• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • Sen. Manchin Threatening to Sue Over New EV Battery Rules
  • Ford Bolsters EV Supply Chain with $4.5B Nickel Processing Plant
  • Unified UAW Talks Tough Before Contract Talks with Detroit Three
  • Faraday Future May Have One: Production Begins
  • Automakers Face “New Era of EV Price Wars”
  • Revuelto Ushers in New Era for Lamborghini
  • New Vehicle Sales Edging Toward Some Normalcy in Q1
  • How Fast Can a Tesla Model 3 Be Hacked? Two Minutes
  • First Look: Kia Pushes Boundaries with New EV9
  • Lucid Moves to Cut 1,300 Employees
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
      • Feeder
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • A Week With: 2023 Kia Soul GT-Line
    • A Week With: 2023 Ford Maverick Tremor
    • A Week With: 2023 Volkswagen ID.4 AWD Pro S
    • A Week With: 2023 Infiniti QX80
    • A Week With: 2023 Genesis GV80 Prestige 3.5 Turbo
    • First Drive: 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T
    • First Drive: 2023 Dodge Hornet GT
    • First Drive: 2023 Genesis Electrified GV70
    • First Drive: 2023 Nissan Ariya e-4orce AWD
    • A Week With: 2023 Jeep Compass Limited
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > reviews > Better Late Than Never: Kia Reveals 2021 Sorento

        Better Late Than Never: Kia Reveals 2021 Sorento

        Midsize SUV will be offered with Smartstream hybrid and plug-in models.

        Paul A. Eisenstein
        Paul A. Eisenstein , Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
        March 18, 2020
        The 2021 Kia Sorento was originally set to debut at this month’s Geneva Motor Show.

        Like dozens of other automakers, Kia was left high and dry by the cancellation of the Geneva International Motor Show earlier this month due to the coronavirus pandemic. That left it scrambling to figure out how to launch one of its most important new products this year: the 2021 Kia Sorento.

        We’re finally getting a look at the midsize, three-row SUV online and in an extensive news release and what we find is a stylish new makeover of the Sorento that also will bring the ute’s first electrified drivetrain. Or, to be more precise, it’s first two, the 2021 model set to be offered with both conventional hybrid as well as plug-in hybrid options.

        Significantly, Kia is following the route we’ve begun seeing other manufacturers follow. Rather than squeeze out every possible mile per gallon, the Korean carmaker has transformed the two Smartstream hybrid systems into the most powerful option a customer can order, punching out a solid 227 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque.

        Visually, the 2021 Kia Sorento adopts a more aggressive look, picking up some key details, such as the broadened “tiger nose grille” from the recently launched Seltos SUV. Though the roof remains fairly flat, the new Sorento’s greenhouse gives it a sportier, coupe-like appearance.

        The latest-generation Sorento will be offered in both front and all-wheel-drive configurations.

        (First Drive; Kia Niro Premium)

        Overall, the Sorento grows by 10 millimeters in length, the wheelbase stretched 35 mm – most of that devoted to a much roomier interior. Passengers should like the fact that the SUV gains 10 mm in additional width.

        The interior, at least based on Kia’s release and images, has moved notably up-market, the automaker claiming it will be one of its most high-quality executions yet. Among other things, the high-tech feel is augmented by the use of a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment display on high-trim models which flows into the 12.3-inch reconfigurable digital gauge cluster.

        “The Sorento’s evolution over the last 18 years echoes that of the Kia brand as a whole,” said Emilio Herrera, Chief Operating Officer for Kia Motors Europe. “While the (SUV) was initially launched in 2002 as a utilitarian all-terrain vehicle, the fourth-generation Sorento has been transformed into something altogether more desirable. It is an important model for Kia, particularly now that it also represents the first use of electrified power in our flagship SUV.”

        (Kia’s aggressive electrification plans could be short-circuited by battery shortages.)

        The new Kia Sorento also will be offered with both hybrid and PHEV options.

        The information we’ve received about the 2021 Kia Sorento focuses on the European version, so some details likely will be tweaked for the American market. But the roll-out will see a conventional hybrid offered from mid-year launch, with the PHEV version to follow late in 2020.

        The Smartstream system pairs a 1.6-liter turbocharged I-4 gas engine with a 42.4 kilowatt electric motor drawing power from a 1.49 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion polymer battery. They push power through an eight-speed double-clutch transmission.

        Some details have yet to be revealed. For one thing, whether there’s any significant range for the hybrid in all-electric mode? The size of the PHEV battery pack, along with range, we gather, will be released closer to its launch.

        For those who don’t want an electrified drivetrain, the 2021 Kia Sorento will offer a couple internal combustion options in Europe, including a 199-hp 2.2-liter turbodiesel . We’re not expecting that for the U.S. market, but more likely will see the 2.5-liter turbo-gas engine paired with the eight-speed DCT and making 277 hp and 310 lb-ft.

        Kia claims the Sorento will get one of its most refined interior packages yet, a big shift from the original SUV’s fire-sale cabin.

        (First Look: 2021 Hyundai Elantra, bigger, sportier, more lavish.)

        Like its sibling brand Hyundai, Kia now makes a range of advanced driver assistance systems standard fare on virtually all products, with still more available as an option. While we’re not yet sure of the way that will play out for the U.S. market, look for the availability of technologies including forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection, blind spot monitoring, adaptive cruise with stop-and-go capabilities and more.

        There’s also Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capabilities and plenty of USB ports. We’re willing to bet wireless Q1 smartphone charging will show up as a U.S. option. Also available: a 12-speaker Bose audio system and a head-up display.

        The U.S. launch of the 2021 Kia Sorento won’t lag much behind the European debut. With the New York International Auto Show now pushed back to late summer due to the coronavirus epidemic, it’s not clear when or where we’ll see the American debut, though that could now happen at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit which, at least for the moment, is still scheduled to take place in June.

        While European versions of the SUV will come from Kia’s Korean manufacturing base, the U.S. SUV will be produced at its plant in Georgia.

        How to Care for Your Car

        Cheap Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice

        Best Extended Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice
        Recently Published
        2023 Kia Soul GT Line front best

        A Week With: 2023 Kia Soul GT-Line

        Yesterday
        2023 Volkswagen ID.4 red front 3-4 best REL

        A Week With: 2023 Volkswagen ID.4 AWD Pro S

        March 28, 2023
        2023 Infiniti QX80 front 3-4

        A Week With: 2023 Infiniti QX80

        March 24, 2023

        Leave a Reply Cancel reply

        Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

        What Are You Looking For?

        See More
        Buying an SUV or Crossover? See our recommended reviews and guides.
        Buying an SUV or Crossover? See our recommended reviews and guides.
        Reviews and Resources For Car Buyers and Owners
        Reviews of SUVs and CUVs, Warranty and Insurance advice, all collected by the Editors of TheDetroitBureau.
        Collection
        SUV Reviews and Guides
        Collection

        SUV Reviews and Guides
        Recommends
        Where Can You Get the Best SUV Warranty?
        Recommends

        Where Can You Get the Best SUV Warranty?
        Recommends
        Is Full Coverage Auto Insurance Right for You?
        Recommends

        Is Full Coverage Auto Insurance Right for You?
        Recommends
        Is it Cheaper to Add a Second Car to Insurance?
        Recommends

        Is it Cheaper to Add a Second Car to Insurance?
        Close
        Reviews and Resources For Car Buyers and Owners
        Reviews of SUVs and CUVs, Warranty and Insurance advice, all collected by the Editors of TheDetroitBureau.
        Collection
        SUV Reviews and Guides
        Collection

        SUV Reviews and Guides
        Recommends
        Where Can You Get the Best SUV Warranty?
        Recommends

        Where Can You Get the Best SUV Warranty?
        Recommends
        Is Full Coverage Auto Insurance Right for You?
        Recommends

        Is Full Coverage Auto Insurance Right for You?
        Recommends
        Is it Cheaper to Add a Second Car to Insurance?
        Recommends

        Is it Cheaper to Add a Second Car to Insurance?
        Close
        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2023
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: