Kia Sorento 2013 officially revealed

The new 2013 Kia Sorento has been officially unveiled, and while it looks like a minor facelift, the Korean carmaker claims it is an all-new design with a completely new platform.

The new exterior offers an updated look with LED lights front and back, and options such as 19-inch alloy wheels and a glass panoramic roof. Inside, access is improved by the 100 mm lower ride height, and the cabin floor has also been lowered, increasing legroom by 30 mm in the 2nd row and 9 mm in the 3rd row. The interior can be trimmed in black or beige cloth or leather.

Premium options will include powered, heated and ventilated front seats, heated second-row seat cushions, a Bluetooth hands-free system, UV-reflecting solar glass, and air-conditioning for the third row seats.

A revised 190 hp 2.4-litre “GDI” engine with 242 Nm of torque is on offer in Europe and Korea, but GCC-spec models will likely continue with the less-powerful 174 hp 2.4-litre “MPI” engine, while a 276 hp 3.5-litre V6 is optional. Depending on market, there is a choice of 6-speed manual and automatic gearboxes, with front-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive with ‘lock’ mode.

The steering, suspension, brakes and torsional rigidity have all been upgraded. The upgraded Sorento can be equipped with up to six airbags, electronic stability control, a reversing camera, HID headlights, hill-start assist control, blind spot detection, lane departure warning system and a smart parking assist system for automatic parallel parking. Of course, not all of these features will make it to cars that will come to Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar and other GCC countries.

Expect the new model to debut in the Middle East by the end of the year.


Source: Drive Arabia