Kia Sorento review - Practicality & boot space

The current generation Kia Sorento's 35mm increase in wheelbase has improved practicality in what was already a very big car. In fact, the previous Sorento topped the practicality section of our 2020 Driver Power survey (it actually came top overall for owner satisfaction) with high scores for its flexible seating and load-lugging ability. There's masses of space inside the latest-generation model; seven seats come as standard and you can even fit adults in the third row for quick trips.

Kia Sorento interior space & storage

The first two rows in the Sorento offer plentiful headroom and legroom for adults, so there shouldn't be any complaints, even on long trips. Headroom for passengers in the third row has been improved too, and sliding the middle row forwards slightly even provides decent knee room, which is a rarity in anything this side of a Land Rover Discovery. 

Every passenger also gets their own cup holder and USB charging port, and with the hybrid battery and electric motor mounted under the floor, it has very little impact on passenger or luggage space.

Boot space

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The diesel Sorento offers a huge 616 litres of boot space with the rearmost row of seats folded down. In the standard hybrid model, the boot is reduced to 608 litres, while the PHEV has 604 litres of cargo space. With both of the rear seating rows folded flat, storage space opens up to 2,011 litres for the diesel, falling to 1,996 litres and 1,988 litres in the standard hybrid and PHEV models respectively. Whichever version you go for, you’ll be bagging yourself one of the most practical family cars on the market.

Towing

Kia is proud of the Sorento's towing abilities – it has a loyal following amongst caravanners – but the standard hybrid Sorento can only pull a 1,110kg braked trailer, while the PHEV has a rating of 1,010kg. The diesel is more capable, towing up to 2,500kg, and it can accept a tow ball weight of 100kg, which makes it an obvious pick for towing.