Kia Sorento MQ4 AWD Diesel GT-Line (2016-2026)
VerifiedAlso referred to as: Kia Sorento MQ4 AWD Diesel GT-Line 2025 and Kia Sorento MQ4 AWD Diesel GT-Line 2027.16 reviews
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What a disappointing with Kia – Initially, I was overjoyed with my purchase of the Sorento, feeling really happy about it. However, after a year, the air conditioning stopped working, and I had to take it to the service center where they replaced all the parts. I thought it was just a coincidence and continued driving. Yet, a year later, while driving, the car suddenly wouldn’t… Read more
move even when I pressed the accelerator. I pulled over, tried restarting the engine, but it stalled again and wouldn’t budge.
It’s only been three years since I bought this new car, but with such frequent breakdowns, I am extremely disappointed. I no longer want to purchase a Kia vehicle in the future. The car is expensive, yet its quality has been poor, tarnishing Kia's reputation.
I hope the company takes these issues seriously and improves their quality control. I would not recommend the Kia Sorento to anyone looking for a reliable vehicle.
- +8
The benchmark for 7-seat family cars when it comes to value for money – Kia is making strides in improving the build quality of their cars, both inside and out. The Sorento offers a level of superior quality, it’s one of the best value-for-money propositions in the market. When you open the doors on the new Sorento you can immediately feel a certain ‘heft’ and weight to them. This sensation of closing a heavy… Read more
door is something you would normally expect to see on more expensive vehicles.
The car I had for the week was the GT-Line Diesel, which is the range-topping version. Priced at $67,290 drive-away, this is certainly heading towards the expensive end of most people’s budgets.
This car both acts as a class leader for seven-seaters under $70,000, but also gives the luxury SUVs a run for their money.
Kia offers a 7 year warranty and also offer capped price servicing for the Sorento over these seven years, but only up to 105,000km. Your total cost of servicing over seven years comes to $3,463 - a fair price to pay for this amount of services.
Sound isolation in the Sorento was impressive to say the least. Road, wind and traffic noise was sufficiently kept out of the cabin, which translated to a relaxing ride for both the driver and the passenger. The diesel motor likes to make itself known under heavier acceleration, so it’s not going to be library-quiet in here. Being distinctly diesel in its ability to sound a little like a tractor, It’s not exactly a pleasant engine tone either. The sound system in the Sorento was better than expected, largely thanks to the Bose-branded audio it’s decked out with.
The car is fitted with autonomous emergency braking, which is activated if you have rear-cross traffic, someone in your blind spot, or have a car, pedestrian, or cyclist cross your path.
The Sorento I tested was fitted with Kia’s 2.2L 4 cylinder diesel engine, which produces 148kW at 3600rpm and 440Nm at 1,750-2,750rpm. Coupled with this engine is an 8-speed dual-clutch transmission, which performs exceptionally well. 0-100km/h figures are in the mid 9’s, which is typical of a car in this segment with this motor. If you’re looking for performance, you might need a second car. Thanks to the torque, power delivery is strong throughout acceleration and smooth when you need it to be. The new Sorento is rated to tow up to 2 tonnes (braked), allowing you to hook most trailers up to it.
However, towing a caravan behind this family car might prove to be a bit tricky.
I can’t speak for the longevity of this transmission, but at least you have a 7 year warranty just in case.
I can, however, speak for the performance of the gearbox. Even though this is an 8-speed transmission, shifts are smooth and decisive. It doesn’t jump around trying to figure out which gear it needs to be in.
The Sorento will conquer the potholes and speed bumps that you’ll most likely encounter when rushing for the school pick-up or drop-off. Even when riding on wheels as big as these, this SUV offered absolute comfort across a variety of surfaces. Whether it’s traversing tarmac, gravel or snow; the Sorento tackles it all.
If you plan on heading off-road to a campsite or through the snow, the Sorento has a selection of terrain-response modes that help provide more grip for when you need it most. A feature like this is rare around this price point and is usually reserved for the likes of a Land Rover.
Kia claims a combined consumption figure of 6.1L/100km. I managed to average around 9.5L/100km, which was impressive nonetheless for a large SUV like this.
If you think the exterior looks a little restrained, the interior design is sure to win you over. This is the standout upgrade for the fourth generation Sorento. I’m of the mindset that interior design is always more important than exterior design as it’s where you’ll be spending most of your time with the car. The instrument binnacle is akin to that of a Mercedes setup with an instrument binnacle that stretches from the centre display through to the driver’s display. A pair of 10.3 inch displays are placed adjacent to one-another and are the main focus point of the cabin. Along the dashboard and doors are diamond shaped cut-outs that add not only visual flair during the day, but at night, are backlit in a colour of your choosing from 64 options. The touch-capacitive climate controls reduce the number of physical buttons placed on the dash,bringing down the amount of visual clutter in the cabin. Below that, your eyes are drawn to the cylindrical shifter, which also appears to be a leaf out of a Land Rover’s book. It works well to bring a level of class into the cabin without feeling cheap. Seats are blissfully bolstered with quilted stitching, adding more visual flair to this cabin. The Sorento features a minimum of 187L boot space with all 7 seats up, 616L with 5 seats up and a massive 2,011L with all seats folded flat.
The boxy design and flat-folding nature of the seats mean you have a large rectangular space with no awkward obstacles to avoid in the name of style. It’s easy to fold the middle row, too. With an electronically controlled one-touch button, you can fold either side of the seats in the middle row, all from the boot.
However, it’s annoying that in a car this big, you still have a 60:40 split in the middle row. This can be a nuisance when you want to make the most of the interior space whilst carrying 4 people.
The Sorento is a wonderful family machine.
Any seven seat family car needs to be reliable, comfortable, enjoyable and capable - all of which the Sorento achieves.
The Sorento has the warranty and capped price servicing to cover you in the running costs department. You won’t need to stress about finding another car for a while once you’ve chosen the Sorento.
Being comfortable is what the Sorento does very well. From its relaxed yet direct ride, through to a long list of creature comforts, including heated seats for four.
*Disclaimer - I work for ProductReview as their independent car and motorbike expert. I borrow new cars and motorbikes from manufacturers and owners to review. I am not paid or incentivised by these brands to post reviews. I write and create content to provide insight and information about any new or used vehicle I can get my hands on.
The best car I’ve driven in my almost 30 years of driving experience – We needed a new car and I took my time to research the car options available in the size I wanted, with the features which were a must, and within our price range. We got lucky when purchasing that it was the last before the updated shape. This didn’t bother me and represented a significant price difference. I had narrowed it down to 2 different… Read more
makes and in the end, the two cars were almost identical, but our Kia was $10,000 less. After 3 years and 60,000kms it’s been a reliable car that is a real pleasure to drive. The GT Line has some lovely features and as our second Kia, after previously having a Cerato, I’m a big fan of Kias. I feel they’re becoming more on the pricey side compared to how the once were though. We’ve had one recall on something which needed to be replaced. We do find the car fairly noisy, but as my first diesel car, I’m told that’s commonplace. The one thing we’ve found, unfortunately, is that the steering keeps sticking and Kia can’t seem to get to the bottom of it. We’ve moved dealerships for our servicing and it’s made a big difference to wait times for servicing. I do just wish someone would figure out the steering issue. Towing has been easy. Reasonable fuel economy for our mixed driving. Car has loads of room for us. Very pleased with the car and reliability of Kia
Loose door handles – I picked up my car November 2022. Till recently I couldn’t fault it, apart from some of the overly intrusive safety warnings.However recently all external door handles have become loose. I returned the car to the dealer Port Macquarie Kia who told me all Kia & Hyundai vehicles are the same and this is normal. I regard this answer as ridiculous and… Read more
if this is the case there should be a recall. Has anyone else experienced this absurd situation? This is my daily driver and in all other respects is great.
Extremely bad after care service – I’m enjoying my Sorrento it’s the after care service that’s appalling. I was sent a letter today after a warning light came on my dashboard a week ago. It was a recall notice that was to replace a low pressure fuel hose clamp which as the letter states may result in engine fire, risk of accident, injury or death to vehicle occupants and other road… Read more
users.I got a rude man Nick in service who said it’s not really a matter of urgency. Will do it next week. I rang another Kia dealership who said they can do it in a month. No apologies I just hope my family is safe in this car until they find a repair time!!
Worth the Expense – As I travel in excess of 40th per year looked for a vehicle that was safe and comfortable. Kia fitted the criteria that I wanted with more. Safety is covered comprehensively Driver Assistance very comprehensive , Lacking Auto wipers 2000kg towing cap a bit low, Fuel economy very good ( Mostly freeway driving ) Extra rear sets great for grandchildren a bit tight for adults. Show details
Safest vehicle I have ever driven – Long trips talking my grandchildren to sporting events often 400k round trip weekly Short trips shopping 3 times per week…. Serviced as per manufactures recommendations + intermediate services if travelled on flooded or excessive dusty roads Show details
Most unreliable car and unprofessional service delivery to resolve the problem!! – We bought a brand new Kia Sorento GT AWD top model in Feb 2021 with no discount offered. This is second time, our car broke. First time, it did not start, called the roadside assistance and they told us that the headlights were left turned on, however, we always kept the settings on auto. Second time, it broke on 23rd June. Just post doing the… Read more
weekly groceries, I attempted to unlock the boot with no luck, apparently, warning on the screen indicated errors and instructions, which I followed at-least 25-30 times with no luck.
I had to call my husband in meetings to come and fix, my brother tried to figure out with nil success. Husband called Kia straightway and they advised roadside assistance will be there within 45 minutes, which came nearly after two hours; the guy could not diagnose the problem and advised that car needs to be towed away to the Service Centre. Husband had to cancel his meetings to come back just to ensure that they tow the car properly as we spent a lot on this one and did not want to take any risk. Tow truck came after few hours of wait and continuous calling as they never bothered to update. After car being towed away, they advised us they would diagnose the problem today and will get back to us and if they can’t, it won’t happen until 5th July due to their fully busy schedule.
They still cannot figure out what is wrong, we are the one chasing for an update with no help in return. Our work commitments were getting compromised because of their unprofessional behaviors. Husband called them multiple times to request them for a rental car which they were never willing to offer. After many calls, they told us that they only have Kia Sportage available, take it or leave it. We spent $67000 to buy this 7- seater car to accommodate our family needs and this is what they rudely offer to us. We tried to negotiate with them and after several calls, they gave us Holden Captiva which is not a clear replacement for 70k price tag. Left with no option, husband had to take it to work for one day. Apparently, that car had a single USB which never worked. Seriously, we are paying big installments for Kia Sorento and this is what we have to drive. Are they going to pay the installments since the car is broken and with them.
I would never take a risk to drive that car with my little one with me.
I had to take a day off from work because of this. Being a healthcare worker, it is just stupid to take a day off unnecessarily in this world pandemic time when they are needed to be at the work as the top most priority.
We give them a call everyday for an update and in return there response is that they are unable to figure out and had to call senior technician to diagnose the problem, with no ETA to fix it.
Husband ended up going in person to their office yesterday and the technician advised him that he could not diagnose the problem and he thinks he can’t figure out and also, they have to park the car in the yard uncovered as they can’t keep it on service bay to block them. We have always parked our car in secured and covered locked garage, and this is how they are treating it.
They tell you big stories about their cars when you go to buy, and then they provide such an unprofessional service and don’t even know how to fix their own cars.
We contacted the KIA Australia as well( had to wait around an hour to get hold of) and got advised that they would investigate this matter, have not received any call or any update from them.
We also sent them an email requesting for an update with no reply yet. It is so stressful and frustrating for us that we spent hard earned money on this car and now KIA doesn’t want to resolve the issue.
We will be fighting to get our money back, can’t be taking risk of keeping this car anymore as what if it gets broken where there are network issues and difficult to get help.
Great car apart from the electrics – Purchased a demo MY17 Sorento GT Line with 1000km on the clock. Car was brilliant.... the best I had ever owned... until 12 months ago. Then all sorts of weird electrical things started going wrong with it. Too many issues to list but the critical one is that the car would turn itself on.... yes I kid you not.... by itself in the middle of the… Read more
night. Not the engine but it would power up all of the electrics and blaze away with the headlights. The neighbours got used to this and would let me know when they saw it.... but in the past year it left me stranded 4 times when no one caught it and I came out in the morning to start the car but the battery was completely flat.
Went to multiple Kia dealers about this... most thought I was mad and couldn't see anything wrong with the car. Made a faraday cage for the keys in case they were going screwy... this did nothing. The roadside assist guys that came out whenever my battery was flat had never heard of anything like this in their careers. Auto electrician could find nothing wrong either.
There were multiple other weird electric things happening intermittently on seemingly unrelated systems.... but the killer was the car leaving me stranded multiple times. I need reliability.
Cut my losses..... sold it and bought a Mitsubishi Paid to Sport. This will be my fifth Mitsubishi and they have always been bulletproof for me.
Wise choice! – As a mechanic obviously my experience working with all sorts of makes and models has a big impact on what we buy when time comes to upgrade. We were looking for an SUV, didn't need a 4WD, just something large enough for a family of 4 (plus 2 dogs) and all our luggage for family holidays. The Sorento is a good car, even a very good car. For me… Read more
the most impressive thing is the driveline. The R series diesel is a cracker, a proven performer that does everything well and unlike a lot of other brands stands the test of time. 8 speed auto is perfectly matched to the engine, space, safety and tech, not to mention class leading warranty.
Hard to see a reason to buy anything else. Good deals on run out Sorrento"s made our decision easier when comparing to it's cousin Hyundai Santa Fe.
An absolutely excellent machine – I have recently received a new GT Line as a company car and was going to leave a review earlier about just how great this machine is. Everything works, everything is in the right place, all controls make sense, it's extremely comfortable, easy to drive - its just a seriously great SUV. We love it. Then last week my son was T-boned in the drivers… Read more
side door at an intersection. All side airbags went off and the car flipped on its side sliding down the highway till it came to an abrupt halt, smashing the rear window (he climbed out the back). So with 5,000 km on the clock, it's written off. Without a doubt the front side airbags, the side curtain airbags and the KIA's super solid construction, saved him from even getting a scratch. So thankful! We've just picked up our next GT Line Sorento! Hope to get more than 5,000 km out of this one....
All the bells and whistles and such a delight to drive – We have the top of the line GT Line so you would expect everything in it but even the base model comes packed with features. Great to drive and even though it’s diesel you can hardly hear it or notice it. If on really coarse bitumen there can be quite a bit of tyre noise at times and if you want to tow with it I’d do my sums first ( mainly due to… Read more
the tow ball weight) but they would be the only negatives I can think of. Everything else is brilliant and far outweigh these 2 things that aren’t really an issue. I’d happily buy another one
Sorento GT – Recently purchased a Sorento GT.. Initial reaction was WOW, after living with the vehicle for a month now you realise whilst quality is up there, you need to be wary of a couple of things that may annoy you after a while. I noticed a lot of "road noise" from the 19" wheels on GT model, i've read that the 18' and 17' don't suffer from this. The… Read more
standard tyres are Hankook, I think i'll swap out for Michelin or something quieter. The new 8 speed transmission is really smooth, although I notice around 60kph it gets a bit confused which gear it should be in and chooses 3 different spots before settling in place, It also feels quite disconnected when going downhill I think this is a characteristic of this transmission rather than a fault - It also may well be because the vehicle is still new and all parts are still settling in. I had a really poor dealership experience which turned me off a little bit, but it's not the cars fault. I would prefer this offering over anything from Germany as I believe it would be more reliable in the long term. If you purchase this vehicle for mainly city driving or short trips, you should note the GT only comes in Diesel and is fitted with a DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter) and will need a regular run of 20+ mins at a temp hot enough to burn the ash. The dealers tend not to tell you this, but it is not a problem for myself as I have mixed driving but city dwellers may want to consider the petrol version (although not an option in GT!) As said above the Hankook tyres are crap they're really noisy in this model which is a shame as they have fitted so much sound deadening material. The rear brakes are noisy at low speed also but this could be due to being new, time will tell I guess. At the end of the day a vehicle maker will not back their product with a 7 year warranty if they think they will see you all the time with vehicle problems, I note at this goes for the diesel model as with other makers the "DPF" is not covered under warranty, so if you clog this up and the dealership cannot clean/unblock it, it will cost $1000's of dollars to replace so keep this in mind when choosing this vehicle.
Find out how Kia Sorento MQ4 AWD Diesel GT-Line compares to other Large / 7 Seater SUVs
Know better, choose better.
Great Car! – 55000 KM UPDATE (1/06/2022) --------------------- Had to replace original Kumho tyres at 40000KM as the side walls started cracking. Driver seat was replaced under warranty as one of the sensors started coming up through seat. Door seal and sunroof noise has mostly gone away....whatever was causing the noise mush have worn out or weathered! … Read more
Other than that dealer is updating maps during every service. Have an issue where driving mode automatically changes from sport to comfort when car is restarted. This does not happen in Eco or comfort modes.
20000 KM UPDATE (10/07/2019) --------------------- Isolated the noise source to rubber seals on doors and sunroof. From other Kia forums I also found out that this product (rubber care stick) fixes this noise for a few weeks. https://www.velind-aerosol.de/en/car-care-more/care-care/gummipflegestift
17000 KM UPDATE (15/04/2019) --------------------- There is minor vibration/rattling noise from doors & sunroof when travelling on slightly rough roads. Smooth roads and long rides on highways are quiet. Seems like the noise is coming from door & sunroof seals/rails!
Service went smooth, however dealer couldn't fix the noise issue (in other words dealer didn't care about it). Dealer also did not update the map during service, I had to do it myself.
Kumho Crugen Premium tyres are CHEAP & CRAP quality! One of them have developed a small crack after climbing on a car park kerb at very slow speed.
3000KM UPDATE: ------------------------- We started hearing some minor rattles from about 2000km on the odo, seems to be coming from the sunroof on passenger side rails. Dealer couldn't identify anything during 1st service at 2500km. Doing some googling, it seems like rails need some periodic lubrication.
INITIAL REVIEW ----------------------- We were planning to buy a Toyota RAV4 and on the way to test drive one we dropped into a Kia dealership to test drive a Kia Sorento. To our surprise the Kia was miles ahead in comfort, space, quietness, handling and technology compared to Toyota Rav4. The Toyota looked like a basic rental car - there is no technological development compared to my Toyota Camry CSX from 1998, there was infact less features in the RAV4 GXL than my 1998 Camry.
Sorento GT-Line build quality is excellent and diesel engine is giving me 9L/100Km mileage. This is almost same as our other car 2011 Corolla. The LED backed dash is very easy to see during day and night (I struggle to see the dash info on my corolla during day as it is too dark). Car is also easy to park since it has a 360 degree camera!
After having the car for 2 weeks we feel that we have made the right choice. A car with similar features from a Japanese brand would cost $20K more and a German one would be double the price! Kia also comes with capped price servicing for 7 years!
I’m a Kia owner. Get over it – After much research for over a year, I changed from wanting a second hand Discovery or Audi Q7 to purchasing the Kia Sorento GT-Line, and I’m glad I did. Ask me 5 years ago if I’d have purchased a Kia, let alone any car made in South Korea I’d have likely punched you in the face. It took a lot of reading, MANY test drives and some sleepless… Read more
nights grappling with becoming a Kia owner, but common sense kept putting the Kia on top of the list.
This is the first brand new car I’ve ever bought. I’ve always owned Holden’s and Fords, an archaic mindset that others should be released from the shackles. I thought if I’m going to buy a Kia, it has to be the best damn one they’ve got. So I went the GT-Line variant.
The Kia is a pleasant surprise.we have two small kids, there is ample room and the quality of the interior is good, leather seats are comfortable and the overall feel is refined. There is enough torque down low in the 2.2 Diesel engine to give it some punch, but is very good on fuel. I’m very happy I bought the diesel.
When it came down to what cars I was going to buy it was between the Mazda CX-9 and this one. The Mazda, also a very good car just didnt compete in included extras. The Kia has heated seat and steering wheel, emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, GPS, huge sunroof, lane departure warnings, cross traffic warnings and I’m probably forgetting a couple but to have received all that in the Mazda I’d have spent an extra $20K on top of the Kia.
With that a 7 year warranty, capped price servicing and an all over smart vehicle the Kia won hands down.
The only thing I wished I’d have done was to wait for the 2018 model which comes with an updated package and even more extras such as Apple play. If I’m going to gripe about anything, and that is the wheels, they look terrible and I’m considering buying new ones, or powder coating them. Also the grille is a bit how’s your father. One thing they’ve improved on the new model.
Anyway, I can’t recommend this vehicle enough. If you’re having second thoughts in buying a Killed In Action then leave them at the sales yard door. It really is a good vehicle and I’m very happy we went down this route. Good luck with your search!
April 2019 - I’ve now owned this vehicle for 2 years. Have not had one issue with it, I still stand by everything in the original post.
Amazing car! Best automobile decision – Great performer on road, Highway drive provides me a great fuel economy too. Apple play not available even in the top most model (GT version), Only disappointment I have! Never an issue and the 7-year warranty is the best in market anyway. Interiors dual tone could be extended into other colours to attract more attention. Show details
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