Kia Sportage 2010 News

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced its latest round of national recalls, with models from Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Kia, Land Rover and Ram impacted.

Kia has updated its stylish Sportage small/medium SUV range, launching the Series II model 2.5 years into the current generation’s model life. The Series II sees Australian-spec Sportages now sourced from Kia’s Slovakian factory, unlike previous Korean-built versions. Kia Australia’s COO Tony Barlow explains the shift to European manufacture as curing the previous Australian-market supply shortages for the Sportage. “The opportunity to have consistent supply by taking production from Europe makes perfect sense and will benefit customers and dealers alike.” The previous Si, SLi, and Platinum spec levels continue with Series II, and benefit from range-wide subtle revisions, including Series II badging, HID headlamps, static cornering lamps, taillight-integrated rear foglamps, de-icing windscreen wipers, and a reprofiled lower rear bumper. On the inside, trim materials have been revised, with partial leather added to Si and SLi variants, and a new stitch pattern and colour for the leather-clad Platinum. A central locking button is now located on both driver and passenger door trims, along with a now-lockable glovebox, digital clock added to the audio display,  Active ECO button on diesels for the first time, and the A/C now has seven distinct ventilation modes. The 122kW/197Nm 2.0 litre petrol engine is now available on all models, and the 135kW/392Nm 2.0 litre turbodiesel remains available on SLi and Platinum variants. The previous 130kW/227Nm 2.4 litre petrol option has been discontinued. The Si continues to be available in two-wheel-drive only, as with the all-wheel-drive only SLi and Platinum grades. The Si also remains available in either 5-speed manual or ($2000 optional) 6-speed auto, while the SLi and Platinum are 6-speed auto only. List prices have dropped on all Sportage variants, with the manual SI now starting at $25,490 (plus $2000 for auto), representing a $1500 saving on the outgoing model. The petrol SLi is now priced at $31,990 (down $1000), and the petrol Platinum is now $36,490 (down $1500). The 2.0 litre diesel/6-speed auto drivetrain is available on SLi and Platinum models for an extra $3,500 (up $500), but their $35,490 and $39,990 list prices are down $500 and $1000 respectively. Satnav remains a $1500 option on SLi models (standard on Platinum), and metallic paint costs a further $520 on all variants. This reporter is on Twitter: @Mal_Flynn    

... but only made the final field in the first place at the expense of the car from which it is cloned, the Hyundai ix35.The Sportage edged the ix35 because it looks better, is priced cheaper and drives considerably nicer than its Korean rival - at least until Hyundai put its suspension crew to work on improvements for 2011. Once into the COTY field the Sportage impressed on almost every front.  It's the sort of family car that the majority of Australians now want, with solid performance, five-star safety, great value and a driving experience that's a lot better than a clunky off-roader.It could have done even better in a year when the Polo was not a runner and is a worthy runner-up against a car that dominated the judges' votes.Kia Sportage: review

Kia Australia is considering ramping up its warranty across the range from five to seven years.  The lucky seven deal is currently only available in Europe, where Kia is aiming to lift its market share to 3 per cent by 2015, up from 1.8 per cent today.  But Kia Australia senior product manager, Nick Reid, adding two extra years ‘is something we're looking at’.Reid says it is appealing but the cost would have to be weighed up against a consumer need.  "Extended warranties have to be paid for," he says.Kia Europe's seven-year warranty deal was previously just available on two models but in January it extended it across all its models.  To help protect its used car values, the warranty will also be transferable to owners who buy a second-hand Kia.Kia currently has a 10-year/160,000km warranty for its entire line-up in the United States.  In Australia Mitsubishi and Hyundai have two of the longest warranties available to new car buyers.Mitsubishi's has a 10-year/160,000km powertrain and five-year/130,000km general warranty while Hyundais are covered by a five year/unlimited deal.  Kia reaffirmed its warranty commitment at the launch of the new Sportage during the recent Geneva Motor Show.The chief operating officer of Kia Motors Europe, Paul Philpott, says the South Korean brand is aiming to be the world's number one carmaker for customer satisfaction.  "Our seven-year warranty is a major step towards achieving that goal," he says.Like the Hyundai ix35, Australian Sportages will be available in both front and all-wheel drive.  Kia is also likely to stick with the larger capacity 2.2-litre turbo diesel and 2.0-litre petrol four cylinder engines rather than the new European 1.7 diesel and 1.6-litre direct injection petrol fours with stop-start technology.The new Sportage has grown slightly in every dimension except ground clearance.  At 170mm, the new wagon has 25mm less ground clearance and Kia has shaved 90kg weight out of the car.

Europe is back in business, celebrating the end of the global financial crisis that rocked the car world and drove the biggest of them all - General Motors - into bankruptcy.There were green shoots of happiness at the Frankfurt Motor Show in late 2009, but this week's Geneva Motor Show shows the same sort of excitement and promise of an early spring morning in Europe.Every carmaker has something new in Geneva, from full-blown production models to quirky concepts. The Swiss show is often dismissed as a sideshow but this time, with 25 new models as diverse as the Nissan Micra and Porsche Cayenne, there is serious action on every front.Carmakers are predictably focussed on green solutions to meet the challenges of fuel economy and CO2 emissions - with Fiat even showing a tiny two-cylinder engine for its funkoid 500 - but there is also room for fun.  How else do you describe a Honda city concept that looks like a 20th-century take on the unicycles used by Circe du Soleil acrobats?But even the green machines have turned mean as Ferrari shows its 599 Vettura Labratorio hybrid, although BYD from China balanced things with its fully-electric E6 hatch.Porsche also has its 918 supercar concept and both it and the Ferrari tap Formula One technology with KERS hybrid packs - that's Kinetic Energy Recovery System - to store energy for a quick, explosive boost of extra power.Porsche plans to put the 918 into production but, as yet, Ferrari is only using the super-special 599 - painted symbolically in green instead of the Italian brand's signature red - as a rolling labratory.  "We want to understand how to use this technology. We are not yet at the point to see it in a road going Ferrari," says Amedeo Felisa, Ferrari's CEO.The upbeat mood at Geneva is captured by the top man at Bentley, Dr Franz-Josef Paefgen, who says the reaction to his company's Mulsanne and Supersports models has filled him with confidence after a shocking 2009.  "There is a feeling that it is behind us," Paefgen says as super-wealthy Bentley buyers emerge from their GFC-proof bunkers.Walking the stands at Geneva I see green machines that are more than just concepts and plenty of choices for small-car buyers, from budget hatches to baby prestige cars like the Audi A1.  The little Audi gets a rousing reception, Volvo wins praise for the safety and styling of the new S60 sedan and the Alfa Giulietta - replacement for the 147 - raises more questions about the often-promised renaissance for the brand.Lexus shows a compact new CT200h hybrid that brings petrol-electric power to a new group of buyers, Mini has the Countryman with extra ground clearance and the basics for a World Rally Championship challenge in 2011, and the Mitsubishi ASX crossover - test driven this week by Peter Lyon near Tokyo - heads the Japanese contingent.For Alfa fans, the Giulietta is pitched at the Volkswagen Golf with a range of 1.4, 1.6 and 2.0-litre petrol and diesel engines.  BMW’s new 5 Series and a 4-litre six-cylinder X5 diesel creates a predictable buzz among SUV fans.Kia’s head of design, Peter Schreyer, lifts the wraps off the stylish new Sportage, which is due in Australia later this year, with the promise of both turbodiesel and petrol engines, as well as front and all-wheel drive.  The Sportage could be major hit for the Korean brand, matching the impact of the Hyundai ix35, when it goes on sale with an opener in the sub-$30,000 bracket.Ford leverages the first European appearance of its new Focus hatch in Geneva by unveiling the Focus wagon, which at this stage is a Europe-only car. Europeans are big wagon buyers and the wagon is expected to account for one-third of all Focus sales there.But the Focus wagon is only the halfway point - the fifth of 10 proposed models - using the same basic building blocks and the future includes a Focus electric car. Currently, the wagon, hatch, sedan and C-Max and Grand C-Max all share the same underpinnings.“We are now using our global resources to develop cars for all countries, including Australia,” says Ford's technical chief, Derrick Kuzak.  He also reveals the current Europe-only Kuga compact SUV and North American Escape will be replaced by a single global car, which could head to Australia, and hints that a hot performance Focus with a more-powerful version of Ford’s 2.0-litre Ecoboost turbo engine will also be available in Australia.Lexus uses Geneva to showcase its critically important CT 200h hybrid, which it hopes to become a volume player.  But the CT 200h is not the only car to push the green theme at the affordable end.Hyundai has the stylish turbocharged 1.7-litre i-flow concept sedan, which uses a lithium-ion battery pack with six-speed dual-clutch transmission, and it is joined by the ix35 FCEV hydrogen fuel-cell car and Opel’s Flextreme GT-E.Apart from Ferrari, Porsche shows off its GT3 R Hybrid - also with KERS - and 918 Spyder, both exploring the outer limits of hybrid drivetrains for race and road cars.  The Cayenne, along with the VW Touareg, share their hybrid debuts as Audi uses the first appearance of its baby A1 to reveal a full-electric E-tron concept that joins earlier R8-based plug-in supercars.Apart from the conventional petrol and diesel A1, Audi also adds the RS5 coupe to its A5 lineup and a hybrid A8 sedan. The RS5 gets a powerful 335kW/430Nm 4.2-litre V8, quattro all-wheel drive and seven-speed S-tronic dual clutch gearbox.Like the BMW-built Mini, Audi has several distinctly styled A1s on its stand. It says owners will have access to so much customisation that no two A1s will be exactly the same.Audi has the Mini firmly in its sights with an expected starting price around $33,000 for the A1, with a three-door car to kick of sales with a five-door and cabrio expected. The range-topper is expected to be an S version with a performance-tuned turbo four cylinder engine.Citroen springs one of the few real surprises of the show with its hot-pink Survolt sportscar while Giugiaro teams up with Proton to deliver a stylish hybrid city car.  The Survolt is a pure design fantasy with no likely production expected. The showcar did not even have an engine and Citroen says it has been designed to go electric.Apart from the sleek Citroen, two Italian styling houses - Pininfarina and Bertone - have show cars based on Alfa Romeo mechanical parts. Bertone returns to Geneva for the first time in two years with the Pandion 2+2 concept coupe and Pininfarina shows the two-seater 2uettottanta.Apart from the twin concepts, Citroen has the DS3 Racing as well as its DS High Rider three door, a pointer to the next-generation C4, which is due to be launched next year as a five-door.  The company will only build 1000 versions of the DS3 racing and the head of local importer Ateco Automotive, Neville Crichton, says he would like to bring a few to Australia but will initially focus on launching the DS range.“It certainly is a good looking thing,” Crichton says.  Mercedes-Benz continues to create a buzz at Geneva with its SLS Gullwing supercar but the F800 Style, a pointer to the next-generation CLS minus its cantilever rear doors, dominates the Mercedes stand and shares the limelight with the E-Class cabriolet.Fitting in the quirky category in Geneva is Aston Martin’s Cygnet hatch, a remake of Toyota’s iQ city car. The $50,000 makeover model will only be sold to existing Aston Martin customers.  Aston Martin boldly has the Cygnet right next to its four-door flagship sports car, the Rapide.

Although Kia has not officially confirmed it as a production car, or even as a concept, the handsome vehicle shows all the hallmarks Kia design chief, Peter Schreyer.  Like other new generation Kias, the imposing off-roader gets several distinctive Schreyer touches, from the corporate `family' H-grille to the slimline headlights.Unfortunately for Kia, the leaked undisguised images came from the European patent office, known as the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market for the European Union.  There's no word on its debut but the wraps could come of the newest Korean at the Geneva Motor Show in March.The Sportage is scheduled to hit Korean showrooms later this year and possibly Australia early next year.  Clearly inspired by the just-launched Sorento, the smaller off-roader is expected to share much of its architecture — engines and suspensions — with the stylish new Hyundai ix35.Only the body will be different.  Like Hyundai, Kia Australia is likely to have both front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive models of the Sportage, with the entry version being front-wheel drive.It is expected to share the Hyundai's 124kW/197 Nm 2.0-litre Theta II engine paired with a newly developed six-speed automatic.  A turbo-diesel engine is also expected.  Kia will be hoping for good things from the new Sportage.Unlike Hyundai, Kia's compact off-roader is not a strong seller locally.  Last year Kia sold 1911 Sportages compared to 11,405 Hyundai Tucsons.

Just as the baby Soul hits Australia — after being rushed through months ahead of schedule — these pictures of the Korean company's new compact four-wheel drive have just surfaced.It's the upcoming Sportage and it was caught in driving snow in freezing Scandinavia as engineers finalised the update package for the 2010 model which will be ready for showrooms in the back half of this year.The biggest change is a six-speed automatic gearbox to go with the Sportage's 135-kiloWatt turbodiesel engine. The goal is to improve both performance and fuel economy in an engine which is becoming more and more important to Kia.But Kia is tied to Hyundai on product development and that means the same package is likely to be seen in the next update of the Hyundai Tuscson, which is twinned with the Sportage.The updated turbodiesel powertrain will find its way into other Kia models sold in Europe, although there is no firm plan to use it in the latest compact Cerato in Australia.The Sportage update is only a mid-life tickle but is important for a vehicle which has been its most successful since it was introduced in 1995. The current model was only introduced with a full model change in 2005.