Compare the2023 Jeep CherokeeVS 2023 Kia Sportage

The Jeep Cherokee has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Sportage doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Cherokee has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Sportage doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Cherokee. But it costs extra on the Sportage.

The Cherokee has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Cherokee has standard Rear Cross-Path Detection, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro offers Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning.

Both the Cherokee and the Sportage have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems and rearview cameras.

The Cherokee’s 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Sportage runs out after 100,000 miles.

Jeep pays for scheduled maintenance on the Cherokee for 3 years and unlimited miles. Jeep will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance (up to 3 oil changes). Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Sportage.

There are over 3 times as many Jeep dealers as there are Kia dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Cherokee’s warranty.

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Cherokee has a standard 160-amp alternator (180-amp - Cherokee optional). The Sportage’s 150-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

The Cherokee Trailhawk’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 83 more horsepower (270 vs. 187) and 117 lbs.-ft. more torque (295 vs. 178) than the Sportage’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Cherokee Trailhawk 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Kia Sportage:

The Cherokee has 1.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Sportage (15.8 vs. 14.3 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Cherokee has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Sportage doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Jeep Cherokee, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Sportage.

For better stopping power the Cherokee’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Sportage:

The Cherokee stops shorter than the Sportage:

For better traction, the Cherokee Trailhawk 4x4’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Sportage (245/65R17 vs. 235/65R17).

The Cherokee has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Sportage doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Cherokee Trailhawk has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Sportage; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which has mileage and speed limitations, or roadside assistance and a tow-truck.

The Cherokee’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Sportage doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

The Cherokee Altitude LUX executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Sportage X-Pro (27.1 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 27.9 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Cherokee’s turning circle is .9 feet tighter than the Sportage’s (37.7 feet vs. 38.6 feet). The Cherokee Trailhawk’s turning circle is .5 feet tighter than the Sportage’s (38.1 feet vs. 38.6 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Cherokee Trailhawk has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Sportage (8.7 vs. 8.3 inches), allowing the Cherokee to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Cherokee uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Sportage doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

A standard locking glovebox keeps your small valuables safer in the Cherokee. The Sportage doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Maximum trailer towing in the Kia Sportage is limited to 2500 pounds. The Cherokee offers up to a 4000 lbs. towing capacity.

The Cherokee 4x4 with optional equipment can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Cherokee can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Sportage can’t be towed flat on the ground.

The Cherokee uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Sportage uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The Cherokee’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 Sportage’s standard power window switches have to be held the entire time to close them fully. Only its driver’s window opens automatically. With the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

The Cherokee’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Sportage’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Cherokee’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Kia charges extra for heated mirrors on the Sportage.

The Cherokee has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the Sportage.

The Cherokee has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro.

The Cherokee 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 Sportage doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Cherokee’s ParkSense Parallel/Perpendicular Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Sportage doesn’t offer an automated parking system.