Kia Sportage SUV 2016-2018 review - Carbuyer 

I miss Rebeca and her bananas:(

Front end needs a bit getting used to. There's something in the proportions that's not right. Rear end looks sleek. A very good review James. However, why is it taking you so long to review Hyundai Tucson which came out months earlier than this one?

I've never got into a car and started scratching things. I don't understand the obsession. It's a cheap car, so we know it's not going to have the interior of a Rolls Royce. Why is 'fun to drive' so important? It's irrelevant in this segment.

i am gonna buy the old one.. this one is total ugly asian design...

This bloke getting better and so are Korean cars

Love the length and content of the last two reviews. 3-4 min is just too short to cover most things you need to know, keep it up!

Nice review.. it look's ok but Tucson is better in design and i rather have Hyundai.. and you want ugly car's..? new škoda octavia (look's like crap lol), Nissan juke and Kia soul... but this is the first Kia that I actually like.. oo yeah and queen of uglinest- multipla.. lol

Good review although everyone keeps on comparing handling with the Ford Kuga. However after owning a kuga I can tell you the handling was atrocious. Not stable and crashes over every bump. Worse handling car I've owned. Had to sell it because of that!! And whilst I'm moaning, what is the deal with the water bottle in the door test. I don't know if it's just me but I've never done that or wanted to do it.

"It's not quite as good looking as the old one" wtf, I don't think so.

This is the 2016 Kia Beluga Whale

This guy has one punch face ~

This car might have a terrible design but it's actually acceptable . Unlike Nissan Juke. That car was god awful. I've got a nightmare just by thinking about the design

stop hating on the guy for christ sake, my year 5 class act with more maturity than you lot. It's a god damn car review, not a popularity contest. If it offends you THAT much, unsubscribe and run back to Matt on a different channel. Take your 5 year old antics elsewhere as I for one, enjoy a good discussion ABOUT THE CAR in the comments section.

Need to see one in the metal. Interior heaps better but exterior maybe not. Loving the current batch of reviews. Nice to have a presenter with a personality.

He's so cute. :) The front reminds me of the old Subaru Tribeca.

the rear light reminds me of the saab 95 which I would rather buy

That front gril is one of the ugliest things I have seen on the car.

James' reviews might not be as enjoyable as we are used to, but at least he ships them quite frequently!

Here is my Kia experience. Anyone in my position has encountered the same thing from Kia. If you cannot supply them with up to date maintenance records on your vehicle they will not cover it. So for instance, if you change your own oil you're screwed. Might work if you saved all your receipts but very few people are in the habit of saving receipts of them doing their own oil changes. This ploy Kia uses is well documented if you want to look it up, I have, and it’s out there. Also my car would be covered under the SC147 recall as the symptoms of my engine seizing up (engine needs replaced) followed the exact same symptomology as those the manufacturing defect notes in the recall. The recall notice even appears on my Carfax report. Again you can find all the recall information online. The reason my car isn't part of the SC147 recall according to Kia is because it is MPI instead of GDI. All the rest of the engine is the exact same, 2.4L theta II. Kia says that because my car uses a different kind of fuel injection method that it cannot be affected by the metal filings left in the engine block which is what the SC147 recall is all about. That's totally absurd on its face but that's Kia's position. The vehicles Kia did recall was done after many government threats as well as numerous lawsuits brought by disgruntled Kia owners for which there are many. Kia's mother company, Hyundai actually recalled their vehicles for the same problem immediately when the issue was discovered. It took Kia several years later to admit to the problem and issue a recall even though they were well aware of the problem. Where was Kia's concern for people being killed due to this manufacturing defect? A car having its engine seize up on the interstate would be something that would concern most companies immediately but not Kia. Unless Kia completely changes the way it does business they will continue to cost consumers thousands of dollars for defective cars and probably end up killing people due to their own negligence. I had to argue, write emails, file complaints with various entities, etc just to get Kia to actually LOOK at my engine at no cost to me to determine the how and why of the engine failure. Kia refused to cover my car even though it is under warranty and furthermore refused to even LOOK at my car to see what caused the failure. I'm still waiting for a callback from Kia with their assessment. Kia actually agreed to take my valve cover off to take a look at my car once I complained as high up as I could to Kia. This was after several months of my car sitting dead on the Auffenberg Kia lot in Metro east St Louis. Kia actually told me I'd have to pay $1500 up front to have my engine failure looked into initially. My constant pressure on Kia finally got them to say they would take my valve cover off for no fee which costs Kia less than $50 in labor. Kia had no desire whatsoever to know what caused my engine to seize up. Their ONLY concern was to avoid any acknowledgement of any responsibility or liability. Kia already knew what caused the engine to fail. The same thing that happened to hundreds of thousands of the same engines made by Kia and Hyundai. It was the exact same problem as the Kia SC147 recall. Taking the valve cover off will not help. There was no oil leak. No oil smell. Never any indication of any problem with the valve cover. It's simply a ploy for Kia to say we looked at your engine and it's your fault. Who would trust their assessment at this point anyway? I'm out thousands of dollars I still owe on a car without a working engine. Don't you think any car maker worth a darn would want to know why one of their vehicles engines just seized up on the highway? Kia's been super lucky so far no one has died due to their negligence. Additionally a co-worker of mine had a problem with his Kia and will not buy one again either. For his Kia the car required a specific oil filter made and installed by Kia and if that was not used the engine fails. He was never told this when he purchased the vehicle. His insurance successfully sued Kia for over $7,000 for his engine failure. Unfortunately my insurance doesn't cover mechanical issues. Ever wonder why your Kia never quite gets the gas mileage it was rated to get? Kia has also paid out for a class action lawsuit because they lied about the MPG of many of their models. The very MPG rating that many people base a large percentage of their purchase decision on. Yeah, Kia lied about that too but kept it hush hush. You can find the information online if you look for it. I had my car into the dealership (Auffenberg) several times before the engine failure telling them something is bad wrong with the car. The Kia service department ran every kind of computer diagnostic and could find no reason for the problems which included knocking, major loss of power, major loss of fuel economy and car dying at both idle and speed. Check engine light was always on and every sensor it said was malfunctioning was replaced and it didn't help. Unfortunately I could not leave my car with Kia. Kia wouldn't supply me with a free rental. They said it was against company policy. My step daughter was dying needing a second liver transplant as all this was going on and I couldn't be without that vehicle. With only one vehicle (other than the Kia) I wouldn't be able to get to work or my step daughter wouldn't be able to be cared for properly. I told Kia this and still they refused to get me a rental while they actually got to the root of my car problem and addressed it. Instead they said sorry to hear that, we can't find any problem with your car. They actually let me leave with a car they KNEW was dangerous and about to fail. They didn't care that my family was going through a serious medical situation with my step daughter and the car behaving as it was only increased the stress on my entire family during this time. Fortunately my step daughter got her transplant just in time and is doing ok now. Not only did Kia sell me a defective product but all this happened as our family is going through the stress of a child being deathly ill, lots of additional costs for medical related expenses and Kia was told this and didn't care. Kia added thousands of dollars to my already stressed finances by selling me a defective vehicle. But it gets even better. The Kia rep in Arizona named Steve that handles my case and many others actually told me on the phone that some of Kia's cars die early and that's just the way it is. He insisted all other car manufacturers have the same problem and also refuse to repair the vehicles leaving their customers screwed too. That's certainly not my experience nor that of anyone I know. Steve at Kia flat out told me Kia isn't going to pay and I'm out of luck because I got a bad Kia and have to eat it. That's what he said. That's Kia’s customer service that said that to me. I have to shake my head and laugh every time I call Kia and their recording says "Rated #1 in initial quality 2 years in a row!" Yeah, and dies in 78,000 miles and Kia refuses to make a full recall or honor it's warranty. You won't see Kia winning any customer service awards or vehicle longevity awards. My advice to anyone that has a Kia (ESPECIALLY if it's a 2.4L) is to trade it in and get something other than a Kia before it dies and your left paying off a car that doesn't run. I liked Kia at one time or I wouldn't have bought one. What I've found out since has opened my eyes to the quality of their vehicles and their denials of their own manufacturing defects even if it could cost lives or severely screw consumers over financially. Buying a Kia might make you think you're getting more quality for less money but it's all based upon lies and cover-ups. That is my Kia experience and it's the WORST experience I've had with any company on any level at any time in my 31 (47 - 16) years of driving cars.

Fire this guy. The voice and face give me nightmares. Bring Mat back.

Where's Mat? This guy has no style. He uses all the same metrics as Rebecca except the banana which he might as well because something tells me he enjoys a banana more than a clam if you know what I mean.

Ive decided. It's the headlights. They should be the same high as the front grill, currently they look super ugly.

back then it looked like an SUV now it looks like a crossover hatchback wtf KIA

HEY ... where is Mat Watson ?? ... This quite new guy looks like a villan from 2000's Batman movies :))) ... he talks funny and after 1 min of him i find it hard to continue watching :(

My Kia Sportage 2021 Gt line has just died - timing belt tensioner failure and possibly crank damage local dealer says they are flooding in and I will not see it for at least two months ! Avoid like the plague ! Mine 5300 miles only - absolute rubbish

I know looks are a matter of opinion but I can't believe anyone likes this. I'm worried people are going to buy them and I will have to see them. The Cayenne is ugly but if it slammed into the wall it would look worse like this. The Pontiac Aztec is the worlds ugliest car and this is a close second. And no it's not okay to own a Kia, there still tack.

(WHAT good too look at), sorry this is the old issue of Asian cars going back too look like bugged eyed crap western buyers hate. Older version used values will go up as a lot of people will say nope its front end is just ugly has hell. Give me the old Sportage over his one any day of the week.

Terrible suspension. I regret buying it for almost 2 yrs. Don't spoil your money pls. These guys takes money to say good things. Finally it's your choice. Above all mileage is terrible too.

nice omega at 0:56, so coping up with all the hate does seems to pay off :)

Very good review. One of the best Carbuyer have done in a while. Keep up the good work. Car looks decent too. Although not 100% sure about the nose

he is getting better! but i still thinks that his videos ais way too long, always 7 mints or more and becomes boring.

this is the worlds most ugly car the front looks horrible the designer was probobly drunk off his balls to design this car

The GT line is beautiful. I get nothing but positive comments wherever I go in mine. Drives much much better than the previous model. Looks much better in the metal than in the vids. GT line is already on back order in the UK. Love the look.

the chancellor must be losing a ton of cash on the road tax now...watch him change the rates in the near future, this car might br £30 now but it will be £50 or more pretty soon... that said the old model looks better..

Love my new 2.0ltr GT line. Considered buying the older model at a heavily discounted price but to be honest the drive just does not compare to the newer model. Love the new look and have only received positive comments by people who would truly say what they think!

That front looks like a Frog making catch a fly The interior looks disgusting with plastic and a dashboard of a 1st gen sorrento Eeewwwwwww

Why oh why don't car reviewers just pull the rear head restraints up and then the seat will lie completely flat. Saying almost is utter crap they will be flat if you lift the head restraints! .

I really didn't enjoy Matt his humour was too forced. prefer the new guy

I like the car, but I find him really annoying.

I like it and feel it could be right for me when I change. However it isn't cheap here in France and for the same money, about €23000, I could get a nearly brand new hi spec Yeti, or a nice Citroen etc. Another excellent review by Mr Batchelor though. I think he's very good and credible.

It looks absolutely better then the previous version.

I think this guy is beginning to find his groove. His, focus-on-facts, light-touch on 'personality', approach to this review, work so much better. Meaningful insight and demonstration over injecting some 'fun' or 'personality' is exactly what we need after the excesses of Top Gear and their endless and increasingly grating copiers. Good stuff.

My mother was going to get this car but its too ugly for the price so were getting the Nissan X-trail tekna

Can't put my finger on it but I just don't like this chap... No offence

Well he's right the older Sportage did look nicer. I think the problem is much like Ford Kia is going to slap that grill on every last one of their newer cars. Now to be fair I do like the grills but they can look a little off putting on certain models. No doubt that Grill is fantastic to look at on the Ceed/Pro ceed but I'm not so sure about this one. It's still a good car but trying to put the same styling on every car can be hit or miss especially when you look at the Porsche Suv's.

This is the first Kia I kinda like to look at :)

The old one looked better!

my 2 problems with this car: headlights a bit too big( like juke - so looks childish) & interior is boring(cheap) / i'm in the market to buy a car from this segment

Old Subaru Tribeca lol The last generation was way better

He days here a really cool feature in the back...can't see what exactly he is doing... And then does not tell us anything about it!

I've been driving this car for a few months now and I will tell you the worst part about it, something that only an owner can tell you and no reviewer can. The absolute WORST part of the car in the quality of the body's metal and the paint job. You have to be very very careful with the car. You WILL get door dings EXTREMELY easily if you don't take a lot of care. The car even scratched at a regular car wash (not a drive through) and also scratched when I used a fucking regular cleanex to while some dirt off of it.

It hit me. The people who still hate Kia and Hyundai just because of the name are people trying to push up their social status up. The ones waiting for that "Yeah i know" confirmation from uber rich folks their trying to reach.

Buy the 2.0 diesel turbo 4 wd 6 sp auto , superb to drive ......best car I ever had . (After 2 Toyota Rav diesels 2014 model )

If u over 190cm the back seat is very small. Just fit my knees if the driver is under 170cm. Head room isn’t that much fot me either. But i was surprised i even would fit at all.... for 190cm+ there really are not much cars that u fit in. The only two i can think about is the superb and the mondeo where i fit good even if the driver is over 190cm too.

Reminds me of subaru tribeca, kinda ugly i think...

did it have an accident when leaving the factory, God it's ugly.

The older model looked much better. The back of this looks like a monobrow

This guy is an accomplished car reviewer.Very good!

overall it's good but the front end destroys the beauty of the car it self. it's like an animal that ready to eat something in front of them. that's a really down side from the previous beautifully made model

0:46 Well considering it's pretty much universally thought of as an ugly car, it probably is. But tbf I know what he means

It's not exactly ugly, but something about it seems a bit off.

That is so ugly but the interior looks good, I owned a Picanto years ago and would warn anyone thinking about a Kia that parts and servicing are expensive

Reminds me of Subaru Tribeca

I can stand off exterior but interior - front panel is ugly!

what about petrol buyers no one reviews the petrol version you say most will buy diesel because of better fuel economy. but you fail to mention they not suited for the school run and short journeys which is what most people use the car for we are not all sales reps

I think the 1.7 diesel is simply underpowered for this car. Also I don't like the front end. Otherwise it seems to be a nice and practical thing. Unfortunately in my country, ride is a lot more important than handling. Our roads are terrible even compared to the UK.

koreans ripped off the Porsche Cayenne

Very strange you did not mention the Hyundai Tucson at the end of the video in comparison to the Kia Sportage? The Hyundai Tucson is by far superior to the Kia Sportage!

OMG! Looks like a rugby player who's been kicked in the teeth. Nice vehicle, but what about that grille?

Doesn't this cost alot more than the old one as well? I mean the GT-line comes at a ridiculous price.

This guy stole my dog and sold it to a Chinese takeaway.

Do people really bother if one car costs £30 more to tax than another, when spending 25 - 30k?

Thank you for a great review.

It also looks like a Subaru Tribeca on the front upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/2006-2007_Subaru_Tribeca_(B9_MY07)_R_Premium_Pack_wagon_(2011-11-17).jpg

Now that is one ugly SUV

The back looks so futuristic... and that's not a bad thing if you ask me. I hope they change the front though, it feels disproportioned.

James is the best Carbuyer presenter his funny humor is absolutely fabulous cheap plastic and packet crisp car buyer bottle 2-liter test and humbugs sweets hahaha

the new Sportage looks a bit fatter and lower than previous model which in my opinion gave it a distinct look. love the rear end but the front might take a long time to get used to

Horrendous front, pretty modern back end though. James the goth, I liked the presentation. Thanks very much!

can you test the all new peugeot 508

Its face looks like 1gen subaru tribeca

Fantastic looking car but that noise at 2:17 is unacceptable, that doors sounds like a 90's fiesta

Why wouldn't you mention the wireless phone charging? It's an awesome, yet not so common feature.

such stupid comments... 30p a year....

This guy gave more credit to third generation sportage and not enough to the new one nice try snob ~

Is it just my headphones or does the sound of the back door opening at 2:16 sound like I built it. Nasty cheap sound.

I was one of your critics, James, but this is your best video at Carbuyer until now. Nevertheless, where is Ginie?

I'm getting used to this guy now, he's alright, this was a good review, just the front of this car is a bit bulbous and takes getting used to but the rear I fall in love with

I feel this guy isn't as neutral in his opinions as Matt. Please bring him back!

They still are dull and stupid things.

Having "sport" in the name does make a car sporty, Kia.

If you break down doing this review at least you are right for snacks! ☺️

Not quite the same without Mat Watson...

Kia managed to do a miserable job designing the front of this car but a decent rear and interior design

James is working his ass of! Where are Matt or the girl (forgot her name sorry)

Good Review

man that car looks disgusting...

I don't like this presenter at all.

They brought back the Pontiac Aztec to life with that horrendous front end.

Front should of been a bit sleeker, however thats what they'll do in the facelift obvs