2024 Kia Sportage Hybrid pricing: RAV4 Hybrid rival arrives

April, 2024: Sportage Hybrid on sale in Australia

Kia has finally introduced a petrol-electric version of its Sportage midsized SUV to compete with the all-conquering Toyota RAV4 Hybrid.

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The 2024 Kia Sportage Hybrid has arrived in Australia in two variants.

Kia Australia has announced pricing for the two-variant Sportage Hybrid line-up, which will start from $45,950 before on-road costs – or around $50,000 drive-away – for the SX variant.

The top-of-the-range Sportage Hybrid GT-Line becomes the most expensive variant in the nameplate’s history at $55,420 before on-road costs, or around $60,000 drive-away.

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An entry-level Sportage Hybrid S or mid-spec Sportage Hybrid SX+ will not be offered at launch due to limited supply.

“The Sportage range is an integral part of Kia’s sales initiatives and we anticipate sales of the HEV to be around 300 per month, contributing 20% of total Sportage sales volume," said Kia Australia chief executive officer Damien Meredith.

The hybrid powertrain – which will launch exclusively with front-wheel-drive – is $8400 dearer than the SX 2.0-litre non-turbo petrol FWD, $5700 dearer than the GT-Line 1.6L turbo-petrol AWD, and $2700-$3200 dearer than SX and GT-Line 2.0-litre turbo-diesel AWD models.

Compared to petrol and diesel variants, the hybrid models feature a space-saver spare wheel instead of a full-size unit.

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The SX Hybrid also has a dial-type shift-by-wire gear selector, while the GT-Line Hybrid has a Sportage-first heated steering wheel.

However, the GT-Line Hybrid is fitted with smaller 18-inch alloy wheels shared with the SX – down from 19-inch – for aerodynamic purposes.

The Sportage Hybrid’s powertrain mimics that of the Sorento Hybrid, with a 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine linked to an electric motor, supplemented by a small 1.49kWh battery that can only be recharged by the petrol engine – not a plug.

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It has a 169kW/350Nm total system output, with a six-speed torque-converter automatic transmission sending power to the front wheels.

Braked towing capacity for the Sportage Hybrid matches 2.0-litre non-turbo and 1.6-litre turbo petrol automatic variants at 1650kg.

VFACTS new-car sales data reveals the Kia Sportage was Australia's sixth-favourite internal-combustion mid-size SUV in 2023 with 15,747 sales, behind the Toyota RAV4 (29,627), Mitsubishi Outlander (24,263), Mazda CX-5 (23,083), Hyundai Tucson (21,224) and Subaru Forester (16,381).

2024 Kia Sportage Hybrid pricing