Kia goes softer with newest SUV: 2011 Kia Sorento

The 2011 Kia Sorento is the most stylish looking Sorento sport utility vehicle ever. It’s also the first Sorento built in a U.S. factory, the first Sorento with unibody construction like that used for cars and it’s the first offered in this country with a four-cylinder engine.

But even shoppers who don’t know or care about the big changes South Korea’s Kia made for its 2011 mid-size Sorento sport utility vehicle are likely to be impressed.

The newest Sorento, a second-generation model built in West Point, Ga., is upscale in its exterior appearance, handles well and has the best ride of any Sorento ever.

And last month, it was named a “top safety pick” after crash testing by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Best of all, the 2011 Sorento retains Kia’s exemplary 10-year, 100,000-mile, limited powertrain warranty.

The bad news: Starting prices for the most sought-after models are up there with Honda and Toyota SUVs.

Starting manufacturer’s suggested retail price, including destination charge, is $20,790 for a 2011 Sorento with two-wheel drive and six-speed manual transmission.

But the options are limited on this base model, and most Sorentos are going to have the six-speed automatic, where the starting retail price is $23,190 with four-cylinder engine and two-wheel drive.

Note that this is higher than the $22,325 and $22,475 starting retail prices for a new, 2010 Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4, respectively – each with four-cylinder engine, automatic and two-wheel drive.

When equipped with four-wheel drive, Honda’s 2010 CR-V and Toyota’s 2010 RAV4 also have lower starting retail prices than the Sorento with all-wheel drive. The CR-V 4WD starts at $23,575, and the RAV4 4WD starts at $23,875, while the 2011 Sorento AWD starts at $24,890.

Typically Kia’s second most popular SUV after the smaller Sportage, the Sorento has been since its 2003 debut a truckish-riding, body-on-frame vehicle.

But now, it’s built like other SUVs who have gone softer – as a crossover vehicle whose chassis and suspension are more car-like.

While the improvement is easily noticed, there was still, in the test Sorento with all-wheel drive, a firmness in the ride in the way some road bumps came through to passengers. I wished for a tad more refinement.

Still, I had no complaints with the way the 5-foot-6-inch tall Sorento maneuvered on country roads and in the city. It held its line without wallowing and always felt poised.

Seats are up a ways from the pavement, so passengers have mostly good views out. But I didn’t have to scramble to get in.

I did have to crane my head around the sizable metal pillars by the windshield to see if pedestrians were in cross walks while I was making turns, however. An optional rearview monitor helped me see what was behind the Sorento as I backed up; I couldn’t otherwise see much of anything that was low to the ground back there.

The tester had the uplevel engine, and it got the more than 15-foot-long Sorento scooting along. The vehicle didn’t feel heavy; it seemed sprightly and energetic.

The 3.5-liter, double overhead cam V-6 comes only with the six-speed automatic. The powerplant develops a healthy 276 horsepower, which compares with 269 horses from the V-6 in the RAV4. There’s no V-6 in the CR-V.

The Sorento’s torque peaks at 248 foot-pounds at 5,000 rpm, so this SUV doesn’t charge forward. But the response is more than adequate.

The RAV4’s V-6 torque peaks at 246 foot-pounds at 4,700 rpm.

The Sorento is about on par with competitors in fuel mileage.

I averaged 21.1 miles per gallon with the V-6 in 60 percent city driving and 40 percent highway and with light passenger and cargo loads. But it meant I needed to fill the 18-gallon fuel tank after some 320 miles. The federal government rates this Sorento V-6 AWD model at 19 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway, which is about the same rating as the RAV4 with V-6.

Note that the Sorento’s 175-horsepower, 2.4-liter, four-cylinder engine, while seeming to be fuel thrifty, actually is rated just 1 mile per gallon higher than the V-6 with an automatic transmission in both city and highway travel.

The 2011 Sorento offers third-row seats, and they were included in the test vehicle. They pull up and go down with remarkable ease and simplicity; other carmakers could learn from them. But these two most rearward seats are best for children only. Legroom is a mere 31.3 inches.

Meantime, passengers in the first two rows enjoy supportive seats with good legroom of 41.3 inches in front and 37.6 inches in the second row.

The optional panorama roof in the test Sorento added a pleasant, airy feel, and the Infinity sound system put out strong, clear tunes.

With the new V-6, the Sorento’s towing capacity tops out at 3,500 pounds, which is the same as the RAV4’s. With the back two rows of seats folded flat, the Sorento has a competitive 72.5 cubic feet of cargo space.

A final note: You won’t find any 2010 Sorentos. Kia didn’t sell 2010 models, opting instead to begin selling the 2011 Sorento as a very early new model in January of this year.