Kia Sorento

Kia has a tendency to disrupt segments in the Indian market. They did so when they launched their first vehicle in the country with the Seltos setting the benchmark in the compact SUV segment. Now in 2026, we might just be seeing a repeat telecast of that same benchmark setting, but now in the larger mid-size SUV space with the launch of the new Sorento.

It is a brand new nameplate for the carmaker in India, and while it sits in a segment which has seen a lot of action lately with the likes of the Skoda Kodiaq, Volkswagen Tiguan R-Line, and the Honda ZR-V, we think it has a clear advantage in its price and powertrain options. We’ve experienced the car first hand at its launch in Gurugram, and here’s what we think about it:

The Sorento takes inspiration from Kia’s flagship electric EV9 SUV. As a result, it sports a design that immediately stands out, and while it might not be the tallest or widest or the most intimidating car at its price, it is hard to fault in terms of appeal. 

The nose looks sharp with cascading LED headlights that flank the mesh grille. The headlights are integrated with the sharp LED DRLs, which will give the car a distinctive look at night. The fog lights sit down below within the bumper, which gets a touch of contrast with a silver skid plate. There are also some air vents towards the side of the bumper.

The Sorento’s design in profile is interesting. It has the silhouette of an SUV with a flat roofline, high ground clearance and big alloy wheels, but the sharply tapering windowline makes it look sporty and edgy. The rest of the design is relatively clean with no aggressive body cuts or flares. Even the wheel arch cladding is sophisticated, matching the stylish dual-tone alloy wheels.

Unlike the mass market Syros and Setlos, there are no flush door handles here. The turn indicators are part of the ORVMs, and there is some embellishment near the front fender. 

Distinctive is the word that comes to mind after looking at the Sorento from the rear.

The main highlight has to be the U-shaped LED tail lights sitting at the edge of the vehicle.

The tailgate itself has a lot of cuts and angles in it, while the bumper design is fairly simple with a dual-tone finish. The reflective lights and rear fog lights, both have been integrated within the bumper itself.

For India, Kia is offering the Sorento in 8 colour options: 

• Glacier White Pearl

• Pewter Olive

• Gravity Grey

• Imperial Blue

• Magma Red

• Ivory Silver Gloss

• Aurora Black Pearl

• Xclusive Matte Graphite

Kia also offers a Black Line version, which comes with blacked-out elements of the exterior, such as the window line, alloy wheels, and front grille for a stealthy look.

There is no Kia vehicle on sale in India that has a dull or disappointing cabin, and the Sorento continues to keep that fact honest. 

The design is busy but the wide and horizontal dashboard styling makes the cabin feel stretched and wide. So it has a spacious feel, and yet, also has a wraparound effect at the same time. Both the dual-tone themes (Black/Grey and Black/Brown) look and feel rich, especially when contrasted with its silver inserts around the AC vents and on the door handles. The dual-tone treatment continues into the steering wheel, which looks a bit quirky for a family SUV, but it has physical controls and knobs with paddle shifters behind it. 

At night, the sleek strip of ambient light that runs across the dashboard and into the door trims where it splits into polka dots will look chic at night.

Just like we’ve seen in some Kia and Hyundai cars, there is a switchable touch sensitive control panel beneath the central AC vents that can be toggled to control either the climate setting or media. You do get two rotary knobs for volume, temp, and fan speed control, but the rest of the controls are touch based only. 

The central tunnel separating the occupants is chunky and has familiar elements we’ve seen in the EV6, for example, the jewel gear knob. Behind it is a knob for drive and traction modes and some physical buttons for various features. In fact, the dual digital screen setup, which is part of the same curved bezel, is just like what we get in the Seltos.

The quality is top notch and could give a few entry-level luxury vehicles a run of their money. The leatherette seats don’t just look great, but feel great too and there’s no dearth of adjustments for the front passengers either.

The rear seats are the place to be if you want the maximum comfort with wing supports in the headrests and creature comforts like seat ventilation, rear AC vents and rear central armrest. But if you do want to travel with your extended family too, Kia has brought the Sorento in its 6-seater version, so there is a third row as well.

Kia is one of those brands that give you more than what is expected from a particular price point and more than what is needed in most cases. Both of those things are applicable here as all modern basics are covered with features like keyless entry, push button start/stop, dual-zone auto AC, rear AC vents, power windows, tilt and telescopic steering wheel adjustment, wireless phone charger and ambient lighting.

For tech, the main 12.3-inch infotainment feels familiar with the same user interface we’ve seen on the Seltos which is easy to use, and it has wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Resolution, crispness, and response times, all things are great. It also has built-in real-time generative AI. The driver too gets a 12.3-inch digital display which has multiple layouts and you won’t ever have a problem reading any piece of information through it. Accessing the different menus is fairly simple too.

Feel-good features are plenty with the highlights including creature comforts like 10-way powered front seats with memory setting for the driver, front and second row seat ventilation, dual-zone climate control, 12-speaker Bose audio system, voice-assisted panoramic sunroof, powered tailgate and connected car features.

The Kia Sorento’s safety package includes 10 airbags, a crisp 360-degree camera, electronic parking brake, tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS), hill-hold assist (HHA), and a Level-2 Plus Advanced Driving Assistance System (ADAS) with features like adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, forward collision warning, and blind-spot monitoring. You also remote parking assist, where you can park the car without you in it.

Within the segment where turbo-petrol are favoured by most of its rivals (except the ZR-V), Kia is taking a different approach with the Sorento. From its multiple powertrain options available globally, Kia has brought the strong-hybrid and diesel to India. The former is paired with a 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine, while the latter is just that: a diesel. You can find the variant-wise powertrain availability in this story. Here are the specifications:

Given that the Sorento is based on a monocoque chassis like the Skoda Kodiaq, you can expect sophisticated driving behaviour that will keep you comfortable over bad roads, and give you confidence at higher speeds with its stability. In fact, compared to its rivals, both powertrains have better torque figures, while the power is comparable.

No matter how you look at it, the Kia Sorento is hard to fault. It looks premium, has a premium interior with features that will spoil you and more tech that you will probably ever make best use of. It isn’t a proper 7-seater, sure, but for the price it is being offered at, the Sorento is the best upgrade one can get from the compact SUV space in India. And with the powertrains on offer, you get the best of both performance and efficiency too. So until you need a spacious row where you want an adult to be comfortable, the Sorento is hard to fault.