2014 Kia Sorento (Huntington Beach, CA)

2014 Kia Sorento

Kia Sorento benefits from a major update for the 2014 model year. Technically the 2014 Sorento represents a mid-cycle freshening the previous generation made its appearance for the 2011 model year. But even though the Kia marketing people refrain from employing the term all-new the 2014 Sorento rolls into showrooms with a list of revisions that s much more extensive than the usual facelift. All told Kia reckons the Sorento s new or re-engineered content at 80 percent. Structural improvements to the 2014 Sorento include what Kia calls an all-new chassis with a subframe supporting the strut front suspension stiffened front strut towers larger bushings in the multilink rear suspension and a higher percentage of high strength steel throughout the bodyshell. Kia engineers cite an 18 percent increase in torsional rigidity an area of chassis construction where more is always better contributing to more precise handling and first rate crashworthiness. Kia expects that the Sorento will once again score top marks in the latter category.