Kia's new version of the Sorento will be longer, lower -- and a lot more stylish.
When the last generation Kia Sorento came out, the Korean carmaker seemed content to settle for me-too styling that was easily lost in the crowd. Today, Kia has adopted a much more edgy and distinctive design language that’s readily apparent in these advance images of the next-generation sport-utility vehicle.
Set to make its formal debut at the upcoming Paris Motor Show, the new Sorento is lower and longer, with additional space for passengers in all three rows, the maker promises. And it certainly won’t be lost in a crowded parking lot anymore, the new crossover model clearly showing the influence of not only other recent models, such as the K900 luxury sedan, but also the Cross GT show car that signaled the new brand styling theme.
“While we have retained the name based on the tremendous success of the outgoing model, the all-new Sorento has been completely redesigned and re-engineered,” said Soon-Nam Lee, vice president of Kia overseas marketing, “and promises to surprise customers with its thoroughly updated styling, a host of new convenience and safety technologies, as well as enhanced space, driving comfort and handling response.”
Credit the influence of Peter Schreyer, the former Audi design chief who took over Kia’s styling studios in 2006 – and who now oversees the look of both Kia and its sibling Hyundai brand. He quickly reshaped the “face” of Kia products, and continues to evolve it, as one can see here.
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The maker promises more room for passengers in all three rows of the next-gen Kia Sorento.
Physically, the next-generation Kia Sorento will gain 3.7 inches, nose-to-tail, the underlying wheelbase adding three more inches. That is meant to yield more room for all three rows of seat. The half-inch lower roofline helps enhance the sporty appearance of the Sorento, which looks far less minivan-ish now.
The overall appearance is more windswept, and a bit more aggressive, the revised Sorento grille now framed by cats-eye headlamps that sweep into the front quarter panels, while the foglamps adopt a new trapezoidal shape.
What’s under the skin, well, Kia isn’t saying, saving that and other details for a Korean debut late this month, and a global introduction at the 2014 Paris Motor Show, a news conference scheduled for October 2nd.
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One of the other unanswered questions has to do with timing. Kia gave the U.S. version of the Sorento a minor, mid-cycle refresh for 2014, so launching an all-new model now would seem ambitious. But if past is prologue, Kia might yet again introduce the new utility vehicle in Europe and the home Korean market ahead of its American introduction, as was the case with such recent models as the K900.