I’m a low mileage driver and use the car for distance. What are the principle issues? CR wasn’t very specific.
Consumer Reports on the reliability rating on the Sorento
2 reading
Chuckiechan
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'20 Sorento SX6 FWD & '24 PEHV Sportage X-line Prestige.
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The 2020 Sorento was also listed among the worst used cars.
But I’ve got 8000 miles on mine and nothing has blown up yet!
Thats why warranty is very important and not avoided by the kia or dealer honouring it. Unfortunately our powertrain is 5 years. A bummer if low mileage like my wifes 2015 which tripped over to 90,000km this week after nearly 1000km of me driving in week. Warranty long gone!!
Aha! So we have published hard copy guides that are out of date almost immediately upon publishing...and the real-time, changing ratings on the CR site as owners submit reports.
This is great evidence that if you buy a printed published version of the CR guide for used cars, it's subject to almost instant revision and change as drivers continuously report their own experiences to CR.
As of this post, the '20 is showing "Best"/green, with every subsystem rated "Best"/green except the climate system, which is "Average"/yellow
Online, it's Average, with no "Worse"/orange or "Worst"/red areas
"Worst"/red overall, several reds for Transmission Major, Climate System, Suspension, Brakes, and Power Equipment
"Average"/yellow, one red for Power Equipment, orange for Engine Minor and Suspension
Average, with reds for Engine Major and Engine Minor and orange for Brakes
This is great evidence that if you buy a printed published version of the CR guide for used cars, it's subject to almost instant revision and change as drivers continuously report their own experiences to CR.
A fascinating comparison! I should have just thought of using the colors!
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Of course Consumer Reports reviews cannot be up to date. They buy things and test them and their endurance.
It's hard to find the exact model of anything they test after 3-6 months of testing as they have already been updated by the manufacturer and are old models. We had to call around for appliances rated top by CR as the reviews come out after 6 months or so. It gives you an idea for the manufacturer. For cars, you have to trust the people who buy them for reliability but most who are happy or don't have the time never reply to the requests, especially for the vehicles. Only online reviews from legitimate sites which do not take free items from manufacturers or take advertising from them can be trusted. The consumer reviews on Edmunds or KBB as well as the expert reviews can be used as guides.
It's hard to find the exact model of anything they test after 3-6 months of testing as they have already been updated by the manufacturer and are old models. We had to call around for appliances rated top by CR as the reviews come out after 6 months or so. It gives you an idea for the manufacturer. For cars, you have to trust the people who buy them for reliability but most who are happy or don't have the time never reply to the requests, especially for the vehicles. Only online reviews from legitimate sites which do not take free items from manufacturers or take advertising from them can be trusted. The consumer reviews on Edmunds or KBB as well as the expert reviews can be used as guides.
Ditto my 2017 w/ 2.0 engine.CR usually is pretty specific? Anyway, even if linked, if we are not subscribers, we won't be able to read it.
Will take a peek at our local library copy when I get a chance.
With the 4 cylinder engine failures, steering column issue and oil pressure switch leak and now the 8 speed tranny issue, I think it's understandable that Sorento's rating dropped. Saving grace is that Kia seems very keen at picking up the balls they dropped by fixing the issues and extending warranties for all customers.
Fingers crossed with my 2017 Sorento. So far so good.
I am getting the same feeling about CR, too. My 2021 Sorento SX has been flawless in 18k miles and one of my favorite SUV's that I have owned. I had problems with the Subaru Ascent Limited I owned for 2 years, including brakes, head unit problems and discharge battery. I will say that CR identified the areas I had problems as problematic areas.
Oh no, I was going to consider Ascent for my next car down the road.
Underpowered for its size, and the CVT gets a lot of negative press.
Well, I think Subaru has fixed most of the problems from the first year of the Ascent. I found it a bit big and cumbersome for me. The lane keep assist had the car ping ponging between the lines on the road. I would see if that has been fixed before buying. Kia keeps things centered. The CVT does whine a bit.
Subaru, oh my, they'd switched to a CVT transmission years back. I wouldn't have one ever again. Tried one some time back in a Jeep and they're trouble even if working right. Mine had a defect and they didn't want to replace it. Eventually yeah I got a new one. But still no way would I get any vehicle with that type of transmission. It you tow a small empty trailer even the rev's go way up and gas mileage way down.
2017 Sorento SX V6 AWD, 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport Turbo, 2002 Honda S2000
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Back in 2020 when I was looking for a 5,000 lb tow vehicle, I was also considering Subaru Ascent too. Also from Honda, Toyota and Nissan as well. My ultimate favorite was the Kia Telluride. Best looking, with best features and with the cheapest sticker price. However, with most of those new models, either they're unavailable or the few that they had all came with markups. I don't like to pay full MSRP, so I'm definitely not paying a premium on top of stick! 
It was by chance that I found my current Sorento. Somebody must've recently returned it at end of a lease while I was haggling with the Kia dealer. At half the price of new and still has the 100k mi powertrain warranty, figured I give it a shot.
Turned out to be one of the best/luckiest decisions I've ever made!
It was by chance that I found my current Sorento. Somebody must've recently returned it at end of a lease while I was haggling with the Kia dealer. At half the price of new and still has the 100k mi powertrain warranty, figured I give it a shot.
Turned out to be one of the best/luckiest decisions I've ever made!
'20 Sorento SX6 FWD & '24 PEHV Sportage X-line Prestige.
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105 Posts
If the Telluride has the same power train as the Sorento, won’t it be under powered?
No its different. 3.8L engine and likely different rear AWD coupler etc. All changed where needed.
From Ford's DCT transmission nightmares in their Fiesta/Focus vehicles, and now hearing how folks on here hate their 8-speeds (while we love our '16 Sorento's traditional 6-speed), I reallllly don't want to own one of these little monsters if I can help it. Here's an interesting brief look at some key DCT transmission points: https://www.alltransmissionworld.co...t-dual-clutch-transmissionswhat-you-should-know-about-dual-clutch-transmissions
-SM2016
-SM2016
They're not all DCT as in my 2019 which other than more software tuning works well. I also have the 6 speed and agree it certainly is an excellent transmission.
Buyer often don't research the tech or changes made in selecting a vehicle and find out later its not the same vehicle as someone they know who bought one. Hence they can become victims of the issue in design/engineering.
Buyer often don't research the tech or changes made in selecting a vehicle and find out later its not the same vehicle as someone they know who bought one. Hence they can become victims of the issue in design/engineering.
Benefits and pitfalls of DCT might be of interest to some, but ...
In 2020, Kia began to build the Sorento with both the original 8 speed and the "DCT" (Dual Clutch Transmission), but the DCT transmission was only used on the diesels and 2.5 turbo models. So the original 8 speed has been used right up through current builds for most U.S. vehicles.
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