. Moreover, the SUV’s AWD variants are braced very well to tackle off-road challenges and snowy road conditions.

What about the Braking performance?

With a low curb weight on hands and a good braking setup, the 2020 Sportage from Kia manages to stop from 60-0 mph in just 114 ft. This is made possible by the highly efficient 12.0-inch brakes at the front and 11.9-inch brakes at the rear. Moreover, the 60-0 mph distance of Sportage is better than both the Honda’s CR-V LX and Mazda’s CX-5 Sport. 

Model	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
Brake Front (in.)	12.0	11.1	11.7	12.3
Brake Rear (in.)	11.9	10.2	11.9	11.1
Curb Weight (lbs.)	3305	3307	3541	3721
60-0 MPH (ft.)	114	117	126	124

Taking the rivals into the picture, you will find that the Sportage, clearly beats all its adversaries by a comfortable margin. That is partly due to the low curb weight and the big brakes on the Kia. The Honda stays true to its dynamic nature and comes in 2nd, in the braking department. The CX-5, comes in a distant 3rd, despite its good dynamics.

How much can you tow with the Kia Sportage?

While Cargo Capacity may not be a big buying factor for customers looking for vehicles of these segments, the Sportage won’t disappoint people looking for the same. The 2000lbs towing capacity ranks as one of the best in class and the Kia doesn’t run out of breath while towing similar loads.

Model	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
Towing Capacity (lbs.)	2000	1500	2000	2200

The VW Tiguan offers the most towing ability and is followed by the Mazda and the Kia, who are on the same page. The CR-V is the least potent of the lot and offers the least towing capacity.

While Naturally, Aspirated Motors offer unadulterated performance and little lag in power delivery, they tend to be less economical than their Turbocharged Counterparts. The Sportage is a classic example of the same and in terms of numbers, it’s the weakest when compared to its adversaries. 
What comes to Kia’s aid, however, is its massive 16.4-gallon fuel tank capacity that allows it to traverse a distance of 377 miles on the city and 492 miles on the highway.

Model	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
MPG (city)	23	26	25	22
MPG (highway)	30	32	31	29
MPG (combined)	26	28	28	25
Fuel Capacity (gallon)	16.4	14	14.8	15.3
Range (City/Hwy)	377/492	364/448	370/459	337/444

Speaking of rivals, none of the crossovers can match the range of the Kia. However, for specs enthusiasts, the Honda and the Mazda return the best MPG figures. The Kia follows them next and is surprisingly followed by the Turbocharged VW.

The cabin of the 2020 Sportage is subtly inclined towards the driver, with a clean and well laid out set of controls. The Sportage can manage to seat 5 people with a lot of ease and comfort. The space available for passengers in the first row of Sportage corresponds to 39.3 inches of headroom, 57.1 inches of shoulder room and 41.5 inches legroom. However, the headroom and shoulder room offered by the Honda CR-V is the highest.

Model	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
Passenger capacity	5	5	5	5
Front (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (In.)	39.3/57.1/41.5	40.1/57.9/41.3	39.7/57.1/41.0	39.1/56.2/40.1
Second (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (In.)	39.1/55.1/38.2	39.2/55.6/40.4	39.0/54.8/39.6	39.0/55.0/35.8

The Ride Quality of the Kia is sublime for the most part and even the biggest of bumps and undulations are handled with utmost authority by its suspension. The Noise Insulation from the outside ranks as one of the best in the segment and commuters will be not tired while doing long distances in the Kia.

Infotainment System

In terms of the Infotainment System, Kia's UVO unit comes loaded to the hilt with a plethora of bells and whistles. The system easily connects to all multimedia devices and the easy to navigate menus makes things easier for the users. Other than a bit of lag in the interface, we can't find many flaws with this Infotainment system. 

• 8” UVO powered touchscreen interface with navigation and voice recognition support
• Android Auto, Apple Car Play compatibility
• SiriusXM Radio and Traffic
• 8 Speaker 320W Harman/Kardon music system with Clari-Fi
• Rear Camera Display
• AUX, USB Inputs, and USB 2.1 Charging port
• Wireless Charging Pad
• Steering Mounted Audio, Cruise and Phone Controls

Interior Features

Like the Infotainment system, the Kia Sportage comes loaded to the hilt with a plethora of features on the inside. Like all Kias, you get access to a number of creature comforts as standard like

• Tilt and Telescopic Adjust Steering Wheel
• 12V Power Outlets
• One-Touch Up/Down Driver’s power windows
• Smart Key with Push-button Start
• Dual Zone Auto Climate Control with Auto De-Fog
• Auto-Dimming RVM with Homelink
• LED Interior Lighting
• Leather  Seating
• 10 Way Power adjust driver seat  with 2 Way power lumbar support and 8-way power-adjustable front passenger seat
• Ventilated Front Seats
• 60/40 Split-folding rear seats
• Leather Wrapped Heated Steering Wheel and Gear Knob     

How much Cargo can you carry in the Sportage?

With the rear seat up, the 2020 Kia Sportage accommodates 30.7 cubic feet of cargo that increases to 60.1 cubic feet after folding down the rear seat. Analyzing the rivals, The Mazda CX-5 has a similar capacity as that of the Kia Sportage. However, the cargo capacity of the Honda’s CR-V LX is the highest, which is about 39.2 cubic feet with the rear seat up and 75.8 cubic feet with the rear seats folded down. The VW seats 5 people and thus offers the least cargo space, with all the seats up.

Model	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
Cargo Volume rear seat up (ft.3)	30.7	39.2	30.9	12
Cargo Volume rear seat folded (ft.3)	60.1	75.8	59.6	56.1

 

Speaking of Design, Kia Engineers have tweaked the Styling of the Sportage to make it look a bit more sporty and fresh. Kia has tweaked the Exhaust tips of the Sportage and has made some design changes to the Headlights and the Foglights as well. The Front and Rear Bumpers have been redesigned as well, adding to the aesthetics of the Sportage. The New Shade for the Alloys, makes the Kia look a bit more appealing than the previous model and adds to the sporty appeal as well. 

Model	Kia Sportage LX	Honda CR-V LX*	Mazda CX-5 sport*	Volkswagen Tiguan S*
Curb weight (lbs.)	3305	3307	3541	3721
Length(in)	176.4	180.6	179.1	174.5
Width(in)	73.0	73.0	72.5	71.2
Height(in)	64.4	66.1	65.3	67.1
Ground clearance (in)	6.4	7.8	7.6	6.9
Wheelbase (in)	105.1	104.7	106.3	102.5
Track width (in) F/R	63.5/64.0	63.0/63.7	62.8/62.8	61.8/61.9

Coming to the dimensions of the Kia Sportage, it is 176.4 inches long, 73.0 inches wide and 64.4 inches tall. Among the rivalry, the Volkswagen Tiguan S has the minimum length as well as width while the Kia Sportage is the shortest in terms of height. The ground clearance offered by Kia Sportage measures about 6.4 inches whereas the ground clearance of both the Volkswagen Tiguan S and Mazda CX-5 is higher with 6.9 and 7.6 inches respectively.

The most Drool-worthy features on offer?

• LED Rear Taillights and Front Foglights
• LED Headlights with LED DRL’s with Auto headlight control and high beam assist
• Variable Intermittent Windshield wipers and De-icer
• Heated Rear Glass
• Panoramic Sunroof with Power Sunshade
• Heated and Power adjust ORVM’s with integrated LED Turn Signals
• Roof Rails and Rear Spoiler 
• 19” Alloy Wheels

One of the key changes in the 2020 Sportage, comes in the form of the addition of a large number of Safety Features. You do get a lot of driver aids and assistance features as standard across the range. Some of the noteworthy features include

• Dual Front, Seat-Mounted Side, and Full-length side-mounted airbags
• 4 Wheel ABS with ESC and Traction Control 
• Hill Start Assist and Downhill brake control
• LATCH support in seats and High Line TPMS
• Forward Collision Avoidance Assistance 
• Front and Rear Parking Assist
• Lane Keep Assist, Driver Attention Warning and Blind-Spot Collision Warning 
• Smart Cruise Control with Stop/Go

IIHS Ratings

IIHS Ratings
Small overlap front driver side	Good
Small overlap front passenger side	Good
Moderate overlap front	Good
Side	Good
Roof strength	Good
Head restraints & seats	Good
Front crash prevention	Superior
Headlights	Poor
Child seat anchors (LATCH)	Acceptable

NHTSA Ratings

NHTSA Ratings
Overall rating	4 star
Overall frontal barrier crash rating	5 star
Frontal barrier crash rating driver	4 star
Overall side crash rating	5 star
Side barrier rating	5 star
Side pole rating driver front seat	5 star
Combined side rating rear seat	5 star
Rollover rating	4 star
Side barrier rating driver	5 star
Frontal barrier crash rating passenger	5 star
Combined side rating front seat	5 star
Side barrier rating passenger rear seat	5 star

Kia Sportage vs. Honda CR-V LX

The Honda CR-V has been a global bestseller for Honda for a variety of reasons. The CR-V offers a lot of space for its occupants, comes loaded with a good set of features and comes with Honda’s Reliability and sturdy build quality. The Kia on the other hand, offers a sportier handling character than the Honda, is the better to be driven in and has a bunch of Interior Features. There is not much separating the duo but if we were to put our money’s on, we would go for the Sportage because of its versatility and a long list of features.

Kia Sportage vs. Mazda CX-5 sport

The Mazda CX-5 has been the go to Car for people, who wanted a crossover that had the handling of a sporty sedan. The Mazda comes with a powerful motor and has superb road manners. In terms of features as well, there is very little seperation between the Kia and the Mazda. Then, of course, you have Mazda reliability and sturdy built as well. The Kia beats the Mazda in terms of features and is more spacious than the Mazda as well. If you prefer a sporty crossover, the Mazda should be your choice but for everything else, the Sportage is a better choice.

Kia Sportage vs. Volkswagen Tiguan S

he last but not the least SUV that puts up a challenge to the Kia Sportage is the Volkswagen Tiguan S. Considering the price, the Tiguan is expensive than the Sportage by a small margin. Nevertheless, for the additional price, the Tiguan S offers more engine power, torque and towing capacity than the Sportage. On the other side, it lags way behind the Kia Sportage in various parameters like mileage, acceleration, interior space, and cargo capacity.

 

The Kia Sportage has been a bestseller for Kia for quite some time now. For 2020, Kia has not changed the success recipe but added some more spice and flavor to it. The 2020 Sportage comes with a long list of Interior Features, Driver Assistance Features, and multiple engine options. Add to all these, a well-insulated cabin with a rich and premium feel and what you have on your hands, is a crossover that will suit your daily driving as well as touring needs. The Sportage offers a good blend of performance, features and it’s attractive pricing, makes it a compelling reason for anybody to visit their nearest Kia dealership atleast once.