Compare the2025 Nissan KicksVS 2025 Kia Sportage

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

The Nissan Kicks 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 doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Kicks SR offers an optional front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Sportage doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

The Kicks has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Kicks has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro offers Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning.

Both the Kicks and the Sportage have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, 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 and around view monitors.

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

Nissan pays for scheduled maintenance on the Kicks for 2 years and 24,000 miles. Nissan will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance (up to 3 visits). Kia doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Sportage.

There are over 36 percent more Nissan dealers than there are Kia dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Kicks’ warranty.

On the EPA test cycle the Kicks gets better mileage than the Sportage:

The Kicks 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 doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

The Kicks 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 doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Kicks S’ standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Sportage LX/X-Pro’s standard 65 series tires. The Kicks SR’s tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Sportage SX Prestige/X-Line’s 55 series tires.

The Kicks has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Sportage doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

For better maneuverability, the Kicks’ turning circle is 3.8 feet tighter than the Sportage’s (34.8 feet vs. 38.6 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Kicks has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Sportage (8.4 vs. 8.3 inches), allowing the Kicks to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Nissan Kicks may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 400 to 550 pounds less than the Kia Sportage.

The Kicks is 11.6 inches shorter than the Sportage, making the Kicks easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Kicks has .1 inches more front headroom and 1.3 inches more front legroom than the Sportage.

The Kicks has a standard Push Button Start that allows you to start the engine without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Only the Sportage EX/SX/Prestige/X-Line/X-Pro offers a Smart Key.

The Kicks’ 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’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted. The Kicks’ optional wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield.

The Kicks’ standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Kia charges extra for heated mirrors on the Sportage.