Kia Sportage News

Kia has just launched a cheaper hybrid version of its popular Sportage family SUV.A Sportage hybrid can now be bought in the entry-level S grade, with the front-wheel drive variant starting from $44,450 (before on-road costs), while the all-wheel drive starts from $47,450. The brand has been rolling out hybrid variants across its Sportage range since mid-2025, with this latest S grade hybrid completing the set.Hybrids have become an increasingly popular choice for buyers in Australia, as many manufacturers move add them to product lineups. The Sportage S hybrid gives Kia a more affordable rival to the other big-hitters of the hybrid segment. The most affordable hybrid before the new S grade was the SX, which is $2000 more expensiveThe hybrid Sportage is now cheaper than a comparative Toyota RAV4, which is one of the best-selling cars in Australia, starting from $45,990, before on-roads. A Sportage hybrid is still more expensive than its sister car, the Hyundai Tucson, with its hybrid variant starting from $42,850 (before on-roads). The Sportage trails the outgoing RAV4 and the Tucson in the sales charts.  The Sportage hybrid employs a 1.6-litre turbo-petrol engine and electric motor, producing 169kW and 350Nm. The hybrid variants of the Sportage offer a big step up on fuel economy, with the FWD offering 4.9L/100km, while the AWD sits at 5.3L/100km.The Sportage was recently updated in Australia, resulting in a noticeable price increase across the range. Other purely internal-combustion options available on the Sportage are a 2.0-litre petrol, 1.6-litre turbo-petrol and 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engines. This latest Sportage update, has been part of a broader push from Kia to introduce hybrid offerings across its product lineup. Late last year, Kia unveiled several new hybrid models for its Sorento SUV. The incoming Seltos will feature a hybrid set-up for the first time when it launches in late 2026. 2026 Kia Sportage hybrid pricing Australia (before on-road costs)

It’s 2026, and this year will mark a decade since Ford ended manufacturing in Australia, with Holden and Toyota also ending local production a year later. So, who’s making the cars we love now? And by who, we mean which countries?Here are the top five countries that made our favourite cars in 2025.Australia’s love of European cars is ongoing but that appears to be coming off the boil slightly with 2025 sales of cars built in Germany dropping to 54,905, down by 2639 units on the year before.Doing the heavy lifting are models such as the Volkswagen Tiguan and Golf, along with the Mercedes-Benz GLC and GLA SUVs which are made in Germany for Australia.It’s unlikely Aussies will stop treating themselves to cars from Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Volkswagen anytime soon, if ever. But as you will see the gap between prestige-niche (prest-niche?) and mainstream models could grow increasingly larger as Chinese offerings head further upmarket while keeping prices low.Hyundai and Kia are the big two Korean carmakers, with KGM (formerly SsangYong) struggling but still hanging on. Between the three they made 149,966 of the cars bought by Aussies in 2025. That’s down from 157,760 in 2024.Australians love models such as the Hyundai Kona and Santa Fe and Kia Sportage which are all made in Korea for our market. The drop in the number of Korean-made cars we bought could be attributed to the biggest mover in the top five manufacturers. Enter China.Number three today, number two tomorrow? Possibly sooner. The popularity of Chinese-made cars accelerated dramatically from 2024 to 2025, the overall number going from 176,159 to 221,699. Yes, an increase of 45,540 cars (+26 per cent), almost the total amount of German-made cars sold in 2025. Impressive.Chinese-made models such as the BYD Shark 6 ute, GWM Haval Jolion and MG ZS SUV have been snapped up by Aussies in their tens of thousands.As with any race, the battle between third and second place is often more riveting than what’s going on in first and China is breathing down the neck of Thailand right now.It might surprise you (or not at all) to know that Thailand came in second place for 2025. But only just, with 249,958 cars made for Aussies, which is down from 272,139 in 2024.What cars does Thailand make? Pretty much every ute on sale in Australia and utes are hugely popular here.Yep, from the Ford Ranger, Isuzu D-Max and Mazda BT-50 to the Mitsubishi Triton, Nissan Navara and Toyota HiLux. Thailand is a ute powerhouse.Japan is our winner for 2025 as the country which makes more cars that we buy than any other nation. Japan made 358,981 of the cars Aussies bought and that’s up from 241,296 in 2024. Carrying the heavy end of this big number is Toyota with firm Aussie favourites such as the RAV4, Corolla, Camry, Corolla Cross, Land Cruiser and Prado.By now you know the Toyota HiLux is made in Thailand, but did you know the Kluger is built in the United States for Australia? You do now.

One of Australia’s most popular SUVs is gearing up for a new-generation changeover in the next 12 months, and now we have an idea of what it might look like.

Mazda has globally revealed its new third-generation CX-5 mid-size SUV ahead of it arriving in Australia in 2026.

Kia Australia has detailed the pricing and specifications for its updated 2026 Sportage mid-size SUV ahead of imminent customer deliveries.

Ford Australia has axed so many of its cars over the past two years that it almost has nothing left on sale. It’s just lucky that one of the few cars left that it does sell — the Ranger ute —  does so in enormous numbers. So what’s missing from Ford’s line-up? A lot. Here are the cars we think Ford really needs in Australia right now.Ford lacks a rival, to not just to hardcore four-wheel drives like the Toyota LandCruiser and Nissan Patrol, but to more domesticated Aussie family favourites such as the Toyota Kluger, Kia Sorento and Hyundai Santa Fe.Yes, the Ford Everest seats seven and can go off-road with the best of them, but a more plush and comfortable suburban cruiser would fit nicely in the line-up.Now this might hurt a little bit and I apologise in advance, but in South Africa you can buy a Ford Territory. I know, what the Ford!?So, the South African Ford Territory is made in China and sold in other countries but it’s made in right-hand drive, which means there’s no reason why we can’t have it here.This new Territory isn’t as big as the Santa Fe at 4.63m long so it’s not really a large SUV but still, what a shame.What Australia really needs is a Ford Explorer, as in the petrol-powered version form the United States, not the UK electric version. The US Explorer is a a five-metre long seven seater, while the UK version is 4.4m and smaller than an Escape.Nope, bigger is better in this case and while the Explorer is currently only made in left hand drive, there is a chance a right hand drive might get the green light for the next-gen model.Ford axing the Escape is the car company equivalent to throwing away your only pair of pants just because you don’t like the colour of them.OK, that’s a terrible analogy but the point is mid-sized SUVs are the bread and butter of car brands and they sell all year long in large numbers and they’re kind of an essential item to car manufacturers. Ford axed the Escape because it didn’t sell enough of them. But it could easily bring back the Escape because it’s sold in the right-hand drive in the UK.Ford should seriously consider it, the mid-sized SUV segment is increasing in size at 19.6 per cent market share and Ford’s not able to join in the spoils. Toyota has the RAV4, Kia has the Sportage, Nissan has the X-Trail and Ford has nothing. No pants to wear at all.If there’s something Australians love almost as much as mid-sized SUVs it’s a small SUV. We’re talking the likes of the Toyota Corolla Cross, Hyundai Kona and the MG ZS. And Ford did have the Puma, but axed it in 2024 just four years after it arrived.The Puma was a high-quality feeling and premium looking SUV, but it was overpriced compared to its rivals and so sales struggled. People want premium looking at budget prices apparently.The Puma is sold in the UK as a hybrid and a fully-electric vehicle, so bringing it to Australia wouldn’t require anything other than a trip on a boat from Romania where they’re made.So there you are, Ford has pretty much all the cars it needs in right-hand drive to take the fight to rivals such as the Toyota RAV4 and Corolla Cross, the Kia Sorento and Hyundai Santa Fe.Will we see the Territory again? Will Aussies be OK with a Chinese made Territory? Given the the shift in attitudes and growing maturity towards Chinese brands and their rapid take-up there's no reason they wouldn't be.Sure bringing back the Territory nameplate, plus the Puma and Escape could be a risk for Ford, but would it be as big a risk as having all your eggs in the Ranger basket as it does now?

Kia will no longer offer purely petrol and diesel engines in its Sportage range as the brand alters the line-up to be hybrid-only, a new report reveals.

CarsGuide’s data analytics team has crunched the numbers to find out how well popular mid-sized SUVs hold their value. This insight means you can buy a new car now knowing it’ll likely be a resale winner when the time comes to sell it.

If you’re keen on a hybrid from an established brand but want something other than a Toyota, there might be a few more options on the horizon soon, with Kia set to ramp up its plug-in hybrid offerings.

Kia set a sales record in Australia last year and the company’s boss has plans to smash that record again in 2025.