Our 2022 Kia Sorento SX Traded Reliability for Performance

40,000-Mile Wrap-Up

Kia must have held our long-term Sorento by its powertrain before dipping it in the river Styx, because the turbocharged four-cylinder engine and dual-clutch automatic transmission were its Achilles’ heel during its 40,000-mile stay with us. Bluntly speaking, our experience with the Sorento was disappointing. The smaller of Kia’s two mid-size three-row SUVs, it stood in contrast to the largely trouble-free experience we’ve had with other Kia models, including a 2022 Carnival, 2020 Telluride, and 2016 Sorento.

Our time with the previous Sorento made us eager to bring on the new version for a long-term stay. The 2016 Sorento impressed us with its quiet and comfortable cabin, high-quality interior materials, and ergonomic controls, even if its driving dynamics were uninspired.

This 2022 Sorento, however, promised to improve upon many of its predecessor’s shortcomings. Notably, for 2021, Kia had ditched the old model’s flagship powertrain—a 290-hp 3.3-liter V-6 mated to a six-speed automatic transmission—replacing it with a turbocharged 281-hp 2.5-liter inline-four paired to an eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

Though slightly down on power, the turbo four’s 311 pound-feet of torque bettered that of the old V-6 by 59 pound-feet, with the whole of the four-cylinder engine’s twist available at a low 1700 revs—3600 rpm lower than the V-6’s torque peak. The forced-induction four’s well of low-end torque and quick-shifting transmission meant the lighter fourth-gen Sorento promised both better straight-line performance and fuel economy than its six-cylinder forebear, with our SX’s EPA-rated combined fuel economy up 5 mpg over its 2016 counterpart.

We skipped right past the Sorento’s entry-level 191-hp naturally aspirated 2.5-liter inline-four, as well as the available gasoline-electric hybrid and plug-in-hybrid powertrains, in opting for the turbo engine. After all, we were anxious to find out if the performance and fuel-economy figures of the most powerful Sorento were as drastically improved as Kia claimed.

We also bypassed the default front-drive setup and splurged for all-wheel drive; however, we aren’t fans of the busy X-Line exterior kit coupled to most all-wheel-drive 2022 Sorentos, so we settled on the SX model. The SX AWD bridges the gap between the 2.5T-powered X-Line EX AWD and X-Line SX Prestige AWD trims.

By the numbers, our Sorento SX lived up to Kia’s hype: The 2022 model is quicker at the track and a smidge more fuel efficient than its 2016 counterpart. With 243 fewer pounds to lug around, as well as that abundance of low-end torque, our 4135-pound Sorento scooted to 60 mph in 6.0 seconds and crossed the quarter-mile after 14.6 ticks with a trap speed of 97 mph. Those numbers slipped just a bit to 6.2 and 14.7 seconds, respectively, at the 40,000-mile mark. Still, both sprints are 0.8 second ahead of the 2016 model, which needed 7.0 seconds to hit 60 mph and 15.5 seconds to run the quarter.

And whereas the V-6 returned an average of 22 mpg over the course of our 2016 Sorento’s 40,000 miles, the 2022 model’s turbo four sipped a gallon of unleaded every 23 miles on average. An improvement, even if a small one. That said, the 2016 Sorento outperformed its EPA combined fuel-economy estimate by 3 mpg, while our 2022 long-termer fell 1 mpg short of its EPA estimate.

Reliably Unreliable

Whatever benefits to acceleration and fuel economy our 2022 Sorento’s powertrain brought to the table were quickly offset by the setup’s mechanical woes. Within the first few months of its arrival, the logbook began filling up with accounts of engine- and transmission-related troubles.

The first such incident occurred before the odometer cracked 4000 miles, with Buyer’s Guide deputy editor Rich Ceppos reporting that the SUV “started bucking and coughing . . . and had trouble maintaining speed” on a highway trip. Restarting the Sorento remedied the problem. The Kia left no evidence of its struggle—no warning light glowed from its instrument panel.

More than 20,000 miles later, the issue returned. A restart once again put the problem to bed. Only this time, the check-engine light illuminated the cluster. The culprit turned out to be a failing ignition coil that caused a misfire in cylinder four. Our dealer’s service department installed a new ignition coil under warranty.

During this same visit, the service team tinkered with the transmission, draining and replacing its fluid and installing a logic update in order to fix the increasingly perceptible low-speed clutch shudder and clunky shifts. This marked the second time our Sorento received a transmission logic update in less than 8000 miles, the previous of which occurred during the 16,000-mile scheduled maintenance.

Rather than alleviate the gearbox’s issues, the latest service action worsened them. The Sorento lurched away from stops—and even stalled on more than one occasion—and roughly swapped cogs with all the head-bobbing grace of a newbie stick-shift driver. After putting less than 30 miles on the odometer, we turned around and brought the Sorento back to the service department.

In time, we learned our Sorento was to receive a replacement transmission under warranty, but it would be a refurbished unit. The Sorento was out of commission for 24 days. (Our original transmission was included in a batch that was recalled, but that happened after ours had already been replaced.)

Although the replacement gearbox did finally end the Sorento’s transmission-related woes, it did not mark the conclusion of our powertrain problems. A leaking oil-pan gasket required replacement—under warranty—at just over 34,000 miles, and toward the end of its stay, the Sorento began showing signs of cooling-system issues. Multiple drivers reported that the SUV briefly warned them the engine was overheating, with the Sorento even temporarily entering a limp mode that limited engine output at higher speeds. But before they even had a chance to pull over, the message disappeared, the engine returned to proper operating temperature, and full power was restored.

We let Kia take a stab at replicating and pinning down the problem. The issue? A failing rod within the integrated thermal-management system prevented a coolant valve from opening, resulting in the engine briefly entering limp mode under hard acceleration. Kia subsequently replaced the integrated thermal-management system, which solved the problem.

Braking Through

In spite of these issues, the Sorento racked up many miles journeying about the country. It traveled west to Colorado and California, south to North Carolina and Florida, and east to Pennsylvania. Families filled all three rows with kids, although the Sorento’s smaller third row and cargo space relative to the Telluride sometimes necessitated that some cargo migrate to a hitch-mounted carrier.

That Colorado trip included a visit to Pikes Peak for the annual hill climb. The steep drive down the mountain may have contributed to the Sorento scoring its front rotors. Resurfacing both 12.8-inch discs set us back $353. (Scheduled maintenance, meanwhile, cost us a total of $852 throughout the entirety of our test.) Though this out-of-pocket repair failed to fix the brake pedal’s wooden feel, it did mitigate the pulsations that came through the left pedal under braking.

Our Sorento required 164 feet to come to a halt from 70 mph at the conclusion of our test, one foot shorter than it needed some 40,000 miles earlier. Likewise, the well-used, but still serviceable, Continental CrossContact LX Sport all-season rubber helped the Sorento pull 0.85 g around the skidpad—a smidge better than the 0.84 g it managed at the start of our test.

These Continentals were not the only tire the Sorento wore during its stay, as we swapped in $1205 worth of Vredestein Wintrac Pro winter tires for the cold and snowy Midwest winter. Shod with the Vredesteins, the Kia was a formidable tool throughout the frigid months. An encounter with a pothole, however, claimed the left front wheel and tire. It cost us $932 to replace both items. Shortly thereafter, a cracked windshield set us back an additional $769.

So Long Sorento

The Sorento excelled in many aspects, with editors lauding its comfortable ride quality, “fashion-forward interior design and rich materials,” and simple-to-use infotainment interface. And the light-gray insides showed minimal signs of wear at the conclusion of our test, although the driver’s seat began to rock slightly during the Sorento’s final 10,000 miles. The touchscreen infotainment system developed a noticeable lag too. Fortunately, a software update, which we were able to complete ourselves by downloading the file to a thumb drive and then uploading it to the vehicle via the console-mounted USB port, solved the issue.

After 40,000 miles with our 2022 Kia Sorento SX, we can confirm the fourth-generation model improves upon the previous one’s dynamic competency while preserving passenger comfort and interior quality. We may prefer driving the latest Sorento compared to the old one, but given our experience with the new turbocharged powertrain, we’d rather live with the duller but dependable Sorento V-6 of yore.

Months in Fleet: 14 months Current Mileage: 40,237 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 23 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 17.7 gal Observed Fuel Range: 400 miles
Service: $852 Normal Wear: $17 Repair: $353
Damage and Destruction: $1701

30,000-Mile Update

The dual-clutch transmission in our long-term 2022 Kia Sorento SX fell like the Roman empire: gradually, then all at once. As previously reported, repeated complaints of excessive clutch shudder and slip led our local Kia dealer to update the gearbox’s programming during the Sorento’s 16,000-mile service.

We hoped this would solve the issues, but we figured a few weeks in Southern California’s notorious stop-and-go traffic would uncover any remaining weaknesses in the transmission. Technical editor Dan Edmunds drove the SUV to the Golden State and then back to our office in Ann Arbor, and he noted nothing unusual about the eight-speed gearbox. His journey revealed another problem, however.

As Edmunds neared Ann Arbor, he reported an issue similar to what Buyer’s Guide director Rich Ceppos encountered months earlier. The Sorento bucked and struggled to maintain speed. Just as Ceppos did, Edmunds pulled over and restarted the Kia, which then showed no sign of trouble. Well, almost—a check-engine light illuminated.

Shortly after Edmunds dropped off the Sorento at the office, we brought it to our local dealer in Ypsilanti, LaFontaine Kia, which diagnosed the problem as a misfire in cylinder four due to a bad ignition coil. Thanks to Kia’s lengthy warranty, the failing coil was replaced free of charge.

During the visit, LaFontaine’s service team bled the dual-clutch gearbox and performed a transmission logic update in accordance with a posted service action. The Sorento also underwent its 24,000-mile scheduled maintenance at this time, as Edmunds’s journey from the Midwest to the West Coast and back pushed the odometer a couple of hundred miles past the 24,000 mark.

This $195 job netted our Sorento an oil and filter change and a new air filter. While Kia recommends rotating the tires as part of the Sorento’s 24,000-mile service, LaFontaine’s team deemed it unnecessary. And yet, our bill included an approximately $20 charge for a tire rotation. This error marked only the beginning of our troubles with LaFontaine Kia’s service department.

After settling our account, we drove off to discover the transmission was in shambles. The clutches engaged with the grace of a first-time stick-shift driver, and the Sorento lurched and bobbed as it dumped the clutch while pulling away from stops. In at least one instance, the Sorento stalled while we attempted to accelerate away from a stoplight. Less than 30 miles after picking up the vehicle, we returned it to LaFontaine Kia to address the issue. Then we waited.

And waited some more.

After a few days, we called for an update on our Sorento’s status. Turns out the service department had submitted a warranty claim to replace our troublesome transmission and was waiting to hear whether Kia would accept the claim.

So, once again, we waited. And once again, we had to call for an update. This time we learned that Kia accepted the claim and our Sorento would receive a replacement refurbished transmission.

After 24 days, the Sorento was back at our office, its transmission shifting as smoothly as the day we took delivery nearly eight months earlier. Waiting more than three weeks for a repair would be a considerable hardship for a Sorento owner who relies on the SUV as their primary source of transportation. Kia’s warranty provision for reimbursement of rental-car expenses for warranty work is difficult to qualify for and applies only if you’re traveling.

Per the owner’s manual:

Trip interruption expense benefits are provided in the event that a warranty-related disablement occurs more than 150 miles from your home, and the repairs require more than 24 hours to complete. Reasonable reimbursement is included for meals, lodging, or rental vehicle expenses. Trip interruption coverage is limited to $100 per day subject to a three day maximum limit per incident. You must contact the Kia Roadside Assistance Center to obtain pre-authorization of expenses. Once the Kia Roadside Assistance Center gives authorization for trip interruption benefits, they will assist you in making the necessary arrangements.

While the dual-clutch transmissions in previous Kia and Hyundai long-term vehicles—such as the seven-speed dry-clutch setup in our 2017 Kia Soul Turbo and the eight-speed wet-clutch unit (like the Sorento’s) in our 2021 Hyundai Sonata N Line—struggled to find fans among our staff, they never keeled over on us.

Since its return to service, the Sorento has journeyed to Indiana, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania, where the odometer rolled past 30,000 miles. Testing director Dave VanderWerp snagged the keys and drove the Sorento nearly 4000 miles to Florida and back, pushing it past 34,000 miles. We had the 32,000-mile service, which cost $255 for an oil change, a tire rotation, and a new cabin air filter. Not once in this time has a staffer reported an instance of the new transmission showing egregious signs of weakness.

While we were a bit miffed by the (albeit warranty-covered) mechanical issues the SUV suffered during its first 30,000 miles with us, we were even more underwhelmed by our experience with our Kia dealership’s service department. We still have thousands of miles ahead of us with our long-term Sorento, and we’re hoping for the best on both fronts.

Months in Fleet: 11 months Current Mileage: 34,918 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 24 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 17.7 gal Observed Fuel Range: 420 miles
Service: $852 Normal Wear: $17 Repair: $353
Damage and Destruction: $0

20,000-Mile Update

Our long-term Kia Sorento SX has proven to be a comfortable road-trip vehicle, and staffers lately have been routinely signing it out to travel to faraway places.

Photo assistant Charley M. Ladd added more than 2500 miles driving the Sorento from our Ann Arbor, Michigan, home base to Pikes Peak in Colorado for the mountain’s annual hill-climb and back in late June. Immediately after that, road test editor Rebecca Hackett put nearly 500 more miles on the Kia when she took it to Thompsonville, Michigan, for the Fourth of July weekend. Factor in the Sorento’s sizable cargo hold with its third-row bench folded, generous passenger space for those in the second-row captain’s chairs, and quiet interior (just 68 decibels enter the cabin at 70 mph, a figure equal to that of the last Acura RDX we tested), and it’s little surprise staffers are regularly enlisting this Sapphire Blue SUV for road-trip duty.

Sorento Service

That said, Hackett wrote that the dual-clutch automatic transmission’s off-the-line shudders were “really cramping [her] style,” although neither she nor Ladd noted any issues with the gearbox at highway speeds.

By the time the Sorento finally caught a break from cross-country and interstate cruising, with its odometer already past the 16,000-mile mark, it also had a brake pedal that was pulsating under pressure.

Our local Kia service center updated the gearbox’s programming free of charge. With the brakes, the culprit was scored rotors. Resurfacing the discs set us back $353. It also reduced the thermal capacity of the Sorento’s rotors, increasing the likelihood of future scoring.

Add in the $268 it cost us to have the Sorento’s oil and filter changed, tires rotated, and cabin air filter replaced, and we were out a total of $621.

More Road-Tripping

With its scheduled maintenance complete and its brake and transmission troubles addressed, the Sorento hit the road once again. Technical editor Dan Edmunds drove it from Michigan to his home near Los Angeles.

“The low-speed drivability issues didn’t rear their head,” he said at the conclusion of the 2467-mile trip. Nor did the left pedal pulsate when Edmunds applied the brakes.

We figure this bodes well for the remaining 20,000 miles of our Sorento SX’s 40,000-mile stay. That said, if there remain any weaknesses in the Sorento’s tweaked transmission programming or its resurfaced rotors, a few weeks of driving in traffic-heavy Southern California ought to uncover them.

Months in Fleet: 6 months Current Mileage: 20,934 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 24 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 17.7 gal Observed Fuel Range: 420 miles
Service: $402 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $353
Damage and Destruction: $0

10,000-Mile Update

Approximately 3200 miles into its stay, our 2022 Kia Sorento SX showed its first signs of potential trouble. Halfway through a 360-mile trip to Wisconsin, “the Sorento started bucking and coughing on Interstate 94 and had trouble maintaining speed,” Buyer’s Guide deputy editor Rich Ceppos wrote in the Kia’s logbook.

After limping the Sorento to a truck stop, Ceppos shut off the vehicle and then, a few seconds later, restarted it. All returned to normal, and he was able to complete the remainder of his journey to the Badger State without any additional troubles. It seems this was an isolated incident, too, as the issue has yet to return.

Since then, however, another powertrain-related gremlin has cropped up.

The Sorento SX employs an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, and we suspect the gearbox’s oil-cooled clutch sometimes send shudders through the SUV’s cabin at low speeds. Although we noticed this trait early into the Sorento’s stay with us, we found it to be an irregular occurrence. We think the culprit may be the clutch pack that operates gears one, three, five, and seven, as these vibrations are most noticeable when the vehicle pulls away from a stop.

In fact, the issue was so infrequent that we forgot to mention it to the service advisor when we brought the Sorento in for its 8000-mile checkup, a $134 service that included an oil and filter change and a tire rotation. In the nearly 2000 miles since it last went in for maintenance, though, the Kia’s shudders have become more commonplace. It’s something we plan to have investigated at our next service appointment.

Powertrain problems aside, our Sorento has received plentiful praise for its exterior and interior designs. Senior editor Joey Capparella deemed the exterior “fresh and well proportioned.” The all-wheel-drive Sorento SX’s 8.2 inches of ground clearance nets our long-term vehicle a genuine SUV stance—as opposed to the slightly more wagon-like posture of lower front-wheel-drive models, which offer just 6.9 inches of ground clearance. That slightly taller ride height complements the trim’s smooth flanks, black-painted 20-inch wheels, and full-LED headlights and fog lights. The look is cleaner than the fussy X-Line decor Kia fits to most other all-wheel-drive variants of the Sorento.

Similar adjectives have been used to describe the SUV’s interior, with associate editor Caleb Miller characterizing the Sorento’s environs as “clean and modern.” Others commended the Kia’s high-quality materials, which contribute to a cabin that looks and feels far nicer than our Sorento’s $41,935 price would suggest. However, we’re wondering how well the SUV’s light-gray interior will hold up over the course of its 40,000-mile stay with us.

For now, the Kia’s cabin remains in impressive shape, with no noticeable markings on the seats or door panels from bleeding blue jeans or grubby hands. That said, we’re only one quarter into our long-term test of the Sorento SX, and we expect the likes of summertime road trips and family jaunts to the Midwest’s many lakes to further test the fortitude of this Kia—including that of its powertrain and its interior.

Months in Fleet: 4 months Current Mileage: 10,000 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 24 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 17.7 gal Observed Fuel Range: 420 miles
Service: $134 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $0
Damage and Destruction: $0

Introduction

Nearly five years ago, we waved goodbye to our last long-term Kia Sorento. Now, we’re welcoming a new 2022 Sorento for an extended stay.

At the conclusion of our 2016 Sorento SX’s 40,000-mile test, we said, “If Kia can inject some personality and more functionality into the next generation of [this] SUV, it’s likely more folks will have the Sorento on their radar.” Our brief time so far with our long-term 2022 Sorento—as well as previous stints driving other variants of the redesigned, fourth-generation model—indicates the latest iteration of Kia’s mid-size SUV is a far sharper machine than its predecessor.

Admittedly, we gave our Sorento the best possible chance for success by choosing the most powerful engine option. We bypassed the standard 191-hp naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder, as well as the hybrid and plug-in-hybrid powertrains, and instead picked the 281-hp turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-four.

The 2.5-liter turbo is exclusive to the EX, SX, and SX Prestige trims and can be had with front- or all-wheel drive. Choosing the latter adds a Snow setting to the available drive modes and raises the ground clearance from 6.9 to 8.2 inches. All-wheel-drive EX and SX Prestige models also come with an X-Line styling package that adds off-road-inspired exterior decor. Alas, the X-Line kit eliminates Sapphire Blue from the SUV’s color palette.

We wanted the optional blue hue, so we settled on the all-wheel-drive SX, which starts at $41,165. The special paint ($445), floor mats ($210), and a cargo mat ($115) brought the as-tested price to $41,935.

While the SX does without certain SX Prestige niceties such as a surround-view monitor, a digital instrument cluster, a heated steering wheel, heated second-row seats, and ventilated front seats, the $2900 cheaper trim still comes with its fair share of luxuries. A panoramic sunroof brightens the interior, where one finds a wireless phone charger, dual-zone automatic climate control, a proximity key with push-button start, and a 10.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system with navigation. Gray faux leather covers all three rows of seats, including the heated and power-operated seats up front and the middle row’s captain’s chairs. An analog speedometer and tachometer frame a small but easy-to-read 4.2-inch info display.

Along with a set of black-painted 20-inch wheels, the SX’s exterior features LED projection headlights and LED taillights. These headlights earn the highest “Good” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), whereas base LED multi-reflector headlights in lesser Sorento trims get the IIHS’s worst rating of “Poor”. The upgraded headlights of the SX accompany additional safety and convenience items including adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, lane centering, blind-spot monitoring, and rear parking sensors.

Even with its abundance of features, our 2022 Sorento SX’s 4135-pound curb weight undercut our old 2016 Sorento SX’s mass by 243 pounds. Kia’s decision to replace the outgoing model’s 3.3-liter V-6 with a smaller turbo four-cylinder likely plays a key role in this weight reduction.

Despite being down nine horses to its six-cylinder forebear, our 2022 Sorento accelerated to 60 mph in just 6.0 seconds, a second quicker than our previous Sorento long-termer. Credit the new model’s aforementioned diet as well as its turbocharged engine’s 311 pound-feet of torque, which peaks at 1700 rpm, and the quick shifts of its eight-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox. The 2016 Sorento made do with 252 pound-feet—a sum that peaked at 5300 revs—and a comparatively lazy torque-converter automatic with only six forward speeds.

The 2022 Sorento’s 165-foot stop from 70 mph and 0.84 g of lateral grip improved upon the prior Sorento’s performance by nine feet and 0.04 g, too. More importantly, these figures compare favorably to other SUVs in the segment. In fact, our Sorento’s braking distance was eight feet shorter than that of the nearly $20,000 pricier and 112-pounds-lighter Mercedes-AMG GLB35.

Judged by its style and initial performance results, our 2022 Sorento seems poised to bring the sharpness we yearned for from our long-term 2016 Sorento. Whether Kia has managed to notably improve upon that vehicle’s functionality is a different story. As before, the two-person third row offers marginal space for adult-sized passengers, and the cargo area’s volume shrinks considerably when the rearmost row is in use.

Back in 2016, though, the Sorento was the biggest three-row SUV Kia offered in the United States. The addition of the larger three-row Telluride to the model line affords the Sorento the leeway to sacrifice some functionality in order to preserve and improve upon other traits consumers in the mid-size SUV segment seek. We have 40,000 miles to find out if the 2022 Kia Sorento successfully executes this exchange.

Months in Fleet: 2 months Current Mileage: 4109 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 23 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 17.7 gal Fuel Range: 400 miles
Service: $0 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $0

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Senior Editor

Despite their shared last name, Greg Fink is not related to Ed “Big Daddy” Roth’s infamous Rat Fink. Both Finks, however, are known for their love of cars, car culture, and—strangely—monogrammed one-piece bathing suits. Greg’s career in the media industry goes back more than a decade. His previous experience includes stints as an editor at publications such as U.S. News & World Report, The Huffington Post, Motor1.com, and MotorTrend.