Compare the2024 Kia SorentoVS 2024 Ford Edge

Both the Sorento and Edge 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 Edge’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 Edge 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 Edge doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Sorento’s standard Downhill Brake Control allows you to creep down safely. The Edge doesn’t offer Downhill Brake Control.

The Sorento SX/Prestige has a standard Surround View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Edge 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 Edge have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Sorento has Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Edge’s Cross Traffic Alert doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the Sorento and the Edge have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear 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, driver alert monitors and available all wheel drive.

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 Ford Edge:

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

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 Edge’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 Ford covers the Edge. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Edge ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Ford vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in initial quality. With 31 more problems per 100 vehicles, Ford is rated below 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 Ford vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 43 more problems per 100 vehicles, Ford is ranked 16th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Ford vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 12 places higher in reliability than Ford.

The Sorento EX/SX’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 31 more horsepower (281 vs. 250) and 31 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 280) than the Edge’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Sorento EX/SX 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Ford Edge turbo 4 cyl.:

On the EPA test cycle the Sorento gets better mileage than the Edge:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Sorento uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Edge requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Sorento has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Edge. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Kia Sorento higher (7 out of 10) than the Ford Edge (5 to 6). This means the Sorento produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Edge every 15,000 miles.

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

The Sorento stops much shorter than the Edge:

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Edge Titanium pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.7 seconds quicker than the Edge Titanium (26.5 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 28.2 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Sorento’s turning circle is 1.4 feet tighter than the Edge’s (37.9 feet vs. 39.3 feet).

The Kia Sorento may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 400 pounds less than the Ford Edge.

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

The Sorento has .1 inches more front headroom and 1.1 inches more rear legroom than the Edge.

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

The Sorento’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Edge’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Ford Edge is only 3500 pounds. The Sorento offers up to a 4500 lbs. towing capacity.

Trailer Stability Assist is standard on the Sorento, using 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. A trailer sway program costs extra on the Edge and isn’t available on the Edge SE.

The Sorento Prestige’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 Edge’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

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

The Sorento’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Ford only offers heated mirrors on the Edge SEL/ST-Line/ST/Titanium.

When the Sorento Prestige is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Edge’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

The Sorento is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Edge 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 52.6% to 54.37% of its original price after five years, while the Edge only retains 46.23% to 52.53%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Kia Sorento will be $955 to $9350 less than for the Ford Edge.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Kia Sorento and the Ford Edge, based on reliability, safety and performance.