Compare the2023 Kia SorentoVS 2023 Hyundai Santa Fe

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 Santa Fe doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Both the Sorento and the Santa Fe 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, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

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 Hyundai Santa Fe:

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

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Hyundai vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 29 more problems per 100 vehicles, Hyundai is ranked 17th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Hyundai vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles, Hyundai is ranked third.

The Sorento 2.5T’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 90 more horsepower (281 vs. 191) and 130 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 181) than the Santa Fe’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Sorento 2.5T 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Hyundai Santa Fe 4 cyl.:

On the EPA test cycle the Sorento gets better mileage than the Santa Fe:

The Sorento stops shorter than the Santa Fe:

The Sorento has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Santa Fe doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Sorento’s wheelbase is 1.9 inches longer than on the Santa Fe (110.8 inches vs. 108.9 inches).

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Santa Fe Calligraphy AWD pulls only .83 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Sorento has standard seating for 7 passengers; the Santa Fe can only carry 5.

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

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

On a hot day the Sorento’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Santa Fe can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Sorento’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Hyundai only offers heated mirrors on the Santa Fe SEL/XRT/Limited/Calligraphy.

Motor Trend performed a comparison test in its December 2021 issue and they ranked the Kia Sorento X-Line SX Prestige higher than the Hyundai Santa Fe Calligraphy AWD.