Compare the2023 Kia SorentoVS 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee

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.

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, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

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 Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 164 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Grand Cherokee has not been tested, yet.

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.

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’ 2022 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 fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 43 more problems per 100 vehicles, Jeep is ranked 23rd, 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 Jeep vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 56 more problems per 100 vehicles, Jeep is ranked 19th.

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.

As tested in Motor Trend the Sorento 2.5T 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Grand Cherokee 4xe 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid:

On the EPA test cycle the Sorento gets better mileage than the Grand Cherokee running its gasoline engine:

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 V6/4xe.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Sorento uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Grand Cherokee 4xe requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

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.

The Sorento stops much shorter than the Grand Cherokee:

The Sorento LX’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 65 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Cherokee Laredo’s standard 70 series tires.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Grand Cherokee Overland 4x4 pulls only .60 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.6 seconds quicker than the Grand Cherokee Limited 4x4 (26.5 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

The Kia Sorento may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 500 to 1400 pounds less than the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

The Sorento is 4.5 inches shorter than the Grand Cherokee, making the Sorento easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

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

The Sorento has .4 inches more front headroom, .1 inches more front legroom, 3.5 inches more rear legroom and .1 inches more rear shoulder room than the Grand Cherokee.

The front step up height for the Sorento is 1.2 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee (19” vs. 20.2”). The Sorento’s rear step up height is 2.5 inches lower than the Grand Cherokee’s (19” vs. 21.5”).

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

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Sorento easier. The Sorento’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 31.7 inches, while the Grand Cherokee’s liftover is 33 inches.

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

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.

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

The Sorento has a standard locking fuel door with a remote release located convenient to the driver. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank. The Grand Cherokee doesn’t offer a locking fuel/charge port door.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Sorento will be $3393 to $10039 less than for the Jeep Grand Cherokee.