I guess redundancy and overlap is the name of the game with the current SUV craze so Sorento might continue for a year or two until the sales really start falling off the chart. They got to get the ROI out of the tooling invested around the Sorento.
To anyone out there it doesn't make sense to pay 48K for a fully loaded Sorento over 47L for a fully loaded Telluride with more space and features. They might end up dropping the loaded Sorento trims to make sales.
Price comparison for FWD trims - add $1800 for AWD
I noticed in the Consumer Reports annual auto edition that the Santa Fe XL (their Sorento) is being discontinued after 2019 in favor of the Hyundai version of the Telluride. Don't know if that means they've decided to keep the Sorento in the family through Kia or if it is going to suffer the same fate as the Hyundai. Or CR could be wrong.
Sorento still too big a seller for Kia to just drop immediately. The 2020 should come out so then they can see how it sells against the Telluride and the Hyundai comparable model to the Telluride.
I'll be curious to see what the actual street prices look like. I think the MSRP on my Sorento was a little over $45k and I paid $37k. If both are selling for actual MSRP, I probably would shop elsewhere.
I saw the first one on the dealer lot on Sunday. Window sticker was $46,000. Snapped this pic. Looks like a upper/top level model. I think it was an EX V6 AWD.
Kinda like a Sorento that went to college and put on that Freshman 15. I came across the first one I've seen "in the wild" while driving to the office yesterday. It appeared to be some sort of dark green or maybe brown color. It's not bad looking.
the argument of the Sorento vs the Telluride, you could also use with the Passport vs the Pilot.
The base US MSRP of the Passport is slightly higher than the base US MSRP, even though the Pilot is larger. At least the Sorento base US MSRP is over $5000 less than the base US MSRP of the Telluride.
Edge vs Explorer is 5 seats vs 7 or 8 seats. Same with Passport vs Pilot. As of now Sorento vs Telluride is 7 seats vs 7 seats. It appears the Sorento and Telluride fill the exact same market segment where at least the Edge / Explorer and Passport / Pilot fill different segments.
It would be nice to see a high output turbo 6 in the Kia SUVs.
Edge vs Explorer is 5 seats vs 7 or 8 seats. Same with Passport vs Pilot. As of now Sorento vs Telluride is 7 seats vs 7 seats. It appears the Sorento and Telluride fill the exact same market segment where at least the Edge / Explorer and Passport / Pilot fill different segments.
you can get 8 seat models in the Telluride. The Sorento and Telluride are different size vehicles just like the Passport and Pilot are so don't see how it "fills the exact same market". Also the Sorento starts at a much lower MSRP than the Telluride.
Seating does not dictate the "market segment", that's like saying the Honda HR-V and the Honda Passport are in the same segment because they both have seating for five.
you can get 8 seat models in the Telluride. The Sorento and Telluride are different size vehicles just like the Passport and Pilot are so don't see how it "fills the exact same market". Also the Sorento starts at a much lower MSRP than the Telluride.
Seating does not dictate the "market segment", that's like saying the Honda HR-V and the Honda Pilot are in the same segment because they both have seating for five.
Sorento just looks small. But it has more legroom and headrom than Highlander. Sorento lower starting price is due to 4cyl and it doesn't compete in the segment. Apples to apples the real V6 starting price is very close to Telluride. Doesn't make sense. Loaded MSRP is same on both vehicles and I only buy fully loaded vehicles.
They will need to get rid of the transverse oriented engine/front wheel drive before they can add much more power. They did so in the stinger and Ford did it with the new explorer to a accommodate their twin turbo v6. Neither the Sorrento or Telluride will handle big power in their current engine configuration.
Nothing beats an in-line configuration for efficiency but it's doable up to 400 hp.
The Audi RS3 and upcoming RSQ3 crossover are 5 cylinder transverse configurations with 400 hp outputs.
I'd be okay with 400 HP in a crossover.
We're the opposite. We needed the third row, but really like the smaller size of the Sorento vs any of the other mid-size 3-row SUVs on the market. None of the American makes will even fit in our garage! We're limited to about 16' long, which limited our choices. I think it fits a good market, and surprised that the Telluride isn't a bit bigger and more pricey to compare to the Durango or Traverse/Acadia.
No, this won’t replace the Sorento, which is Kia’s number 1 seller in thr US.
I agree that you may see them position the Sorento as 5 seat only. I don’t need a third row of seats. My 2016 didn’t have them and I would rather have the storage space on my 2019. The vast majority of the Sorentos I see (probably 80%) are 4 cyl models like mine.
Alex on Autos just released detailed preview of the Telluride on Youtube:
Nice looking suv. I like boxy straight roof designs. Surprisingly decent fuel economy for a KIA. This actually beats my 2017 Sorento by 2mpg, while being significantly heavier and featuring larger engine. A bit disappointing is a lack of all glass roof like in Sorento. Telluride has two big sunroofs, but nothing can compete with openness that full glass roof gives you on the inside.
Finally KIA chooses to put every safety feature into base model and make it standard. Makes it easier to go for a lower trim model when all you want is smart cruise control and lane keeping.
I am not big fan of the let’s stick tablet on the dashboard display design. I think interior design lacks in this vehicle. Same goes for IMO unimaginative front and particularly ugly rear lights. Getting into third row is still as fucked up as ever. I can understand that in Sorento, which treats third row more as an emergency option, but to design large designated 3 rows SUV and not provide good entrance and exit is BS.
Overall I still prefer my 3 year old Sorento to the new Telluride.
I left it in the Sorento section thinking of the references to it replacing it, but moved at your request - others can comment/vote if it should stay here, or go back.
I'm waiting on Palisade - I personally like it's looks better, and love the Palisade interior better than Telluride. Really want to see the new Genesis GV80 - Palisade already looks fantastic to me, so GV80 better bring it to be competitive.
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