Compare the2022 Kia SorentoVS 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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Both the Sorento and Grand Cherokee 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 Grand Cherokee’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 Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Sorento Prestige has a standard Parking Collision Avoidance-Rear that use rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

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 Grand Cherokee.

The Sorento Prestige has a standard Surround View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Grand Cherokee only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

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 Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

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

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia Sorento is safer than the Jeep Grand Cherokee:

	Sorento	Grand Cherokee
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	21%	28%
Neck Stress	168 lbs.	201 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	212/405 lbs.	401/317 lbs.

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

A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Kia Sorento is safer than the Grand Cherokee:

	Sorento	Grand Cherokee
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	MARGINAL
Restraints	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Head Neck Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Head injury index	83	172
Peak Head Forces	0 G’s	0 G’s
Steering Column Movement Rearward	1 cm	5 cm
Chest Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Hip & Thigh Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Femur Force R/L	1/.8 kN	4.9/2.3 kN
Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L	0%/0%	3%/0%
Lower Leg Evaluation	GOOD	MARGINAL
Tibia index R/L	.56/.53	1.06/.54
Tibia forces R/L	2.2/.7 kN	2.3/1.3 kN

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 Jeep Grand Cherokee:

	Sorento	Grand Cherokee
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	32 G’s	37 G’s

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

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Sorento the rating of “Top Pick” for 2021, a rating granted to only 136 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Grand Cherokee is not a “Top Pick.”

Warranty

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 Grand Cherokee’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Sorento 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Jeep covers the Grand Cherokee. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Grand Cherokee ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

Reliability

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the engines in the Sorento have an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the 5.7 V8 in the Grand Cherokee.

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 Jeep vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia 6th in initial quality, above the industry average. With 2 more problems per 100 vehicles, Jeep is ranked 8th.

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 Jeep vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia third in reliability, above the industry average. With 44 more problems per 100 vehicles, Jeep is ranked 24th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Jeep vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 4 places higher in reliability than Jeep.

Engine

The Sorento 2.5T’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 51 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 260) than the Grand Cherokee’s standard 3.6 DOHC V6.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Sorento 2.5T 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Jeep Grand Cherokee V6:

	Sorento	Grand Cherokee
Zero to 30 MPH	2.6 sec	3 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	6.5 sec	8 sec
45 to 65 MPH Passing	3.9 sec	6 sec
Quarter Mile	14.9 sec	16.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	99 MPH	88.3 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Sorento gets better mileage than the Grand Cherokee:

			MPG
Sorento
	FWD	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	24 city/29 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/29 hwy
	AWD	2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/27 hwy
		2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	23 city/25 hwy
Grand Cherokee
	RWD	3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
	AWD	3.6 DOHC V6	18 city/25 hwy
		5.7 OHV V8	14 city/22 hwy

Regardless of its engine, the Sorento’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. Jeep only offers an automatic engine start/stop system on the Grand Cherokee V6.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Sorento uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Grand Cherokee with the 5.7 V8 engine requires mid-grade for maximum efficiency, which can cost 5 to 40 cents more per gallon.

Transmission

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 Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

Tires and Wheels

The Sorento’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Cherokee’s optional 50 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Sorento is .9 inches wider in the front and 1 inch wider in the rear than the track on the Grand Cherokee.

Chassis

The Kia Sorento may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 800 to 1150 pounds less than the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Passenger Space

The Sorento has standard seating for 7 passengers; the Grand Cherokee can only carry 5.

The Sorento has .4 inches more front headroom, 1.1 inches more front legroom, .3 inches more front shoulder room, 3.1 inches more rear legroom and .1 inches more rear shoulder room than the Grand Cherokee.

The front step up height for the Sorento is 1.5 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee (19” vs. 20.5”). The Sorento’s rear step up height is 1.8 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee’s (19” vs. 20.8”).

Cargo Capacity

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

	Sorento	Grand Cherokee
Third Seat Folded	38.4 cubic feet	n/a
Third Seat Removed	45 cubic feet	36.3 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	75.5 cubic feet	68.3 cubic feet

The Sorento’s cargo area is larger than the Grand Cherokee’s in almost every dimension:

	Sorento	Grand Cherokee
Length to seat (3rd/2nd/1st)	15.5”/42.5”/76.5”	n.a./38.5”/74.2”
Max Width	54”	47.6”
Min Width	42.4”	41.7”
Height	33”	33.5”

Pressing a button automatically lowers the Sorento’s optional second row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Sorento’s liftgate can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Ergonomics

The Sorento Prestige’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Grand Cherokee’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Sorento’s available headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Grand Cherokee’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Poor.”

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Kia Sorento EX/SX/Prestige has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

Economic Advantages

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Sorento will be $3168 to $8766 less than for the Jeep Grand Cherokee.