Compare the2023 Kia SorentoVS 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, 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 Volkswagen Tiguan:

	Sorento	Tiguan
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	280	330
Spine Acceleration	32 G’s	49 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 front crash prevention system, and its headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Sorento its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2019, a rating granted to only 125 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Tiguan is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2019.

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

Reliability

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.

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 Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 74 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 30th, 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 Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 72 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 21st.

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.

Engine

The Sorento’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:

	Sorento	Tiguan
Zero to 30 MPH	2.6 sec	4.1 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	6.5 sec	10.3 sec
45 to 65 MPH Passing	3.9 sec	6.5 sec
Quarter Mile	14.9 sec	17.9 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	99 MPH	83 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

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).

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

Brakes and Stopping

The Sorento stops much shorter than the Tiguan:

	Sorento	Tiguan
60 to 0 MPH	115 feet	134 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

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

Suspension and Handling

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.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Tiguan 4Motion® pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.8 seconds quicker than the Tiguan 4Motion® (26.5 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

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.

Passenger Space

The Sorento has .7 inches more front headroom, 1.2 inches more front legroom, 1.1 inches more front hip room, 2.1 inches more front shoulder room, 5.1 inches more rear legroom, 1.6 inches more rear hip room, 2.2 inches more rear shoulder room, 3 inches more third row headroom, 1.7 inches more third row legroom, 3 inches more third row hip room and 5.2 inches more third row shoulder room than the Tiguan.

Cargo Capacity

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

	Sorento	Tiguan
Behind Third Seat	12.6 cubic feet	12 cubic feet
Third Seat Folded	38.5 cubic feet	33 cubic feet
Third Seat Removed	45 cubic feet	37.6 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	75.5 cubic feet	65.3 cubic feet

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.

Towing

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.

Ergonomics

The Sorento Prestige’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Tiguan doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

On a hot day the Sorento’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Tiguan can’t use the remote to operate the windows.

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.

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 Tiguan’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

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.

The Sorento Prestige has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Tiguan doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Recommendations

The Kia Sorento outsold the Volkswagen Tiguan by over seven to one during 2021.