2017 Kia Sportage Unveiled In North American Guise

After seeing it earlier this year at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, the new generation of the Kia Sportage has been presented in North American specification.

Visually speaking, the model is identical to its European counterpart, bringing the same “tiger-nose” grille, repositioned HID headlights, LED fog lamps, LED taillights and 19-inch wheels. The overall length has increased to 176.4in (1.6in more) while the width remains the same at 73.0-inches. The wheelbase has been stretched by 1.2in to 105.1in and the interior is now more spacious.

Under the hood, the North American Sportage has a 2.4-liter naturally aspirated engine, on the LX and EX, with 181hp (184PS) and 175lb-ft (237Nm) of torque, while the SX adds a 241hp (244PS) and 260lb-ft (353Nm) of torque 2.0-liter four-pot turbo. The CUV is offered with both FWD and AWD and power is sent to the wheels through a standard six-speed Sportmatic transmission.

The engine lineup has nothing in common to the one used on the European version, which has two petrol units, a 1.6L with 132hp (132PS) and a 1.6L turbo, rated at 175hp (177PS), along with three diesel burners, a 1.7-liter CRDi, developing 113hp (115PS) and a 2.0L “R” with 134hp (136PS) and 181hp (184PS).

On the entry-level LX, Kia offers the 160-watt sound system, 5.0-inch color touchscreen with Bluetooth, SiriusXM sat-radio and rear-camera display. The mid-range EX adds the 7-inch display with the UVO3 infotainment system complete with Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, access to onscreen apps such as Pandora and Soundhound, Wi-Fi tethering and 8GB of music storage, all free of charge, while the range-topping SX Turbo comes with an 8-inch touchscreen and an onboard navigation system.

Driver assistance features found on the crossover include the Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB), the Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS), the Blind Spot Detection (BSD) with Lane Change Assist (LCA), the Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) and the Bi-HID headlights with Dynamic Bending Light (DBL).

Kia Motors America hasn’t released a launch date or pricing details on the new Sportage for the U.S. market yet.