Compare the2023 Kia SorentoVS 2023 Land Rover Discovery Sport

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Kia Sorento are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Land Rover Discovery Sport doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

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 Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Sorento Prestige has standard Parking Collision Avoidance-Rear that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

The Sorento Prestige has a standard Surround View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Discovery Sport 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.

Both the Sorento and the Discovery Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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 and available all wheel drive.

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 175 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Discovery Sport 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 Discovery Sport’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 Land Rover covers the Discovery Sport. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Discovery Sport ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 4 times as many Kia dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Sorento’s warranty.

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 Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 37 more problems per 100 vehicles, Land Rover is ranked 22nd, 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 Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 139 more problems per 100 vehicles, Land Rover is ranked 32nd.

The Sorento 2.5T’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 35 more horsepower (281 vs. 246) and 42 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 269) than the Discovery Sport’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the Sorento gets better mileage than the Discovery Sport:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Sorento uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Discovery Sport requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 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 Discovery Sport doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

For better traction, the Sorento’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Discovery Sport (255/45R20 vs. 245/45R21).

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Sorento’s wheelbase is 2.9 inches longer than on the Discovery Sport (110.8 inches vs. 107.9 inches).

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Discovery Sport S pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Discovery Sport S (26.5 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 27.4 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Sorento’s turning circle is .8 feet tighter than the Discovery Sport’s (37.9 feet vs. 38.7 feet).

The Kia Sorento may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 150 to 400 pounds less than the Land Rover Discovery Sport.

The Sorento has .8 inches more front headroom, 2.3 inches more front legroom, 1.8 inches more front shoulder room, .4 inches more rear headroom, 3.6 inches more rear legroom, 2.2 inches more rear shoulder room, 2.4 inches more third row headroom, 4 inches more third row legroom and 5.9 inches more third row shoulder room than the Discovery Sport.

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

The Sorento’s cargo area is larger than the Discovery Sport’s in almost every dimension:

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

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 Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

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 Discovery Sport doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Sorento has standard extendable sun visors. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Sorento to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Sorento Prestige keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

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 Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Sorento is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

The Sorento will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Sorento will retain 46.98% to 47.45% of its original price after five years, while the Discovery Sport only retains 45.39% to 45.58%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Sorento will be $8926 to $17688 less than for the Land Rover Discovery Sport.

The Kia Sorento outsold the Land Rover Discovery Sport by over 13 to one during 2022.