Compare the2025 Kia Sorento Plug-In HybridVS 2024 Lexus RX

Both the Sorento Plug-In Hybrid and RX have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid 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 RX’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.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Sorento Plug-In Hybrid. But it costs extra on the RX.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Sorento Plug-In Hybrid has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning with Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist, systems which detect vehicles approaching from the sides and can automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. Parking Support Brake costs extra on the RX.

Both the Sorento Plug-In Hybrid and the RX have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The RX’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Sorento Plug-In Hybrid 4 years and 30,000 miles longer than Lexus covers the RX. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the RX ends after only 6 years or 70,000 miles.

There are over 3 times as many Kia dealers as there are Lexus dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Sorento Plug-In Hybrid’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Lexus vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 11 more problems per 100 vehicles, Lexus is ranked 8th.

The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid’s 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 15 more horsepower (261 vs. 246) and 37 lbs.-ft. more torque (270 vs. 233) than the RX 350h’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Sorento Plug-In Hybrid uses regular unleaded gasoline. The RX 350 requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the RX’s standard 60 series tires.

The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid has standard seating for 6 passengers; the RX can only carry 5.

The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid has .8 inches more front headroom, .3 inches more front legroom, 1 inch more front shoulder room, .5 inches more rear headroom, 2.9 inches more rear legroom and 1.6 inches more rear shoulder room than the RX.

The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid’s cargo area provides more volume than the RX.

The Sorento Plug-In Hybrid’s cargo area is larger than the RX’s in almost every dimension:

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

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Kia Sorento Plug-In Hybrid has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Wireless charging costs extra on the RX.