Compare the2025 Honda CR-VVS 2024 Kia Sportage PHEV

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda CR-V have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Kia Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Honda CR-V 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 PHEV doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the CR-V deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The CR-V’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Sportage PHEV’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Both the CR-V and the Sportage PHEV have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Honda CR-V is safer than the Sportage PHEV:

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

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the CR-V for 1 year or 12,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Sportage PHEV.

There are over 35 percent more Honda dealers than there are Kia dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the CR-V’s warranty.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 5 places higher in reliability than Kia.

On the EPA test cycle the CR-V gets better mileage than the Sportage PHEV running its gasoline engine:

Both the CR-V and Sportage PHEV have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. The CR-V (except CR-V Hybrid) has a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily.

The CR-V has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Sportage PHEV (14 vs. 11.1 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The CR-V 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 PHEV doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

The CR-V 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 CR-V stops shorter than the Sportage PHEV:

The CR-V has a standard space-saver spare (not available on Hybrid) so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire 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 CR-V’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the Sportage PHEV’s (37.3 feet vs. 38.6 feet).

The Honda CR-V may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 750 pounds less than the Kia Sportage PHEV.

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

The CR-V has 2.2 inches more front headroom, .8 inches more front hip room, .4 inches more front shoulder room, .2 inches more rear headroom, 1.5 inches more rear legroom and .3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Sportage PHEV.

The CR-V has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Sportage PHEV with its rear seat up (39.3 vs. 34.5 cubic feet). The CR-V has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Sportage PHEV with its rear seat folded (76.5 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 CR-V. The Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The CR-V uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Sportage PHEV 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 CR-V EX-L/Sport L/Sport Touring’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 PHEV’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

The CR-V’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Sportage PHEV’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted. The CR-V Sport Touring’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield.

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

The CR-V is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Sportage PHEV doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Insurance will cost less for the CR-V owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the CR-V will cost $1605 to $2455 less than the Sportage PHEV over a five-year period.

The CR-V will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the CR-V will retain 57.72% to 58.67% of its original price after five years, while the Sportage PHEV only retains 56.18% to 56.69%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Honda CR-V will be $9861 to $9970 less than for the Kia Sportage PHEV.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda CR-V, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The CR-V was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “5Best Trucks/10Best” for 2024 and 4 more times in the last 23 years. The Sportage PHEV has never been chosen by Car and Driver in their “10Best” issue.

Motor Trend selected the CR-V as their 2018 Sport Utility of the Year. The Sportage PHEV has never been chosen.

The Honda CR-V outsold the Kia Sportage by almost three to one during 2023.