2026 Kia Sportage HEV SX-Prestige Review

Kia has been on a roll lately. With groundbreaking designs, impressive powertrains, and better-than-ever driving dynamics, the Korean manufacturer has turned into a true world-beating powerhouse.

Sportage is the company’s bestselling model and competes in the hotly contested five-passenger compact crossover segment. The company hopes to keep the crossover on shoppers’ lists with a host of upgrades for the 2026 model.

In short: The 2026 Kia Sportage BEV offers a turbocharged hybrid-electric powertrain with more power and revised styling in hopes of keeping the crossover a popular choice among buyers. It also offers compelling new tech features and attractive pricing.

2026 Kia Sportage HEV SX-Prestige Review

The 2026 Kia Sportage has been refreshed with new front and rear facias and an upgraded powerplant, along with a host of new tech and drive modes. While the entire Sportage lineup gets the new styling cues, I flew to Louisville, Ky., to drive the Sportage HEV SX-Prestige AWD specifically. 

Kia offers a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) Sportage, but they said the HEV (hybrid electric vehicle) is more popular, so we drove the crowd favorite. The SX-Prestige, which I drove, is the HEV’s top trim.

Kia’s Longest-Running, Bestselling Model

Sportage is Kia’s longest-running U.S. nameplate, debuting in 1995 as a small body-on-frame 4WD SUV. It’s been a unibody crossover now for 20+ years and is currently the marque’s bestselling model.

James Hope, Kia’s National Communications Manager, said Sportage is on pace for an all-time sales record in 2025. He also mentioned Kia sells more and more electric vehicles each year and expects 25% of Sportage sales to be HEV or PHEV in ’25.

This vehicle has always been a core product for Kia. “Sportage has to be affordable,” said Derrick Ty, Sr. Product Planning Manager for the Korean car brand. And while the FWD LX hybrid trims will be just above $32,000 (with destination), our test model starts at $41,835. While “affordable” is a relative term, the Kia hybrids indeed offer a fair bit of bang for the buck.

A More Powerful Powerplant

Under this hybrid Kia’s hood lies a turbocharged 1.6L gasoline-direct-injected four cylinder paired with a 47.7kW electric motor. For ’26, power is up 5 horsepower, to 232. If you opt for the plug-in hybrid variant, power is up 7 horsepower, to 268.

The base 2.5L non-hybrid engine makes 187 horsepower. All are mated to a six-speed stepped automatic transmission. You also get steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters, which are available when in Sport mode.

A Refreshing Refresh

Sportage is already the marque’s bestseller, so success ought not to be messed with. The restyle gains the brand’s “Opposites United” design language, losing the previous Sportage’s “boomerang” corner indicators up front in favor of the current corporate eyebrows and Star Map headlights. The revised rear looks good and cohesive. In fact, the entire thing has a modern, freshened-up style.

Although I’m not usually a fan of the black-and-machined style wheels, this Sportage’s quirky 19-inch four-spoke wheels add character. They come wrapped in Hankook Dynapro HP2 tires (235/55R19).

Open, Airy Interior

Our tester’s light-gray and black interior was airy and offered excellent outward visibility. The SX-Prestige trims get Saturn Black or Misty Gray color schemes, with our testers being the latter.

Those wanting the upscale-appearing Terracotta Brown upholstery will need to choose the X-Line trim instead of SX-Prestige.

The lighter gray theme offers an open feel; just don’t spill your coffee on those light-colored seats. Also, if you’re doing outdoorsy things, these might get grimy quickly, so opting for Saturn Black might be a good idea.

Our tester had a panoramic roof, heated and cooled front seats, and a heated steering wheel, which is partially square and fits well in the hand. The steering wheel has your usual buttons for audio, cruise, and menus, along with Drive Mode and Terrain Mode buttons.

There are nice design touches throughout the interior. The door handles’ shapes and piano black inserts look premium. The front seatbacks have a built-in handle on the headrests, and there are two USB-C ports on the seats with hooks to coil up cords. Little things like this add utility, versatility, and style.

The front seat’s cooling was great on a warm Kentucky afternoon. They were comfortable with adequate support.

The rear seating area offered plenty of space and amenities for backseat dwellers.

The cargo area has a trick base that can be moved up or down to stow more stuff — a nice feature — and the tonneau cover should keep prying eyes away.

Different Drive Modes

Tap the drive mode button on the left of the wheel, and you can select Eco or Sport modes. There’s also a MyMode letting you create a custom drive configuration. On the wheel’s right side is Terrain Mode. This lets you choose from snow, mud, and sand terrains to optimize traction in various road conditions.

The Sportage’s AWD system has a center lock feature for optimal traction in challenging terrains. You also get adaptive cruise, upgraded ADAS, and a variety of parking assistance along with a Smart Key/Digital Key 2.0 for keyless entry and over-the-air updates.

Ample Power, Willing Chassis

The Sportage HEV’s turbo-hybrid powertrain provides adequate thrust, especially in the mid range. You can feel the instant electric torque when you put your foot to the floor. Passing is brisk, but not rocketlike, and the six-speed automatic shifts smoothly.

Step into Sport mode, and you can use paddle shifters. You can hold a gear until you top to shift. I found them to have a slight delay, but few are going to drive this like a sports car.

That said, the Sportage’s chassis was a willing participant in the Kentucky back-road twisties, where its 19-inch tires and fully independent suspension clung to corners with unexpected tenacity. It’s not meant to be a high-performance, racy crossover, but you won’t experience scads of body roll, either. Plus, the steering feel is above average. Most buyers will be happy with the amount of sport the Sportage HEV offers.

Road noise wasn’t intrusive, and ride quality was firm without being too stiff. But I did notice a fair bit of wind noise from the windshield’s upper corners.

A Touch Too Much Touchscreen

These days, everything has a touchscreen. But the Sportage is a vehicle without any buttons or knobs to use for in-car entertainment. The large, easy-to-see, and fairly easy-to-use 12.3-inch screen controls everything but the climate control. There is no knob for quick volume adjustments.

Below that is the climate control bar, which has two knobs for temperature adjustment, but fan speed is a “touching” affair requiring taps. You can also tap an area on the bar to jump to navigation on the screen. More than once, I went to adjust the vent’s direction and bumped the climate control into the defrost mode.

Conversely, there are four physical buttons above the left knee controlling the dimmer, traction control, power liftgate, and 12V battery reset. However, they’re nearly unreadable during the day due to their light gray plastic and backlit white light.

Some vehicle controls/options are buried in infotainment menus. For example, the blinking speed warning indicator, which alerts the driver to exceeding the posted speed limit, is on the gauge cluster. Thankfully, it can be turned off. However, finding how to disable it is an electronic expedition.

On a positive note, the gauge cluster is easy to read. Here, you’ll also get a rear-facing side camera view when you use turn signals. This is a nice feature for an extra set of eyes.

Also, all Sportage models now include wireless Android Auto or Apple CarPlay.

2026 Kia Sportage HEV SX-Prestige: An Appealing Choice

The Sportage HEV SX-Premier AWD Hybrid has a lot to offer for its $41,985 sticker (including destination). This tracks with other comparable five-passenger vehicles in the segment.

The Sportage I drove had power driver and passenger seats with memory, as well as heated and cooling functions, heated rear seats, a heads-up display, power folding mirrors, and $200 worth of all-weather floor mats. This vehicle has a 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain and battery warranty, and a 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty — also appealing.

It’s incredible how far Sportage, and Kia as a whole, have come since 1995. This model has always been approachable, and the Sportage SX-Premier HEV will give buyers a lot for their money. And in this hyper-competitive compact segment, value is important.

Kia says Sportage offers “a spacious, stylish, powerful package,” and I’d agree. In fact, the entire Kia line is pushing the limits in design, engineering, and value. The Sportage should keep Kia on the road to success, and continue to build the brand’s ever-bettering reputation and popularity with buyers.