The Sportage has been one of the bestselling cars for Kia in Ireland. Now the mid-range SUV has been upgraded with noticeable changes to styling for a new bigger market challenge as demand for SUVs continues to soar. There are more than 11,000 Kia Sportage drivers already in the country and this new model aims to build on that success.

The Sportage is closely related to another successful SUV on the market – the new Hyundai Tucson, which has been the market leader in the mid-size SUV segment since the start of the year.

For many potential buyers, the new Sportage with its modern looks will be pitched directly against the Tucson. I’ve driven both in recent weeks and we featured the Tucson towards the end of 2015. So, what’s different in the new Sportage and what separates it from the Tucson?

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The Sportage has a new interior with a feel of higher quality materials. It comes with a range of technologies that are claimed to improve comfort, convenience, connectivity and safety.

There are two diesel engine options: the 1.7 litre, which I drove, and the more powerful 2.0-litre offering. Both engines have been upgraded for slight improvements in efficiency and performance, while Kia claims that ride, handling and refinement have all been improved.

On the engine front, the new Sportage is marginally more powerful than the older version, while engine torque has improved to a slightly greater extent. The big differences come in terms of running costs, with Kia claiming an economy figure of 21.7km/litre (4.6l/100km or 61mpg). That’s almost 13% better than the older model, while the CO2 rating has dropped, shaving €80 off the annual road tax as it drops from a B2 rating to A4. This should give a competitive three-year ownership cost of €0.28 per km based on my costing table, making it marginally more expensive to own than an equivalent Toyota RAV4.

My own driving performance over more than 600km left me reasonably impressed with the economy. I recorded a figure of 14km/litre. That’s over 30% less than the official figure while still giving me a range of over 800km with a full 62-litre fuel tank.

Towing rate

The other improvement for rural drivers is the towing rating, which has jumped by 200kg to 1.4t. That’s still at the lower end of the competition, where others come with a two-tonne rating. Kia only offers the all-wheel-drive option in the bigger 2.0-litre engine versions of the Sportage. These come with a respectable 2.2t towing rating, but the price difference is hefty at over €7,000.

There is little to separate the Sportage from the Tucson. I prefer the Tucson’s looks, while I disliked its predecessor, the iX35. The opposite is my view of the Sportage: I liked the look of the older version; the new front end is not to my taste. The Tucson has a marginally bigger boot. When it comes to price, the Tucson has the edge on paper, but that can change when it comes to specific deals. On the warranty front, Kia offers seven years with a 150,000km limit, while Hyundai offers a five-year unlimited deal.

This is the safest Sportage to date with stronger metal used in the body as well as an array of passive safety equipment. It has performed well in the recent Euro NCAP safety tests with a five-star rating and is family friendly with two Isofix mountings in the rear.

Kia is fitting a new Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) system as standard to new Sportage to help ensure stability under braking and cornering using the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and electric motor-driven power steering systems. I didn’t like the new steering system on the Sportage which uses an electric power steering unit that acts on the car’s steering rack. I found it vague at times and not very comforting. I was also a little disappointed with the level of road feedback through the steering, giving me more vibration than I would have expected.

While the overall the drive was comfortable, the engine stop/start system took a little getting used to. The reversing camera was very effective and setting up the mobile phone connection was easy, as was using the satnav system.

Both features only apply to the Sportage EX model, which is €2,000 more expensive than the entry model, which costs €27,995 or £19,745 in NI. The cost jump to the higher specification EX grade is lower with the Sportage than the Tucson offering, so make sure to check that part out if you are searching for value.