We expect the new Sportage will be bigger than the current car, as it’ll almost certainly continue to share its underpinnings with sister outfit Hyundai’s new Tucson, revealed this summer.
The outgoing Tucson and Sportage have the same width, height and wheelbase, but the new Tucson is 35mm wider, 20mm taller and 35mm longer than its predecessor. Expect the same for the Sportage to increase passenger space, while it will also compete with the Hyundai’s massive 695-litre boot.
The interior of the Sportage will be centered around Hyundai’s all-new Pleos infotainment software, which arrived this year on the Ioniq 3 and Tucson, and will be rolled out to Kia and a claimed 20 million cars within the group up to 2030. The system, which on the latest Tucson makes use of a 12.9-inch or 17-inch touchscreen, comes with the latest AI-enhanced voice recognition, plus access to third-party apps and connected services such as YouTube and Spotify.
The Sportage’s powertrain options will also likely mirror those of the new Tucson. We expect the usual mix of petrol, full-hybrid and plug-in hybrid units, with front and four-wheel drive. Entry-level Sportages should get the 148bhp 1.6-litre T-GDI engine and a six-speed manual gearbox, with cars fitted with the seven-speed DCT gaining a 48V mild-hybrid system. Above these should be the full hybrid, with around 240bhp and a sole six-speed automatic.
The new Tucson will also get a new plug-in hybrid with a 17.1kWh battery allowing for up to 50 miles of range. The current Sportage PHEV maxes out at 44 miles thanks to a 13.8kWh battery.
Given this is our first look at the next Sportage, we don’t expect a full reveal until 2027.
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