2018 Kia Sportage

Pros: Excellent all-around ride and handling refinement; broad selection of available comfort, safety, and technology features; peppy acceleration with turbocharged engine

Cons: Styling is a bit too radical for some tastes; less cargo room than some class competitors

CG Says: After its redesign last year, the 2018 Sportage is essentially unchanged. Blind-spot alert and rear cross-traffic alert are newly standard on EX models. Those features, along with autonomous emergency braking and lane-departure warning, are now optional on the base LX. The Kia Sportage was redesigned for 2017 on a slightly larger platform, gaining more interior room, new styling, and an expanded selection of safety and connectivity features. The Sportage lineup ascends through LX, EX, and SX models, all of which are available with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. LX and EX are powered by a 181-horsepower, 2.4-liter 4-cylinder engine. The SX has a 240-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder. Both engines are paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission. Available safety equipment includes autonomous emergency braking, blind-spot alert, rear cross-traffic alert, and lane-departure warning. Tech features include Kia’s new UVO3 infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality; telematics services; and Wi-Fi tethering capability. The Sportage’s aggressive front-end styling may not be for everyone, but this is a thoroughly impressive compact SUV that stacks up very well against the best in the class. Base prices (at least in top-line trim) have crept up noticeably, but even if a Sportage is no longer the value proposition it once was, it’s still in line with the competition.