All-new Kia Sorento SUV

The original Kia Sorento was a ‘landmark' vehicle which took the Korean brand into a whole new section of the automotive market all around the world. Introduced in 2002, it marked a huge step for Kia, challenging many established brands and starting the process of changing public perception of Kia as a ‘maker of small cars'.

Sorento earned widespread media and public acclaim for its innovative styling, durability, off-road abilities and value-for-money. Over the next seven years, it attracted thousands of customers who had not previously considered buying a Kia, and achieved global sales of almost 900,000 units. It also paved the way for the successful introduction of the smaller Kia Sportage.

At its launch, the original Kia Sorento injected fresh visual excitement into the SUV segment with its ‘stand-out' looks. Now under the direction of Kia's Chief Design Officer (CDO), Peter Schreyer, the Kia design team aimed to deliver futuristic styling with a bold sense of power and dynamism, to once again differentiate Kia's larger SUV from potential rivals by incorporating Kia's new design DNA into the all-new Sorento.

All-new Sorento is also significantly sleeker than the previous model with an aerodynamic drag figure of Cd 0.38 - down from 0.425 - enhancing fuel economy and refinement.

All-new Sorento is a ‘Highline Cruiser' with up to seven seats - a longer, lower, sleeker SUV with a host of new attributes that deliver genuine customer benefits. Ride and handling are more supple and more responsive. The cabin is more spacious and more luxurious. The vehicle delivers enhanced performance while consuming less fuel. The broader line-up offers a wider choice of engine, transmission and drivetrain. New Sorento presents a stronger, more distinctive character that embodies Kia's new design language while communicating athleticism, precision and modernity.

During development of the new Sorento, Kia engineers ditched the old body-on-frame structure and designed an all-new unitary (monocoque) bodyshell with room for up to seven occupants. The different construction method helped the new Sorento to achieve a weight loss of up to 215 kg, depending on model, compared with the previous Sorento - even though the new model incorporates numerous additional technical, safety and comfort features.

Building on those new foundations, engineers concentrated on eight key development areas - class-leading performance, increased fuel economy, reduced emissions, improved on-road handling, more fun-to-drive responsiveness, greater cabin space and comfort, enhanced overall safety - resulting in the all-new model being awarded a 5-Star Euro NCAP crash test rating - and the introduction of new technologies.

"With the all-new Sorento, we have created a seven-seater SUV that will soon be recognised as an ‘exciting all-rounder' with a much broader customer appeal," commented Hyoung-Keun Lee, President, Kia Motors Corporation. "Despite the current economic uncertainties, we are confident that all-new Sorento, with its expanded market coverage, will significantly increase Kia's share of the utility vehicle market, achieving annual global export sales of 140,000 units from 2010."

The new, longer bodyshell created for all-new Sorento, with its repositioned A-pillars and dashboard (moved forwards) and extended tailgate (moved rearwards), ensures that the cabin is much more spacious than the current model. The real and perceived quality of the cabin is greatly enhanced and available high-tech features will include: keyless entry, engine start button, reversing safety camera, built-in navigation and panoramic glass sunroof.

As part of Kia's drive to expand market coverage with its latest SUV, the all-new Sorento will eventually be manufactured with a total of five engines to best suit local customer preferences and legal requirements in different regions around the world. Reacting to market forces and consumer trends, Kia has downsized some of the engines available for new Sorento - the gasoline V6 shrinks from 3.8 to 3.5-litres and the 2.5-litre diesel is replaced by an all-new, class leading 2.2-litre unit - while improving the efficiency of all the powertrains.

In Western Europe, three engines will be offered to customers - from launch, a 2.4-litre gasoline unit and the new R2.2 diesel, with a R2.0 diesel to follow later next year. The launch engines will deliver a 174 ps-to-197 ps power spread, with CO2 emissions from just 171 g/km.

The all-new Sorento's ride/handling balance has been biased more towards on-road driving, without diminishing the original model's renowned off-road talents.

Kia's latest SUV, which will benefit from a special 5-Year Kia Warranty in Europe, will be available with 2-wheel drive or 4-wheel drive and manual or automatic transmissions, in a selection of 11 exterior colours and two interior colours (Black & Beige), with a broad choice of equipment levels and a vast range of factory-fitted optional extras.

Manufacturing of the new Sorento SUV in Korea, in both left- and right-hand drive versions, for the European markets started at the Hwasung facility in July 2009. Next year, the new Sorento will also be built at Kia's all-new plant in the USA, at West Point, Georgia, to supply demand for this vehicle across the North American continent.