Kia's latest plug-in hybrid is the big Sorento SUV, and it's just going into production in South Korea. The plug-in Sorento will hit Kia dealerships in Ireland, alongside the diesel model, early next year, and now we have the official economy and emissions data.
As much as 70km range around town
On the WLTP programme, the Sorento PHEV will return a combined emissions figure of 38g/km and has a full-charged electric range of up to 57km. That will vary dramatically, depending on how and where you drive it, of course, but it's a solid figure for a big SUV. Kia further claims that in and around town, where there are more opportunities for slow driving and constant regenerative braking, that you might be able to eke as much as 70km out of the Sorento's battery.
New pan-European charging access card
To go with the Sorento PHEV, Kia is launching a new KiaCharge service and an access card, which will be rolled out across Europe. This will give Sorento PHEV owners (and presumably owners of the Niro, Ceed, Soul, and XCeed PHEV and EV models too) access to more than 160,000 public charging points across Europe. Kia claims that this new charging package "offers attractive charging tariffs to EV and PHEV owners based on their individual charging needs, with a single monthly invoice and no need for multiple vehicle charging accounts or subscriptions."
Big fuel tank, seven seats
The Sorento PHEV gets a 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine and a 67kW electric motor, squished between the engine and the gearbox, which, combined, produce 265hp and 350Nm of torque. Power for the electric motor comes from a 13.8kWh battery stack, but critically the Sorento has been packaged with a decent 67-litre fuel tank, so longer journeys will still be do-able with ease. It'll be slow to charge, though, with only a 3.3kW on-board charging system, so most of your charging will have to be done at home or at work. Impressively, though, Kia has managed to package the Sorento PHEV's powertrain in such a way that it retains its seven-seat layout.
Most of the time the Sorento PHEV will be front-wheel drive, but power can be sent to all four wheels when needed, and there's a six-speed automatic gearbox to parcel out the power.
Inside, you get a 12.3-inch digital instrument panel and a 10.25-inch infotainment screen with Kia's new 'UVO-Connect' software. The Sorento PHEV will come with Kia's seven-year, 150,000km warranty, which will also cover all of the electric drive components and the battery.