Kia Sportage

Once upon a time, at the launch of its Sportage Mk.IV somewhere warm and expensive in Europe, Kia made the mistake of lining up all four generations of the model in order of appearance. Huge mistake, because anyone who walks without a white stick could see, at a glance, that, in terms of couture, the machine we had come to drive represented a huge ocular step backwards from its predecessor.

I continue steadfastly to hang my hat on the looks-sell-cars peg, and the Mk. III Sportage was a prime example of same; selling like hot-buttered muffins because it had the temerity to lob good looks into the car-as-white-goods formula, even if the interior lagged quite a long way behind that offered by most of the opposition.

The Mk. IV then blew my argument out of the water by continuing to sell despite its dumpy, hum-drum looks and the absence of any real progress in the cabin…You’d imagine, then, that with this fifth generation outing, Kia would have every aspect of the everyday SUV pretty much sorted out.

Well, yes, and… um, no. It looks, frankly, a bit of a mess. From whichever angle you view it -as David Armand pointed out in Natalie Imbruglia’s song Torn– ‘there’s just so many things.’ The front, though a pleasing step forward in the road presence stakes, is as busy as cheese, and every other surface has been so ruthlessly over-wrought with a bewildering amalgam of ruler, Stanley knife, French curve and blowtorch that it’s hard to discern the essence of the dress through the excess of decoration.

Happily, however, the existence of its all-electric EV6 has provided Kia with a sufficiently up to date parts bin to finally lift the Sportage interior, at a stroke, into the correct decade. OK, for stroke read huge wrap-around dash top slab comprising a 12.3-inch infotainment touch-screen and matching adjacent digital driver’s display.

The transmission tunnel console may still be freckled with assorted switchgear, but elsewhere attendant knobs and knockers have been reduced to a minimum, in the shape of one small rotary knob at either end of a separate climate control panel by which front seat occupants may independently -and with a speed and lack of fuss as yet unintelligible to the touch screen- adjust their air temperature; a must for those whose matrimonial circumstances have become dominated by the menopause.

Speaking of fuss, Euro NCAP’s shameful ongoing stance as a reactive rather than proactive organisation has made lane keeping systems not only ubiquitous but ever more intrusive, to the point where only the foolhardy fail to turn them off before attempting to drive anywhere.

Make even unhurried progress between verge and white lines and the Sportage’s Lane Following Assist system constantly interrupts, randomly butting in and over-steering on your behalf to an extent which is quite ludicrous, and would be humorous were it not almost dangerous in its malicious intent. What is properly dangerous, though, is the eyes-down search through subterranean sub-menus to deactivate the bastard. If ever a lane keeper existed purely to prevent you from crashing whilst you try and turn the sodding thing off it’s the Kia’s. And, of course, it won’t stay off…

What a shame that something more irritating than a drunk, know-all octopus should mar every visit to a cabin which otherwise offers a fine driving position, comfortable seats, excellent space and practicality, and, on this high-spec and gently pricey version, more toys than you can shake a stick at.

The Sportage is available with a diverse bunch of powertrains from straight petrol and diesel variants through to the full plug-in hybrid experience. I drive the 1.6 litre petrol offering abetted by 48-volt mild hybrid architecture; essentially a beefier stop/start system that offers electric motor assistance so mild you’ll only notice it when paying your motoring bills.

Not a quick car, then, but fundamentally smooth due to a seven-speed dual clutch transmission, and, thanks to all-wheel drive, possessed of a modicum of locking diff’, hill descent control-type off-road ability unlikely to interest most owners of a 48-volt MHEV.

Whilst the brakes are strong on stopping power, the steering’s pretty feeble on feel. But for a family SUV it is reasonably quiet and the ride’s not at all bad, only occasionally provoked into quite pronounced thump and shudder by some of the more excessive divots our roads have to offer in such abundance.

Dialling in Sport mode with a view to a little cornering entertainment is something of a thankless task; the steering lacks adequate weight and feel for any real involvement, body roll is sufficient to unsettle your fellow cabin occupants, and the engine -noisy when revved anyway- simply makes even more of a fuss over delivering merely adequate oomph.

Several reviews I’ve read suggest that the Sportage is now a worthy rival to SUV offerings from the likes of Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Volvo. Well, sorry, but other than in price terms, it just isn’t. Nonetheless, it does represent a major step forward for Kia, and for those willing to pay the dangerously premium bill (in terms of securing repeat business from existing Sportage customers, that is), it does show a clean family of heels to the likes of Nissan, Citroen, Hyundai and Renault.