Compare the2022 Kia SorentoVS 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan

Both the Sorento and Tiguan have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Sorento S/EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Tiguan’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Sorento are reminded to check the back seat when a sensor determines the back seat is occupied. The Tiguan doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Kia Sorento has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Tiguan doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Sorento’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the Tiguan.

The Sorento’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Tiguan doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Sorento and the Tiguan have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Kia Sorento is safer than the Volkswagen Tiguan:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The Sorento comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Tiguan’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Sorento 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Tiguan. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Tiguan ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 19 percent more Kia dealers than there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Sorento’s warranty.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Sorento has a standard 760-amp battery. The Tiguan’s 360-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Sorento’s reliability 19 points higher than the Tiguan.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia 6th in initial quality, above the industry average. With 66 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 30th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia third in reliability, above the industry average. With 66 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 9 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The Sorento 2.5’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 7 more horsepower (191 vs. 184) than the Tiguan’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Sorento 2.5T’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 97 more horsepower (281 vs. 184) and 90 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 221) than the Tiguan’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Sorento 2.5T 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Volkswagen Tiguan:

The Sorento has 2.4 gallons more fuel capacity than the Tiguan FWD’s standard fuel tank (17.7 vs. 15.3 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Sorento has 1.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the Tiguan AWD’s standard fuel tank (17.7 vs. 15.9 gallons).

The Sorento offers an available sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Tiguan doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

For better traction, the Sorento has larger standard tires than the Tiguan (235/65R17 vs. 215/65R17).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Sorento is 2.6 inches wider in the front and 3.2 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Tiguan.

For greater off-road capability the Sorento X-Line has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Tiguan (8.2 vs. 7.6 inches), allowing the Sorento to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Sorento has .7 inches more front headroom, 1.2 inches more front legroom, 2 inches more front shoulder room, 5.2 inches more rear legroom, 2.2 inches more rear shoulder room, 3 inches more third row headroom, 1.7 inches more third row legroom and 5.2 inches more third row shoulder room than the Tiguan.

The Sorento’s cargo area provides more volume than the Tiguan.

The Sorento has a standard third row seat which folds flat into the floor. This completely clears a very large cargo area quickly. The Tiguan doesn’t offer seats that fold into the floor.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Sorento. The Tiguan doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The Sorento’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Tiguan’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Volkswagen Tiguan is only 1500 pounds. The Sorento offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Stability Assist on the Sorento uses the Electronic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Tiguan doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Sorento has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Tiguan only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

Both the Sorento and the Tiguan offer available heated front seats. The Sorento Prestige also has standard heated second row seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated second row seats aren’t available in the Tiguan.