Kia has confirmed it’s adding a Hybrid (HEV) GT-Line to the FWD and AWD Sorento range locally. This addition sees the family SUV become the only vehicle available in Australia to offer naturally aspirated petrol, diesel, PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid) and HEV variants.
“Sorento already provided one of the most versatile, practical and spacious large SUVs on the market and now in an industry first, it also offers Australian buyers the most diverse powertrain line-up to choose from within a model range,” Kia COO Damien Meredith said.
“The addition of PHEV and HEV options to the popular Sorento range is another example of Kia’s progress in vehicle electrification.”
The Sorento parallel hybrid system is comprised of a Smartstream 1.6-litre turbo petrol engine, offering optimal fuel efficiency with impressive power (132kW) and torque (265Nm), and an electric motor, producing 44kW and 264Nm of torque.
Mounted between the petrol engine and transmission, this arrangement allows the full output of both the petrol engine and/or electric motor to be transferred in parallel through the transmission, with minimal energy loss.
This ensures 169kW of combined hybrid power, along with 350Nm of torque. Fuel consumption is an impressive 5.3-litres/100km (FWD) and 5.8-litres/100km (AWD) respectively.
Energy storage is managed by a high voltage 1kWh Lithium-Ion polymer battery located under the vehicle floor. Mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission, the Sorento HEV FWD and AWD are available in GT-line specification only.
The new variant offers a wide array of safety, comfort and convenience features, including an intelligently designed, customisable 12.3-inch driver digital cluster providing the status of the hybrid charging system.
Blind-spot view monitor is also included, as is a 10.25-inch audio visual navigation unit, which can display charging station locations. The screen can be split in two for easy access to different apps, vehicle information and multimedia content too.
A 12-speaker BOSE premium surround sound system, and wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are also included.
The 2022 Kia Sorento Hybrid (HEV) is priced at $66,750 in FWD and $69,750 in AWD. Both prices are plus on-roads and further information is available from your local Kia dealer.
