It's been said — and it's true — that small crossovers are so alike that it's hard to tell them apart. So it's nice to come across one that's different. Not so much in terms of how it looks but in terms of a couple of things that matter.
What It Is
The Sportage is Kia's compact crossover; it competes with the half-dozen others in the class, including the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4. It is related to the Hyundai Tucson, which offers a small third row that isn't available with the Kia.
It comes standard with an engine large enough to not need a turbo — and a transmission that isn't continuously variable.
The hybrid is the same thing with a different drivetrain. Instead of the 2.5-liter four and eight-speed automatic that are standard in the nonhybrid Sportage — along with 25 mpg city, 32 mpg highway — there's a 1.6-liter four that does have a turbo, paired up with a hybrid system that keeps that engine turned off as often as possible. The result is 41 mpg city, 44 mpg highway.
The hybrid is also pretty inexpensive — $30,290 for the base LX trim. That's only $2,900 higher than the base price of the nonhybrid Sportage LX ($27,390) and that's close enough to actually save money — not just gas money — by buying the hybrid.
The hybrid is also available in S ($32,590), EX ($33,590), X-Line ($35,490) and top-of-the Line SX-Prestige ($40,290) trims. All come standard with a 12.3-inch single-sheet LCD main gauge/infotainment screen, LED headlights and Apple Car Play/Android Auto.
The LX comes standard (and only) with front-wheel drive. All the other trims come standard with all-wheel drive.
What's New for 2026
The updated and now-standard 12.3. inch LCD touchscreen plus some exterior styling updates constitute the revisions and additions for the new model year. The S trim is also new for 2026. It adds one-size-larger wheels, heated seats and some trim upgrades.
What's Good
— Hybrid delivers fantastic mileage (and better performance).
— Hybrid isn't standard; you can still get the Sportage with the appropriately sized 2.5-liter engine.
— Neither the regular Sportage or the hybrid come with a CVT automatic.
What's Not So Good
— So-called "driver assistance technology" — including Lane Keep Assist, Forward Collision Warning with Automatic Braking and a Driver Attention monitor — are standard.
— Manual transmission not available.
— There's a slight but gets-annoying lag before the radio comes on when you start the Sportage's engine. It has to "boot up" — because it's more than just a radio these days.
Under the Hood
As mentioned, nonhybrid versions of the Sportage come standard with a 2.5-liter engine that makes 187 horsepower on its own — without needing the boost of a turbo. That engine is paired with an eight-speed automatic and your pick of FWD or AWD. This combo touts 25 mpg city, 32 mpg highway — which is very close to the 28 mpg city, 33 mpg highway touted by the nonhybrid Honda CR-V, one of the Kia's main rivals. That's interesting because the Honda's undersized (1.5-liter) engine does need a turbo to make up for that, and it still only makes 190 horsepower and is only negligibly more "efficient." (It's also more expensive; the CR-V's base price is $30,920 — which is almost the same price as the hybrid version of the Sportage.
Speaking of which, this iteration comes with a smaller (1.6-liter) engine that is augmented by a turbo and the hybrid side of the drivetrain (battery pack and a pair of electric motors), and what you end up with is 232 horsepower, 271 foot-pounds of torque and 41 mpg city, 44 mpg highway. That means you can drive the Sportage hybrid around 600 miles on a full tank, which is only 13 gallons. That's about 100 miles farther than the nonhybrid Sportage can go on a slightly larger (14.3-gallon) tank. Put another way, that works out to about 400 miles of "free" driving per month (assuming four fill-ups per month) or the equivalent of almost one whole tank of "free" gas versus the cost of driving (and filling up) the nonhybrid.
On the Road
The nonhybrid Sportage drives like small crossovers used to about 10 years ago — when they all came with big enough engines to not need a turbo and had conventional (geared) automatic and even manual transmissions. That means it drives normally. It's not quick, but there's no lag between the time you mash the accelerator pedal and the acceleration. Because there's no turbo to spool up before there's power to accelerate. As the vehicle accelerates, the transmission shifts up through gears (as opposed to feeling like it's slipping, as is often the case with CVTs), and that feels nostalgically normal too.
It takes about nine seconds to get to 60 mph, and while that's not speedy, it's not as slow as some reviewers make it out to be. The last-generation Prius needed about 11 seconds, and even that's only a problem if you're not paying attention. If you keep track of the ebb and flow of traffic, it's easy to keep pace — even if you've driving a vehicle that's nominally slower to get going.
The tested hybrid is also about two seconds quicker to 60 mph, which is an unusual bonus in that economy-emphasizing vehicles such as hybrids historically offered a more leisurely pace than nonhybrid iterations of the same vehicle. This one goes — and without the lag too — courtesy of the right-now torque generated by the hybrid side of the drivetrain, which includes two electric motors. (The plug-in is even quicker, getting to 60 mph in just over six seconds; it can also be driven about 34 miles on just its batteries — assuming they're fully charged.)
At the Curb
Both the hybrid and the nonhybrid Sportage are slightly longer (184.4 inches) than the previous (2025) model, and both also get a minor but noticeable exterior makeover that's easiest to spot via the slight differences in the grille — which is more of a stretched rectangle now than before.
The most obvious difference is inside the Sportage. All trims now come standard with a large (12.3-inch) integrated single-sheet LCD screen and a new center console, with a new wheel-control selector to engage Drive and Reverse (Park is via a push-button) in lieu of the previous old-style T-handle gear-selector. Since everything is drive-by-wire now, it's just a waste of console space to have that lever there when a smaller knob will serve the same purpose.
One of the attractions of this small crossover is that it has just about the most interior space for cargo in the class: 39.6 cubic feet behind the back seats and 74.4 cubic feet available with the backseats folded forward. That's more than the current (2025) Toyota RAV4 touts (37.6 cubic feet behind the second row; 69.8 cubic feet maximum), but a revised 2026 RAV4 is coming, so we'll see whether that stands.
The base LX is very well equipped — with one exception. This trim is not available with AWD. You have to step up to the S or higher trims to get that. Also, while the standard six-speaker stereo is good, you can't get better — as a standalone option. An eight-speaker Harman Kardon upgrade is standard with the top-of-the-line SX-Prestige, which also comes with heated second row seats and steering wheel plus a heads-up display and a digital key system that allows certain vehicle functions to be controlled remotely via smartphone.
The Rest
Another thing the Sportage offers is a standard 2,500-pound max tow rating — though this dips down to 2,000 pounds for the hybrid. Still, it's more than the Toyota RAV4's 1,500-pound maximum. The Honda CR-V's maximum tow rating is also just 1,500 pounds.
The Bottom Line
It's not easy finding something meaningfully different to say about one crossover versus another — but this one's virtues speak for themselves.
Eric's latest book, "Doomed: Good Cars Gone Wrong!" will be available soon. To find out more about Eric and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.
View the Kia Sportage hybrid this week.
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