CarBrandLogos archive · Kia · 2002

KiaSorento

Began as a proper ladder-frame off-roader and quietly became a three-row family car.

Photo: Kevauto · CC BY-SA 4.0

The story

A defining chapter in Kia history.

Explore the ideas, engineering and context that shaped the Kia Sorento, then continue into its specifications and place in the marque's lineage.

Origins

The first Sorento, launched in 2002, was built the traditional way: a separate ladder frame, rear-wheel drive with selectable four-wheel drive, and a low-range transfer case. It was aimed at buyers who wanted something closer to a Land Cruiser than a tall estate, and at the price Kia charged it found them, particularly in Europe where the diesel version towed well and cost little.

2011 Kia Sorento LX 2 -- 02-13-2010 · IFCAR · Public domain

Design and engineering

In 2009 Kia rebuilt the car around a monocoque, moved to a transverse front-engine layout with front- or all-wheel drive, and repositioned it as a mid-size crossover with three rows of seats. The off-road capability went, and the ride, refinement and packaging improved out of recognition. It was the right call commercially; the segment the original competed in was disappearing.

2010 Kia Sorento Platinum wagon 02 · OSX · Public domain

In production

Since then the Sorento has grown into Kia's family flagship below the Telluride, gaining hybrid and plug-in hybrid drivetrains and interior quality that pushed it into territory previously held by premium brands. Its trajectory, from body-on-frame utility to comfortable seven-seater, tracks almost exactly what happened to the SUV market as a whole over the same twenty years.

2012 Kia Sorento SLi wagon 02 · OSX · Public domain

At a glance

The facts that define it.

Produced

2002–present

Body

5-door SUV

Technical specification

The Sorento, in detail.

Production: 2002–present
Class: Compact SUV (2002–2009) ; Mid-size crossover SUV (2009–present)
Body style: 5-door SUV
Layout: Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive (2002–2009) ; Front-engine, front-wheel-drive (2009–present) ; Front-engine, all-wheel-drive (2002–present)
Manufacturer: Kia

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