Kia Goes Bold With 2021 Sorento SX Prestige X-Line
When the new Kia Sorento X-Line SUV was delivered I looked at it and thought, “Oh well, another midsize SUV.”
My impression went from “ho hum” to WOW after going for a drive. This was not your typical SUV. It had great pep, superb handling, and was a vehicle I came to love by the end of my week with it.
The 2021 Sorento SX-Prestige X-Line is the top trim offered in the model, but it only tops out at around $43,000 MSRP (and you know your friends at Moritz Kia can do better than that). Of course if you don’t want or need all the bells & whistles, the Sorento is available in five trims: The LX, S, EX, SX, and SX-Prestige and available with either FWD or AWD.
Everyone talks about the Kia Telluride being one of the hottest vehicles of the year, and it certainly is selling out before it even reaches dealer showrooms. But buyers should not just walk away disappointed when they find that bringing home a new Telluride is not something they might be able to do in the immediate future. They need to ask Matt Dukote about test driving a Sorento X-Line. With more than 280 turbo-charged horsepower, 311 lb. ft of torque, and luxury features that would make luxury brands eyes go wide open with wonder, the Sorento X-Line is an amazing vehicle.
Rugged on the Outside, Luxurious on the Inside
Even with our now infamous 14 degree driveway, the new Sorento can descend and climb with ease due to it’s 8.3 inch ground clearance. It is not only a perfect luxury choice to take to the country club, but also a great vehicle to take into the hinterlands for an off-roading expedition. The only thing that might make one reconsider going off-road is the classy interior. You wouldn’t want to slog through too much mud, because there is so much to love inside.
I’ve always wanted an interior that was sexy as well as intuitive and useful. The Sorento X-Line provides this in spades. The infotainment system is over 10 inches in size, easy to see and great for bouncing back and forth between music on the Bose system and listening to your favorite music on SiriusXM or either AM or FM radio. The screen provides far more than ease of tuning however. Once more, the utility of this becomes obvious when negotiating around the lower portion of our driveway.
Extensive Technology
A large retaining wall winds around the house from the garage area to the front door and it might be a bit scary in a lesser vehicle. Not so with the Sorento X-Line due to it’s excellent surround camera system which shows you what is in front of you, what is behind you and even what is to your sides. The crystal-clear image on the 10.25 touchscreen is something I came to love. I admit to even stopping to admire how much I could see and how I knew how close I was to both the side of the house and the opposing retaining wall.
Whether negotiating my way through the driveway or on the road, the Blind Spot Collision Avoidance and visibility features use rear-corner radar to detect any possible collision risk with parallel traffic (or a wall) when driving. The system applies emergency braking and cautions the driver through the cluster and an audible alarm so even if your eyes are looking forward or rearward rather than at the screen you will hear about the impending danger.
New Safety Features
My wife was the first to notice the Engine Idle Notification and Automatic Engine Shut Off. I’d started the Sorento and was wrapping up a phone call when the screen said the vehicle would turn off in 30 minutes and began the countdown. Now that’s a “smart vehicle”.
There are two new features making their debut in the 2021 Sorento:
- On-demand Find My Car with Surround View Monitor uses the vehicle cameras to capture images of the vehicle’s surroundings and then share them via the Kia Access UVO app
- Last Mile Navigation provides walking directions to the driver’s final destination if the vehicle is parked between 0.1 and 1.2 miles away
From the bold exterior to the driving experience, there’s much to love in the new Sorento. In short, if you are in the market for an excellent and affordable three row SUV, it would be wise to test drive the new Kia Sorento SX-Prestige X Line. It is not what you might be expecting!
