Used Kia Sportage II - reliable SUV at a good price

Asia is the birthplace of compact SUVs with a good reputation. However, not everyone has to be Japanese. An alternative, and a good one, are Korean models. One of the most popular offerings is the Kia Sportage. The second generation can be purchased for quite reasonable money.

The first generation Sportage was one of the first compact SUVs in the world. In the 90s, he still had the features of a roadster (frame, gearbox), but in 2004 he was replaced by a completely new car, designed as a Honda CR-V or Toyota RAV-4. It has a self-supporting body, fully independent suspension and automatic all-wheel drive. The Sportage has become more on-road than off-road, but that makes it more enjoyable in everyday life.

The body has a length of 435 cm with a wheelbase of 263 cm. Despite the compact size of the room, it can accommodate four people. The trunk is relatively small - a capacity of 320 liters. Good access to it is a plus. Another advantage is a well-made and functional interior.

A significant facelift of the model took place in 2006, and its production was discontinued in 2010.. In 2008, an upgraded diesel was added to the offer. The first generation Hyundai Tucson, produced at the same time, is identical, although not externally.

Kii Spotage II user reviews

Out of 124 ratings, the average score was 4,26 out of 5. This is a typical result in this segment. 82 percent of users do not regret the purchase and will buy this model again. Body received high marks (capacity, visibility, ergonomics, ventilation, corrosion protection). They rated dumb as lowand the lowest scores were received by the Sportage for cost of living.

See what Kii Sportage users have to say

Crashes and problems

Users were negatively surprised by electrical malfunctions, and after all, Korean cars of that period were capricious, although this mainly concerns trifles. However, regardless of the engine version, there are times when you have to deal with jerky, sluggish acceleration or a malfunction that causes excessive fuel consumption.

The main mechanisms of the car are durable. There are no special claims to the engines. As in the case of the clutch assembly that attaches the rear axle. Can be regenerated if necessary. Automatic transmissions have been around for a very long time, and manual transmissions lose their accuracy over time. Unfortunately, as befits a Korean, large components are not immediately available, and new original parts have terrifying prices. The problem, for example, is in the drive shafts, or rather in the bearings. If we are dealing with a pre-facelift car, the entire shaft needs to be replaced. Fortunately, today regenerated ones cost up to PLN 1000. In cars after facelift, only the support can be replaced.

Over the years, cars are increasingly suffering from corrosion of the body and wear of electrical parts. The air conditioner is also defective.

Which engine should you choose?

Although in general 5 versions of the engine were offered during the production period, there is no particular philosophy when choosing. People who appreciate simplicity should opt for 2-liter gasoline. It has a rather low performance (141 hp) and, unfortunately, consumes fuel (minimum 10 l/100 km). Stops the gas supply.

On the other hand, a 2.7 V6 with 175 hp. offers good performance. It tolerates gas well, but needs it on average about 15 l / 100 km. Its advantage is a high work culture, but pay attention to the automatic - it has only four gears, and it takes a long time to switch them, so this is also a version not for the impatient. It's also easy to find a front-wheel drive option.

The golden mean in Sportage is diesel. Regardless of the year, this is a good design. The 2.0 CRDi engine was produced by the Italian company VM Motori. A weaker version with 113 hp. has a fairly simple design (for example, a fixed turbocharger geometry). The more powerful one (140 hp) has a variable geometry turbo or, in some examples, a DPF filter. After a facelift in 2008, a 150 hp variant appeared. If properly maintained, a diesel engine is a low-failure engine, but not all parts will be cheap. According to users, fuel consumption should not exceed 9 l / 100 km on average.

Answering the question about the choice of engine, in my opinion, the V6 option would be the best. It burns a lot of fuel, but on LPG it is more economical than diesel, or at least as economical, and there is less risk of costly breakdowns. Well, it is connected only with the machine, although lazily.

Cm: fuel consumption reports for Kii Sportage

Which Kia Sportage to buy?

Of course with all-wheel drive. Front wheel drive is not very popular. If you already have a 4WD, then the facelifted version is the best. Unfortunately, there are fewer of them. As for diesels, the younger the car, the better.

My opinion

The Kia Sportage II is a nice alternative to the Japanese rivals, but it doesn't stand out much if there's no V6 engine under the hood. It convinces with a low failure rate and a good price up to about 30 thousand. zloty. In terms of the ratio of technical condition to price, it usually looks better than typical Japanese models, which is important.