 So if you guys welcome back to another one, if you're new to the channel, I'm Gold Pony, I do new car truck SUV reviews on YouTube. And today we are in the new 2022 Kia Sportage courtesy of Fred Bean's Kia in McKennaxburg, PA for more information on their inventory. Please feel free to check out the link in the description box below. So I'm in this one today because there's actually a few nice changes for the 2022 Sportage. Not only that, this is a relatively affordable SUV. Of course it comes with America's best warranty being five-year, 60,000 mile bumper to bumper, 10 years, 100,000 miles on the powertrain. That's wonderful. And so with this video, I will be testing out and going over everything about this one from acceleration to braking, steering wheel, ride quality, sound system, exhaust clip, all of that fun stuff. So having set off that, what do you guys say? Let's just go ahead and jump right into it. And as always, let's start with pricing. And so as you can imagine, there are several different trim levels for the 2022 Sportage. First one being the LX, starting at $24,090. Then there is the Nightfall Edition, starting at $28,090. By the way, that Nightfall Edition replaces the S trim level for 2022. Then there is the EX, the one we have today, starting at $28,390. And lastly, the SX Turbo, starting at $33,750. And so as you can imagine, with four trim levels, there are two different engine configurations available for this Sportage. First one is going to belong to the LX, the Nightfall and EX trim levels, and the one we have today, that being a 2.4 liter direct injected inline four cylinder engine, putting out 181 horsepower at 6,000 RPM, 175 pound-feet of torque, coming in at 4,000 RPM, power sent to front wheels or all wheels through a six-speed automatic. Give you MPG numbers coming in at 23 in the city, 30 on the highway for the front wheel drive, 22 city, 26 on the highway for the all-wheel drive, taking regular unleaded fuel. But so then there is one more additional engine configuration belonging of course to the SX Turbo, this one being a two liter turbo charged inline four cylinder, 240 horsepower at 6,000 RPM, 260 pound-feet of torque, coming in at approximately 1,400 RPM, power sent to front wheels or all wheels through a six-speed automatic, giving you MPG numbers 20 in the city, 28 on the highway for the front wheel drive, 19 city, 24 on the highway for the all-wheel drive. But once again, taking regular unleaded fuels, to save you a little bit of money there. But before we do any kind of fun acceleration test here in our Sportage, I did want to mention there are some drive modes and that drive mode button is located directly behind the shifter that will give you normal eco and sport, adjusting things like the shift points, the throttle response, and the steering sensitivity as well. But now having got all of that out of the way, what do you guys say? Let's go ahead and find us straight away here. Let's put it in Sport mode and let's see how quickly we can get our new 2022 Sportage here up to speed. All right, I think we found us straight away. And three, two, one, go. It's not too bad. You're not gonna have any issues in merging onto the highway. That's for sure. And I will say these sport driving mode does make a very substantial difference in both the acceleration and the steering feel as well, actually. So if you were planning on merging onto the highway, I definitely probably would just hit that button, throw it in Sport driving mode and there's gonna be no issues there whatsoever when it comes to the acceleration at least. But to go along with that acceleration, as always you guys know, braking is equally important. And so upfront, you will find 12 inch ventilated front discs for the non-turbo charge engine configuration. But if you go with that SX turbo trim level, that's actually gonna bump that up slightly to 12.6 inch ventilated front discs. And then in the back, 11.9 inch rear discs either way. As far as the braking feel goes, it's actually perfectly fine. I mean, it's maybe slightly on the softer side, but really no issues with the braking feel whatsoever. It's definitely gonna bring you to a stop quite nicely here in this Sportage. As far as suspension and handling goes, upfront you're gonna get them in comparison, strut front suspension, in the back, independent multi-link rear suspension, gas pressure eyes, shock absorbers, as far as ride quality goes, that has been perfectly fine. My short test drive here today, absolutely no issues with the Sportage soaking up Pennsylvania's herd of perfections. We are on a super smooth road right now though, I will say that, but still ride quality is plenty fine there. As far as steering sensitivity goes, like I mentioned to you guys, it is a substantial difference when you put it in different driving mode. So if you put it in that Eco driving mode, it's gonna be super loosey-easy, but if you put it in the sport driving mode, it's definitely gonna give you a much heavier weight instantly pointing you in the direction that you wanna go. So personally for me, I would leave it in the sport driving mode just for the steering feel alone, but it is, like I said, a very noticeable difference between those two, but cabin noise is perfectly fine. Really all I'm getting when it comes to cabin noise is my slider rattling around in the cargo area right now because I put it back there. But other than that, it's actually absorbing a lot of the exterior wood noise very nicely, I will say that. And there is sound absorbing front glass, literally for every single trim level. And I put it that way because you usually don't find that. At this price point, most other SUVs don't give you any of that sound deadening material, but acoustic laminated front glass for all trims is rare. And then you usually get the side glass if you go with luxury manufacturers, but the fact that it's on even the base trim level here of the Sportage is quite impressive. I will say that and you can tell it is a very serene cabin here in the Sportage, which quite honestly surprised me. So that is very, very good when it comes to lack of exterior wind noise. And I'm going 50 miles per hour right now and there's barely any wind noise coming into the cabin. So well done Kia for that, I will say that. But as far as visibility goes, this is a smaller-ish SUV, so there's absolutely no issues whatsoever. When it comes to rear visibility, I can see perfectly fine out of my rear view mirror, but that about rounds out the performance segment of this review, you guys. Let's now go ahead and take a look at the exterior of our brand new 2022 Kia Sportage. All right, so here she is, you guys, the new 2022 Kia Sportage finished in steel gray, in case anybody was curious of our exterior color that we have here on this one today. But let's go ahead and start up front on this one, matte black front grille. We'll come with the LX trim level only, piano black front grille, coming with the Nightfall gloss black front grille, which is what you're currently looking at, of course, with the EX trim level and a gloss black front grille with dark chrome accents then for the SX Turbo, in case anybody was curious. So literally, you could walk on a Kia lot and determine what trim level you were looking at, simply by just looking at the front grille really. But anyways, to the sides then, projector beam halogen headlights coming with the LX Nightfall and EX trim levels. And of course, these headlights will come with the automatic feature, meaning when it starts to get dark at night, those headlights turn on automatically for you there. It's always convenient. LED daytime running lights, also standard and high beam assist coming standard as well. And that's a feature you don't usually find that comes standard. Usually it's with upper trim levels of other manufacturers and sometimes even an option. But essentially what that is, is when you have your high beams on and there's a vehicle coming in the opposite direction, Kia will actually dim down those high beams, down the low beams automatically for you. And then when the vehicle is gone, it's gonna automatically put it back up to high beams. So one of these features that you certainly grow to appreciate when you have it. So it's definitely a very cool thing. I always like to mention it, but projector beam fog lights down below, coming with the Nightfall trim level and up. And then LED headlights with LED fog lights coming with the SX turbo trim level as well. And then in case anybody was curious, down to the corners there, there are actually front air curtains helping direct air around the wheel and tire combination. They will be found just below the fog lights there. So a little better aerodynamics there as well. And again, in case anybody was curious, ground clearance is actually pretty impressive here. 6.4 inches for the front wheel drive and then 6.8 inches up front there for the all-wheel drive configuration. But now, let's go ahead and make our way to the side of the Sportage. All right, so now since we are around to this side, roof rails do come standard with the Nightfall trim level and up, rear privacy glass coming standard across the board for every single trim level. Gotta love that. Of course, you got some all-wheel drive badging found on the front fender. If the supportage that you go with is equipped, of course, when it comes to their side mirrors, they are power adjustable body-colored side mirrors for every single trim level. They will be heated from the Nightfall trim level and up and then power folding with LED integrated turn signals again for the Nightfall trim level and up. Definitely like that. Chrome window surrounds coming with the LX, EX, and SX Turbo. However, of course, with the Nightfall, you're gonna get gloss black window surrounds. That makes sense, I guess. And take a look down at the wheel setup, 17-inch alloys for the LX, 18-inch dark gray alloys for the Nightfall, 18-inch machine-finished alloys for the EX, which of course is what you guys are looking at right now. And 19-inch machine-finished alloys then for the SX Turbo. But that about rounds out the side of this one. Let's go ahead and make our way to the back. And so, now since we are around to the back here, gloss black shark fin antenna found all the way to the top, just below that rear spoiler with the integrated brake light. Just below that rear window wiper, of course, LED tail lights are going to come with the SX Turbo trim level only. Just below it all, you will find a matte black rear bumper or matte black rear diffuser, I guess you could say as well. To the side then, there is a single exhaust outlet tucked away for the LX, Nightfall, and EX trim levels. However, if you were to jump up to the SX Turbo, you're gonna get dual exhaust outlets with chrome tips. But that is not of course the one we have today. But either way, I think you guys know what we have to do next. As always here is that exhaust lip. All right, so now since we are around back of the Sportage here, when it comes to opening that rear liftgate, there is a button on the key fob itself on the side of the key. Of course, that is where all of the buttons are located. I'll get more into that in a second. But also a button on the liftgate itself and there is a button by the driver's side lift knee then as well, but once opened up, cargo capacity comes into 30.7 cubic feet. If that was not enough space, of course the rear seats do fold down, bumping that up to 60.1 cubic feet. And that is a 6040 split. Guess anybody was curious there. You will get some in-floor storage for the non-turbo trim levels along with a spare tire underneath of that cargo floor as well. There is some LED cargo lighting. A lot of times you'll get halogen cargo lighting, but there's actually LED in the Sportage. I thought that was pretty cool. You got some tie-down anchors back there and of course some grocery bag hooks then as well. But then making our way up to the rear leg room, that is going to come in at 38.2 inches. So for reference, I'm even six feet tall. This is me sitting behind my own driving position there. Rear ventilation does come standard across the board for all trim levels. There is a rear center armrest with cup holders, once again for all trim levels as well. Rear USB charging port coming with the EX and SX turbo trim levels. And there's a 12-volt power outlet back there as well, of course, and overall seating was plenty comfortable. For me, certainly had no issues there. Definitely was a big fan of the panoramic moonroof that the rear passengers had a perfect view of that goes all the way into the back then as well. But then making our way to the front seats, manually adjustable cloth seating with the LX trim level. Nightfall trim level is going to add to that syntax upholstery and a 10-way power driver seat with two-way power lumbar. EX trim level that we have today is going to add to that heated front seats. Then if you were to go with the SX turbo, that's going to also give you leather seating, eight-weight power adjustable passenger seat and ventilated front seats as well. And overall seating was plenty comfortable. No issues there whatsoever when it comes to seat comfort. But let's take a look at the steering wheel. It is tilt and telescoping. It is leather wrapped for the nightfall trim level. It will be heated for the SX turbo trim level then. That is pretty cool. And a flat bottom, if you were to go with the nightfall or SX turbo trims, that's how you're going to go ahead and get that. But then taking a look at the startup, let me actually get back to the key here and let me show you guys the key. You do have your key logo on the one side, nothing on the other. All of your buttons essentially located on the side of the key lock unlock and that button to pop the rear hatch and of course the panic button. And it is all keyless entry with a push button start for every single trim level here. So all I'm going to do is simply put my foot on the brake and press that engine start button located just by the driver's right knee there. And so once started up, tachometer is on your left speedometer is on your right. There is a small digital display front and center which can be controlled by using the steering wheel mounted controls on the right side of the steering wheel there. Then we'll give you things like a digital speedometer if you wanted to display that trip A trip B. Of course there is some safety information up there when you need your next oil change. The list goes on outside temperature and so on. So pretty much everything you could possibly want to view up on that digital portion of the gauges there. But then make your way to overall interior quality of panoramic sunroof is going to come with a nightfall trim level and up. So therefore that is why we have it on our EX of course overhead sunglass holder also coming standard. There is an auto dimming rear view mirror with homelink controls for the SX turbo trim level only LED interior lighting for the nightfall trim level and up alloy foot pedals for the nightfall and SX turbo trims metal door scuff plates for the SX turbo wireless phone charger again for the SX turbo trim level. It seems like that is definitely the trim level you want to get when it comes to the extras on the inside at least dual zone climate control for the EX trim level that we have today and the SX turbo trim and overall interior quality wasn't too bad. I do like the soft touch material found just above the passenger side glove box and there is some stitching that goes through that. I like the gloss black accents found on the doors. They could have left that a matte gray but they didn't. They actually chose to finish it in gloss black which I personally prefer. Just in front of the shifter you have dual 12 volt power outlets and a USB charging port. Just beside the shifter you have two cup holders a smidge bit of storage just behind the shifter there as well. And by the way if anybody was curious about that lock button behind the shifter that is going to be your saving grace. If you live in a climate where you get snow simply press that button that is going to lock it into all wheel drive. If you get the all wheel drive version of the Sportage and that is going to enable you to get through any of that snow perfectly fine. So definitely a big fan of that. There is a little bit of storage just behind that as well. Any decent amount of storage actually within the center armrest there too. So overall interior quality is pretty much finished as I would expect it to be. But let's now go ahead and take a look at the infotainment screen. Eight inch color touch screen display does come standard across the board. Bluetooth and audio streaming coming standard with that. Android Auto Apple CarPlay also standard across the board as well gotta love that. Factory navigation system coming with the SX Turbo trim level only although again you don't need it as long as you have a smartphone you got Android Auto Apple CarPlay so there's going to be navigation up there. Anyways climate control settings you can check out up there as well along with your radio information. And by the way when it comes to the sound systems on the Sportage you will get six speakers for the LX Night Fall and EX and then you get eight speaker Harman Cardin sound system for the SX Turbo with 320 watts by the way as well. But anyways we do have that six speaker sound system here with us today. So what do you guys say? Let's go ahead and turn on the radio see what we got playing today and let's test out the clarity of this one. It's okay me personally I would have gone with the SX Turbo because Harman Cardin needs speakers. But anyways it's a six speaker sound system that's pretty much your standard setup for every vehicle out there in this category so it's to be expected but the eight speaker Harman Cardin sound system if you enjoy music it's definitely going to be the one that you're going to want to go with. But last thing I wanted to mention to you guys on that infotainment screen at least is when you do put this one in reverse and I'm going to go ahead and do that you will find a rear view camera letting you know who or what is behind you which is always is going to lead us into safety and so to start IIHS top safety pick that is a heck of a start right there for the Sportage front side side cardin airbags do come standard in the back you're going to have latch AKA lower anchors and tethers to children for the rear car seats rear child door locks tire pressure monitoring system but also standard for every single trim level of the Sportage forward collision avoidance assist with pedestrian detection lane keep assist lane departure warning driver attention warning then as well and then if you were to go with the nightfall edition and up you will also get a blind spot monitoring system with rear cross traffic alert then the SX turbo was going to add to that in adaptive cruise control system with stop and go and so ultimately when it comes to my final thoughts here of the Sportage this is a relatively smooth ride like I was saying a very quiet cabin which very much so surprised me for the price point of this SUV that's why it surprised me so kind of luxury like when it comes to lack of exterior noises coming into the cabin I'll say that you also have America's best warranty which of course is an amazing selling point in itself if you drive less than 10,000 miles a year you have the transmission and the engine and things like that warranty for 10 years which at that point you're gonna want a new vehicle anyway so that is pretty remarkable not the best fuel efficiency I gotta be honest when you're comparing it to the other competitors in its class so for fuel efficiency could be a little bit better but it's fine but really the fuel efficiency is really my only constructive criticism for this one maybe a little better interior quality as well there are some hard plastics here and there other than that this is a very solid pick here in this segment let me know what you guys think of the new 2022 Sportage in the comment section below that is about it for this one you guys thank you so much for watching feel free to follow me on social media if you wanted to see what's coming next on the channel before it actually gets to YouTube be sure to hit the subscribe and the bell notification button if you're into new car reviews that is what we do here on this channel after all do appreciate you guys watching more than you know when I will see you guys all in the next video stay gold