2022 Kia Sportage SX 2.0L 2WD Automatic Review

We’ve been very impressed with the current generation of Kia Sportage since its 2021 release. While its daring styling might suggest otherwise, it’s an entirely practical, technologically advanced, high quality, good to drive and entirely pleasant mid-size SUV, regardless of which model you choose. But we always felt that while the base S felt cheap, it lacked equipment – and while the top-spec GT-Line is absolutely loaded, it’s almost $55,000 drive away. So how about a mid-spec model? We tested the 2022 Kia Sportage SX to find out.

The SX is the second-from-base model in the Sportage lineup. It commands a reasonable $2,555 premium over the base model S, but adds a lot of important (in our opinion) equipment. It’s also a good $4,500 less than the next step up SX+, at which point the range gets expensive. Is the rest of the Sportage SX experience as pleasurable as the value equation? Let’s have a closer look.

Price & Equipment: 9/10

While the entry-level Sportage S is priced from $32,445 plus on-road costs, we tested the second-from-bottom SX automatic, which is priced at $37,000 +ORC (around $41,500 drive away).

Despite the low-ish pricing, the Sportage SX is well equipped. Standard kit includes 18-inch alloy wheels, automatic LED lighting, auto wipers, roof rails, remote keyless entry, dual-zone climate control with rear vents, cloth upholstery, an eight-way manual driver’s seat (including electric lumbar adjustment), a leather steering wheel and gear lever, a 12.3-inch touchscreen with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, digital radio, satellite navigation, a six-speaker sound system, a rear centre arm rest with cup holders, remote operation for the front windows, heated and auto-folding mirrors and two front seat USB ports (1 x USB-A and 1x USB-C).

Safety equipment includes seven airbags (including a front centre unit), auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian, cyclist and intersection assist, lane keep assist with lane trace assist, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert (both with braking), adaptive cruise control with stop and go functionality, auto high beam, driver attention alert with leading vehicle departure alert, rear occupant alert, safe exit assist, a reversing camera and front and rear parking sensors.

No options are available for the Sportage range except for colour. ‘Clear White’ is the only no-cost colour, with ‘Steel Grey’, ‘Gravity Grey’, ‘Vesta Blue’, ‘Fusion Black’ and our test car’s ‘Dawning Red’ costing $520 extra. Black cloth is the sole interior option.

While the Sportage SX is well equipped, there are some bits of equipment we think it should have – there are no rear charging ports at all, while wireless phone charging, automatic rear windows, keyless entry and start would be a great addition too. But the $2,555 jump from the base S is small for the kit received – bigger wheels, huge centre screen, dual-zone climate control and front parking sensors, etc.

While there are a million different mid-size SUV competitors to the Sportage, we think the Toyota RAV4 GXL (around $42,000 drive away), Mazda CX-5 Maxx Sport 2WD (around $43,500 drive away) and the Hyundai Tucson Elite (around $43,500 drive away) are the biggest competition for the Sportage SX.

That it’s cheaper against those rivals is a good start, but the Sportage SX also has a great level of equipment – it has LED lighting, unlike the Tucson, and a front centre airbag, unlike the RAV4 and CX-5. While the CX-5 has a new 10.25-inch centre screen, the Sportage’s is larger at 12.3-inches – it’s also larger than the 10.25-inch unit in the Tucson and the small 8.0-inch unit in the RAV4. While a $500-more expensive RAV4 gets keyless entry and start and a wireless charger, the Sportage has a much larger centre screen and more standard safety equipment.

Performance & Economy: 6/10

Under the bonnet of the 2022 Kia Sportage SX is a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that makes 115kW of power (at 6,200rpm) and 192Nm of torque (at 4,500rpm). It sends its power to the front wheels only and is available with either a six-speed automatic transmission, or for the base S and this SX, a $2,000-cheaper six-speed manual. The high peak power points are a clue in this engine’s driveability – to get the most out of it, you really have to rev it out.

Unfortunately for the Sportage, its engine is the biggest sore point. While we’d choose it over the 130kW/265Nm 1.6-litre turbo petrol that’s used in the upper-spec SX+ and GT-Line thanks to its awful seven-speed dual-clutch automatic, the 2.0-litre petrol used in the S and SX is sluggish, thirsty and not a great option. A classic case in point is that the RAV4’s engine – also 2.0-litres in size – makes more power at 126kW and uses a lot less fuel at just 6.0L/100km.

The transmission used in the Sportage SX automatic is a six-speed torque converter automatic, which is largely excellent – it’s intuitive, relatively quick to change gears and is entirely unobtrusive – unlike the dopey seven-speed dual-clutch auto that’s used in the 1.6-litre turbo petrol Sportage. Unfortunately, it cannot hide the 2.0-litre engine’s lack of torque and even reasonable throttle prods can result in multiple downshifts and lots of engine noise.

The claimed fuel consumption for the Sportage SX auto is 8.1L/100km with CO2 emissions rated at 184g/km – even the claimed figure is high against rivals, with the RAV4 2.0L using a claimed 6.0L/100km on the combined cycle and the 60Nm-gruntier 2.5-litre CX-5 using 7.2L/100km. In our testing, the Sportage used a disappointing 11.2L/100km in mixed driving – it has a 54-litre fuel tank and can be filled with 91RON regular unleaded.

Ride & Handling: 9/10

Using the same ‘N3’ platform that also underpins the current Hyundai Tucson, the 2022 Kia Sportage SX offers up a great driving experience, in part thanks to Australian chassis tuning. Put simply, the Sportage’s ride and handling balance is fantastic – the ride is supple but well tuned, the handling is appropriately fun for the segment and the steering offers up reasonable feel as well. It shades the Tucson – which sits on the same platform but wasn’t tuned for Australia thanks to Covid – as well as the RAV4 and CX-5, both of which are also great but not quite as comfortable as the Sportage.

Elsewhere in the Sportage’s driving experience is equally pleasurable, with good visibility, low road noise levels and well tuned active safety systems. We particularly like how subtle its safety systems like its lane keeping assistance and blind-spot monitoring are – and if you don’t like them, you can easily turn them off in the centre screen.

Interior & Practicality: 8.5/10

As we’ve discovered in other models, the 2022 Kia Sportage SX’s cabin is excellent, and one of the best in the mid-size SUV segment thanks to its mix of practicality, technology and good quality. While the quality in the Mazda CX-5 and its Hyundai Tucson is better with more soft touch materials and a more expensive feel, the Sportage is still well screwed together and its design looks expensive too.

Centre of the Sportage SX’s interior is a huge 12.3-inch touchscreen that features wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, digital radio and satellite navigation with live traffic. It’s a great system with excellent colours, a crisp screen and really easy menus. It’s a shame that it doesn’t have wireless phone mirroring, but we think it’s best in class and it adds a lot to the cabin experience, unlike the smaller screen in the base model Sportage S. The six-speaker sound system is better than expected as well.

Like in the other models in the Sportage range, the SX’s cabin is a really practical space with plenty of space for your trinkets. The centre console has a huge open area with retractable cup holders and two storage trays, a big centre box underneath the arm rest, big door bins and a big glove box.

Cabin space in the Sportage is great, especially in the rear seat where six-footers and above will be more than comfortable. Australia receives the 7.5cm-longer long-wheelbase Sportage meaning legroom is particularly impressive, as are knee-room and headroom.

The rear seat is quite comfortable as well, and is well featured with vents, map pockets, a centre arm rest with cupholders and door pockets – though buyers must step up to the next step up SX+ to get rear USB charging ports, which is disappointing considering that the last-generation car featured those across the range. 

The boot of the 2022 Kia Sportage SX measures 543-litres with the rear seats erect and a huge 1,829L with the rear seats folded – just bigger than the RAV4 (542L) and Tucson (539L), and a lot bigger than the CX-5 (432L). The boot also features a few tie down points, remote releases for folding the rear seats, under-floor storage, a full-size alloy spare wheel and a 12V socket. 

Service & Warranty: 9/10

Like other new Kia products, the 2022 Kia Sportage SX is equipped with a seven-year/unlimited km warranty with up to eight years of roadside assistance if serviced at a Kia dealership. Unlike the 1.6-litre turbo petrol Sportage, the 2.0-litre engine’s service intervals are once yearly/every 15,000km. Five years/75,000km of servicing the Sportage costs $2,435 ($487 per service).

Competitors Mazda, Hyundai and Toyota offer lesser five-year/unlimited km warranties (Toyota gives you seven years of mechanical warranty if serviced at a Toyota dealership) with varying roadside assistance – Mazda has five years, Hyundai has five years if serviced at a Hyundai dealership and Toyota has none. Five years/75,000km of servicing the CX-5 costs $2,073 ($414 per service), Tucson costs $1,595 ($319 per service) and RAV4 costs $1,150 ($230 per service) so while the Sportage has the most warranty, it’s also comfortably the most expensive to service out of this quartet.

The 2022 Kia Sportage SX 2.0L Petrol DiscoverAuto Rating: 8.3/10

The 2022 Kia Sportage SX is, like the rest of the range, a great addition to both the mid-size SUV segment and the Kia lineup. It’s a great all-rounder with a pleasant driving experience, a practical cabin filled with technology, it’s loaded with standard equipment, has a huge boot and a long warranty. That the SX is the best model in the lineup for its value equation makes it even better, in our opinion.

Unfortunately, the Sportage’s engine is lacklustre and it can be quite thirsty as well. In addition to that, the service costs for the Sportage are quite expensive, and we think it should have slightly more equipment like rear USB ports and wireless phone charging. But overall, the Sportage SX is a great car that we think you should definitely be driving if you’re looking for a mid-size SUV.