Kia Sportage SUV - Practicality & boot space

It didn’t seem to matter that the outgoing Sportage didn’t have the biggest boot in its class, because it was still one of the most popular midsize SUVs, regularly appearing in our list of the UK’s best-selling cars. That the new one has a much bigger boot should make it even more appealing.

Kia Sportage interior space & storage

Four six-foot-tall adults will be comfortable in the Sportage because there’s plenty of legroom and shoulder room. There’s even enough headroom if you pick a trim level with the panoramic sunroof, which has the added benefit of flooding the interior with light. Travelling with five adults on board will be a bit more of a squeeze, but that’s true of most of the rivals to the Sportage.

It seems like Kia has channelled the spirit of rival brand Skoda when it comes to useful features. The front seat headrests incorporate coat hangers, while there are additional hangers and even USB chargers in the seatbacks.

Boot space

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The Kia Sportage benefits from up to 591 litres of boot space. That’s not only a huge increase on the previous model, but a size that beats nearly all its main rivals too. It’s on a par with a family estate car, which should give some idea as to how useful the Sportage is at carrying big loads.

Fold the rear seats (this can be done individually using levers in the boot), and you’ll have a huge 1,780 litres to fill. The floor is flat to make loading easier and there isn’t a large load lip either.

The plug-in hybrid offers a still-generous 540 litres, which is actually more than the mild-hybrid diesel engines. They get 526 litres, although that’s a bigger storage space than the Ford Kuga.

Towing

All standard petrol and diesel engines can tow up to 1,650kg. Impressively, so can the hybrid, although Kia hasn’t announced any towing figures for the plug-in hybrid yet.