Kia Sportage does basics well

It’s no secret that the market for SUVs has boomed the last decade or so. It’s grown so much and so fast, in fact, that it can be a bit daunting keeping up with what the market has to offer. But unlike some of the ‘newbies’ claiming their slice of the SUV pie, Kia has been at the forefront of manufacturers that produce SUVs. Most notably with their Sportage.

Now in its fourth generation, the Sportage has been around since 1993 and has over the years matured into what it is today. It’s a bigger vehicle than the 1993 model and though the two can’t be compared, it’s always refreshing to see how far a vehicle, or in this case the Sportage, has come.

Late 2018 Kia refreshed its local Sportage line-up and with it came a number of changes; not just with technologies and features, but also the range as a whole. One of those changes were the introduction of a new entry-level model, the 1.6 Ignite automatic, that should act as entry point for new buyers into the Sportage fold. And it is this exact model that we have the pleasure of dissecting.

The 1.6-litre engine in the Sportage develops 97kW and 161Nm and has to haul around a weight of 1568kg. The low torque figure means that the engine wants to be worked before it gets on the go, but when on the move it soldiers on quite well. The six-speed automatic gearbox is a tad unresponsive, but it fares a whole lot better when you change gears manually. Kia claims a fuel return of 7.7-litres/100km. On a 200km trip the Sportage managed to return 7.5-litres/100km (there was a tailwind), but on the return leg, the same 200km, that figure rose to over 9.0-litres (facing the wind) – which is not too bad. It was clear how the SUV struggled against the wind, but it held its own with cruise control set on 120km/h.

From behind the steering wheel it’s not a tiresome experience and the ride quality encourages calmness. The way Kia’s managed to endow its SUV with such a compliant ride can’t be denied. It’s almost like driving your dreams and the SUV follows your steering commands promptly and swiftly. Especially the feedback from the steering wheel… gosh, Kia’s hit the nail right on the head here. It’s a secure feel and there is enough weight to know how much steering input is needed at any given moment. If ride quality was the only factor to consider when buying a new SUV, I think the Sportage would be at the top of many people’s list.

It’s easy to get carried away by what the market has to offer, that we sometimes overlook what’s at the bottom end of the spectrum.

Article: Charlen Raymond Photos: Warren Wilson