Long-Term Road Test Update
Update: This particular Sportage met an untimely demise in northern Michigan. We rebooted our test with a 2012 model.
Date: December 2011
Months in Fleet: 7 months
Current Mileage: 15,177 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 22 mpg
Range: 319 miles
Service: $149
Normal Wear: $0
Repair: $0
With the close of the summer travel season and the onset of another Michigan winter expected any day, our long-term Kia Sportage SX continues to please. It’s a versatile, well-rounded vehicle, capable of all but the most arduous tasks with minimal fuss. Out-of-pocket costs have been low, and complaints have been slow to materialize.
Back on Schedule
When we first checked in on the Sportage, it had performed well at the track—although it wasn’t quite as quick as other Sportages we’ve tested—and had yet to go in for its first scheduled service appointment. Now, at just over 15,000 miles, it has been to the dealer twice for a pair of regular checkups and oil-and-filter changes. The one at 9600 miles set us back $51, and another at 14,700 tallied $98. The latter stop’s higher cost can be attributed to the replacement of the cabin air filter.
Worth noting on the Kia’s maintenance schedule is the disparity between service intervals for the turbocharged and naturally aspirated Sportages. The latter requires checkups every 7500 miles, whereas turbo SX models like ours are supposed to go in for an initial oil change at 3000 miles before settling in to a regular 5000-mile interval.
My, What Rough Hands You Have
Of the few issues that have cropped up since our last update, the most egregious concerns the steering wheel. Its leather covering has started to wear at the 12 o’clock position and is rubbing off on our hands. The deterioration is not yet severe enough to warrant a separate visit to the dealer, but it looks as though we’ll probably need to have the wheel repaired (or, more likely, replaced) before the 40,000-mile mark. Other logbook negatives have reiterated the 2.0T’s roughness during cold startups, and one editor noted the smell of gas fumes in the cabin—an issue we had with our long-term Hyundai Sonata 2.0T—but that particular problem has reared its head just once so far.
The White Stuff Cometh
Since the last update, our Sportage once again visited northern Michigan, as well as Pittsburgh, and it served as a support vehicle for our annual Lightning Lap test at Virginia International Raceway. Wind noise around the sunroof and a choppy ride over rough pavement have irked some drivers more than others and remain the primary blemishes on the Sportage’s driving record. To keep the miles rolling as the white stuff falls, we fitted a set of 235/55 Bridgestone Blizzak DM-V1 winter tires ($660) to the Kia’s stock 18-inch wheels. We’ll report our impressions in the next update.
With the majority of its 40,000 miles still to come, we’re anxious to see how the Sportage’s all-wheel-drive system handles the slippery winter conditions. And although appearance alone is not enough to deliver sales success, the Kia’s looks continue to garner compliments, and they lend character to a practical and trusted package. That’s a rare thing for us to say about a crossover.
