Published:
19 July 2024Kia's implementation of a hybrid powertrain in this latest Sorento comes across as a slightly hollow gesture. This is entirely down to its underwhelming electric performance.
It’s quick enough when you floor it – it hit 60mph in 8.5sec when we road tested it in 2021 – but it just lacks the effortless mid-range grunt you want in a big, relaxed family hauler.
With more than two tonnes worth of metal to shift, the Sorento’s 59bhp electric motor simply doesn’t have the muscle required to move the SUV off from a standstill with any alacrity, let alone bring it up to speed.
As a result, the 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder tends to kick in by default from around 25-30mph, and any time you ask for any acceleration at all. It’s quite a coarse and noisy engine that sounds strained.
It’s better to view it as a glorified mild hybrid, but even then, the Sorento’s powertrain is easily outclassed by the Skoda Kodiaq’s, whose mild-hybrid 1.5 is much quieter, and gives more consistent accelerator response. The Skoda has only front-wheel drive, but then not everyone needs four-wheel drive.
Things are improved in the PHEV, which has a more powerful, 90bhp electric motor and a much larger, 13.8kWh battery. Around town, performance in EV mode feels quite sufficient, and it doesn't feel especially lacking when you hit faster stretches. And don’t fret: if you’ve locked it into EV mode (done via a button) but suddenly need a burst of serious acceleration, the engine will jump in to help.
