Both the Sorento Hybrid and Highlander Hybrid have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Sorento 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 Highlander Hybrid’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 a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Kia Sorento Hybrid achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Toyota Highlander Hybrid has not been tested.
When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Sorento Hybrid’s standard Downhill Brake Control allows you to creep down safely. The Highlander Hybrid doesn’t offer Downhill Brake Control.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Sorento 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. Only the Highlander Hybrid Limited/Platinum offers Parking Support Brake.
Both the Sorento Hybrid and the Highlander Hybrid have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front 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, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia Sorento Hybrid is safer than the Toyota Highlander Hybrid:
|
Sorento Hybrid |
Highlander Hybrid |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
Neck Injury Risk |
23% |
38.2% |
Neck Stress |
208 lbs. |
347 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
4 Stars |
4 Stars |
Chest Compression |
.4 inches |
.6 inches |
Neck Stress |
139 lbs. |
179 lbs. |
Neck Compression |
52 lbs. |
90 lbs. |
Leg Forces (l/r) |
118/119 lbs. |
545/323 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Kia Sorento Hybrid is safer than the Toyota Highlander Hybrid:
|
Sorento Hybrid |
Highlander Hybrid |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
25 |
55 |
Hip Force |
196 lbs. |
300 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
73 |
114 |
Spine Acceleration |
29 G’s |
37 G’s |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
Max Damage Depth |
15 inches |
15 inches |
HIC |
228 |
366 |
Spine Acceleration |
32 G’s |
41 G’s |
Hip Force |
552 lbs. |
664 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.