Compare the2024 Subaru ForesterVS 2024 Kia Sportage PHEV

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Forester have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Kia Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Subaru Forester 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 Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Forester has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Both the Forester and the Sportage PHEV have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert 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 front crash prevention system, and its headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Forester its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2019, a rating granted to only 126 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Sportage PHEV is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2019.

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

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Forester third among compact suvs in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Sportage PHEV isn’t in the top three in its category.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 4 places higher in reliability than Kia.

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Forester lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability without compromising ground clearance. The Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

The Forester has 5.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Sportage PHEV (16.6 vs. 11.1 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Forester has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Forester Wilderness 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 PHEV; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

For better maneuverability, the Forester’s turning circle is 3.2 feet tighter than the Sportage PHEV’s (35.4 feet vs. 38.6 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Forester has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Sportage PHEV (8.7 vs. 8.3 inches), allowing the Forester to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Forester Wilderness’ minimum ground clearance is .9 inch higher than on the Sportage PHEV (9.2 vs. 8.3 inches).

The Subaru Forester may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 650 to 800 pounds less than the Kia Sportage PHEV.

The Forester has 3.4 inches more front headroom, 1.9 inches more front legroom, .6 inches more front shoulder room, 1.6 inches more rear headroom, .2 inches more rear hip room and 1.6 inches more rear shoulder room than the Sportage PHEV.

The Forester has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Sportage PHEV with its rear seat folded (74.2 vs. 65.4 cubic feet).

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

Maximum trailer towing in the Kia Sportage PHEV is limited to 2000 pounds. The Forester offers up to a 3000 lbs. towing capacity.

The engine in the Forester is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Sportage PHEV. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s exterior PIN entry system. The Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its 911 Connect can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

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 Forester’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Sportage PHEV’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Forester has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Forester’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Sportage PHEV offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the Forester and the Sportage PHEV offer available heated front seats. The Forester Touring also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Sportage PHEV.

Insurance will cost less for the Forester owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Forester will cost $1230 to $2770 less than the Sportage PHEV over a five-year period.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Subaru Forester will be $7824 to $12291 less than for the Kia Sportage PHEV.

Consumer Reports® chose the Subaru Forester as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Subaru Forester outsold the Kia Sportage by 8% during 2023.