Best Used Kia Compact SUV - Sportage

When the SUV boom hit the North American automotive market in the late 1990s, Korean automaker Kia were in a somewhat unique position to benefit from this sudden interest in capable, all-wheel drive platforms. The company had been building and selling the Sportage cute-ute in various countries worldwide since the beginning of the decade, and they saw the opportunity to expand their offerings in the United States from the lone sedan they were selling at the time. The Sportage was released in 1995 and helped to attract more attention from a public slowly getting used to the idea of a second Korean car maker doing business in America.

The Sportage was unique amongst small sport-utility vehicles in that it wasn’t based on a car platform but rather made use of a full truck frame in order to provide a level of off-road performance that most compact SUV’s couldn’t come close to. Vehicles like the Ford Escape and the Honda CR-V chose to accentuate the increase cargo capacity and passenger room offered by an SUV while preserving the driving dynamics of a sedan. They did this by sharing the same chassis and drivetrain as some of their smaller automobiles. The Sportage, however, stayed truer to the image of a rugged, outdoorsy sport-utility vehicle with locking front hubs, a true four-wheel drive system, and a very rigid frame that was specifically designed to withstand the rigors of trail driving. The vehicle’s small size helped it to navigate terrain where plus-sized SUV’s would have difficulty due to their extra weight and length, and its short wheelbase made it a popular rock hopper.

Despite winning accolades from critics as one of the best, inexpensive compact SUV’s, Kia felt the need to update the Sportage so that it fell in line with the changing norms of the market. In 2005, a decade after it made its debut it was quite uncommon to encounter a small sport-utility vehicle with any kind of serious off-road capability. In recognition of this, parent company Hyundai decided that the new generation of Sportage would be drastically different from that which had come before it.

The 2005 – 2007 Kia Sportage is a substantial re-think on the part of Kia with regards to the market position and future of their popular compact SUV. This article takes a look at the changes that were made to the vehicle, the effect that these changes have on its performance, and how they have helped to make the Sportage the best used compact sport-utility vehicle available from the Korean car company.

2005 – 2007 Kia Sportage

This most recent edition of Kia’s longest-selling sport-utility vehicle is a significant departure for the company. Instead of staying true to its truck-based roots, the 2005 – 2007 Kia Sportage uses a version of the same platform underpinning the Hyundai Elantra sedan. While this may have dramatically changed the face and capabilities of the SUV, it still has a lot to offer those looking for a small people-mover.

The 2005 – 2007 Kia Sportage is also very similar to the Hyundai Tucson, sharing not only the same chassis but also the vehicle’s two available drivetrains. The base Sportage is equipped with a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine that generates 140 horsepower and 136 lb-ft of torque. Power is sent to either the front or all four wheels through a 5-speed manual or available 4-speed automatic transmission. Upgrading to the 2.7-liter V-6 provides 33 more horsepower and a much more substantial 178 lb-ft of torque that is available at a lower engine speed. The best fuel mileage is to be found in the front-wheel drive, 4-cylinder edition of the Sportage, which sees 22 miles per gallon in city driving and 27 miles per gallon on the highway.

The Sportage’s interior is larger than the outgoing model, and even though the vehicle’s total length is less than some of its competitors it boasts greater passenger space than most, especially for rear passengers. Cargo room is also a decent 66 cubic feet with the rear seats in a folded position. The 2005 – 2007 Kia Sportage is quite comfortable in every day driving, and although it no longer has the same off-road capability it once possessed, families will appreciate the vehicle’s easy handling and placid comportment.

Kia’s restructuring of their entry-level SUV lineup has benefited the Sportage, providing it with a much more modern design that helps it to offer solid value at the low end of the used compact SUV market.