Don't Mess With Success: The 2017 Kia Sorento SXL AWD V6

The 2017 Kia Sorento SXL AWD V6.

We've made no secret of our admiration for the Kia Sorento  here at TireKicker over the past couple of years.  If you haven't read about its stellar performance during Mrs. Tirekicker (then known as Navigator) and my 10-day, 1800-mile Utah camping trip during the summer of 2014, by all means do. You'll see how it earned that admiration.  That was a 2015 model, and in January of '15, Kia introduced the new 2016, which we didn't subject to such rigors, but which proved to be a very nice example of just how good a vehicle Kia can make.

Less Is More: The 2016 Kia Sorento SXL AWD 2.0 T

The 2016 Kia Sorento.

Regular TireKicker readers know of our deep appreciation for the Kia Sorento.  It more than earned it a year ago when it was our mode of transport for an eight-day, 1800 mile camping trip from Folsom (suburban Sacramento, California) to Utah and back. More recently, a week in the redesigned 2016 Sorento with the V6 engine ended with a spot on the TireKicker's Best Cars list on the right side of this page. So what more is there to say? Plenty, as it turns out.

Relentless: The 2016 Kia Sorento Limited V6 AWD

The 2016 Kia Sorento Limited V6 AWD

Regular TireKicker readers know that the Kia Sorento has earned its way onto the TireKicker's Best Cars list on the right side of this page through a series of weeklong exposures...not the least of which was serving as our trusty steed for an eight-day, 1800-mile camping roadtrip from suburban Sacramento to four national parks in Nevada and Utah and then home.

If you'd asked us, we wouldn't have thought the Sorento was due for an update.  But Kia is on a mission, relentlessly stepping up its game and its profile in the marketplace.  And the 2016 Kia Sorento is destined to play a big part in that.

Eight Days, 1800 Miles And Two Big Surprises In The 2015 Kia Sorento SXL

A good trip is made infinitely better by good traveling companions.  I'm blessed with the best one ever in Navigator, and so the thought of eight days on the road, much of it behind the wheel at the end of August, was a most pleasant one.

(source: Google Maps)

The trip: A tour of some of Nevada and Utah's national parks and monuments.  The overall plan:  Folsom (suburban Sacramento, California) to Great Basin  in Nevada on day one.  Two days each at Capitol Reef, Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bryce Canyon (all in Utah), then home a different way...stopping to see family in the impossibly tiny town of Newcastle, Utah on the seventh day, with a dawn-to-dusk final leg across Nevada and through the Sierra back to Folsom on day eight.

Oh.  And except for the one night with family, we'd be camping. So a tent, sleeping bag, clothes, food and firewood to last eight days....it all had to be accomodated. Go big enough (Tahoe/Suburban) and cargo would be no sweat, but there was at least 1600 miles to cover with gas at an average price of $4.00 a gallon.

So what to drive?  8 days required extending the usual one-week press loan to two weeks, and the fine folks at Kia and STI stepped up, offering the new version of an old friend...the 2015 Kia Sorento.

Does The 2015 Kia Sorento Look Familiar To You?

The 2015 Kia Sorento.

Regular TireKicker readers will certainly recognize this crossover...a frequent visitor to the "Most Viewed Reviews This Week" feature in the right-hand column in both its 2013 and 2014 model years, and which we reviewed, in different trim levels, not once, not twice but three times in MY 2014.  We had two SX front-wheel drives (one in Arizona, one after the move to Sacramento) and a lower-spec EX all-wheel drive. Each time we came away impressed with the Sorento's overall goodness, to the point that I said (and will stand by) that if I were shopping in this segment, playing with my own money, the Sorento would be the one to beat.

Now the 2015 Sorento is already on the streets, getting a multi-month jump on the competition...so what's new?

UPDATE: New Car Review: 2014 Kia Sorento

How popular is the Kia Sorento?

Consider this:  One of the most-read reviews here on TireKicker is a review of the 2013 Sorento, which we published almost two years ago.

Kia's product cadence (the schedule on which they release all-new or significantly updated vehicles) is so brisk that as fresh as the '13 seemed, the 2014 Sorento is clearly a better looking, better-designed, more refined machine.

New Car Review: 2013 Kia Sorento

The 2013 Kia Sorento.

Meet the all-American midsize crossover.

Yep, it's a Kia.

I'll spare you all the roaring up in the rearview mirror analogies that seem so unavoidable when writing about Kia's huge and so far unfailing strides from punch line to today's version of what Honda was in the 80s. Short version is this is now and so is the Kia Sorento. It's a right-sized crossover SUV, made in America for Americans and it hits the bulls-eye dead center.

2011 Kia Sorento Review

The 2011 Kia Sorento.

It's deja vu all over again.

Those of us of a certain age can remember when Honda found the magic dust and began sprinkling it liberally over their product portfolio. They went from an interesting, quirky also-ran to a company that could do no wrong and whose products you couldn't afford to ignore come car-shopping time.

Well here we are three decades later, and that's what's happening with Kia, which before they were an interesting, quirky also-ran, weren't all that interesting...so the achievement curve here is actually higher than it was for Honda.

About a month ago, we extolled the virtues of the Kia Sportage, now a fine, no-excuses small SUV. But what if you need something a touch bigger?

Well, that's where the Kia Sorento comes in. It's roomier but gets very close to the same mileage as the Sportage (21 city/29 highway to the Sportage's 22/31).

Our tester was the mid-level EX front wheel drive (all three, LX, EX and SX are available in all-wheel-drive as well), starting at $24,795. And that gets you a very well-equipped machine: DOHC 4, 6-speed automatic transmission, 18-inch alloy wheels, ABS, airbags and curtains all around, Electronic Stability Control, Traction Control, tire pressure monitoring, downhill brake control and hill assist control, dual-zone automatic climate control, power windows, door locks, and outside mirrors, an AM/FM/CD/mp3 audio system with SiriusXM satellite radio, USB and auxiliary jacks and Bluetooth.

The interior of the 2011 Kia Sorento.

Also standard in the EX are a multi-adjustable driver's seat with lumbar support, 60/40 split folding and reclining second row seats, pushbutton start with smart key, cruise control, leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, auto light control, tilt and telescoping steering column, illuminated vanity mirrors, rear privacy glass and fog lamps.That's a nice package for less than 25 large. And the Kia people added three options to it:

The Limited package (Navigation with traffic data, backup camera, Infinity Audio system with 10 speakers, 18-inch mirror-finish alloy wheels and interior accent illumination)...$2,000.

Premium Package 1 (Leather seat trim in the first and second row, heated front seats and an auto-dimming mirror with display for the backup camera)...$1,500.

And a mirror with Compass and Homelink for $250.

Regular TireKicker readers know I'd almost always pass on factory nav systems (your phone can do most of what those do), but the added safety of the backup camera is a good idea in almost any vehicle...especially SUVs...and the Infinity Audio system rocked...so I'd actually go this way with my own dime....which would give us a grand total after delivery charges of $29,340.

It drives well, it handles well, it gets good mileage, and nicely equipped, you're coming in just a shade below the competition on price. Plus there's the 10 year/100,000 mile limited powertrain warranty and the 5 year/60,000 mile roadside assistance. Hard to go wrong...unless you don't test drive one.

Kia Sorento EX 4X4 Review

When the car buying market bounces back (and it will), look for smaller SUVs to be one red-hot segment. Utopian dreams of greenies notwithstanding, there are people...a lot of people...who not only want but need the utility and versatility of the SUV...just maybe not the super-size variety.

A few years ago, the Koreans weren't even in this game...but they are now and the Kia Sorento is worthy of some serious consideration.

Smaller than the new Borrego, but larger than the compact Sportage, the Sorento is right-sized for a lot of buyers...and follows the Kia formula of lots of features for relatively little money. Sorento promises to "Conquer The Road In Total Comfort" (according to Kia's website), and it does a remarkably good job.

A base 2-wheel drive Sorento starts at under $23,000...which is awfully close to dirt cheap in this arena. The tester was the top of the line 4-wheel drive EX...with a base price of $27,365. Even so, fully loaded (16 inch alloy wheels, sunroof, leather, heated front seats, dual zone climate control, automatic headlamps, premium audio system) the price tag barely cracks the $30,000 mark. And there's Kia's world-beating 10 year/100,000 mile warranty.

There are better choices for fuel economy (the Sorento's 3.8 liter V6 and 5-speed automatic are good for an EPA estimated 15 city/20 highway), but the safety test results are rock-solid...five stars for all four frontal and side crash categories and four for rollover.

We even got compliments about how nice the Sorento looked.

"The Power To Surprise", indeed.