Next Generation Kia Sportage Will Only Be Available Hybrid Variants,paling In 2027

Kia Sportage (source: Kia Global)

JAKARTA - The automotive manufacturer from South Korea, Kia will introduce the latest generation Sports with significant changes. In addition, the manufacturer will also provide a hybrid variant of the SUV in the future.

Launching from The Korean Car Blog, Wednesday, March 26, this sixth generation Sportage with the internal code NQ6 will mark its debut in 2027 and offer two driving options, namely Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) and Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV).

This step was taken after Kia learned that the demand for electric vehicles (EVs) was slowing, thus making the brand switch to bring more hybrid vehicles that were on the rise.

In addition, hybrid vehicles are one of the efficient alternative options for emitting lower emissions.

Meanwhile, demand for electric vehicles globally stagnates due to several factors consisting of higher prices, challenges regarding the availability of charging infrastructure, and inefficient maintenance costs such as combustion cars (ICE).

Although the details provided are still minimal, next-generation Sports is expected to provide a significant improvement in terms of fuel performance and efficiency.

Kia intends to increase vehicle output by increasing the battery capacity and power of electric motors both in the AV and PHEV variants.

Meanwhile, for the PHEV variant, it is hoped that it can reach a distance of 100 km with pure electricity, thus offering greater flexibility to drive in urban and highways.

Currently, Kia Sportage is offered in pure and hybrid gasoline variants globally. For gasoline, the car has a variety of engine configurations such as 1.6 liters, 2.0 liters, up to 2.5 liters.

Hybrid variants are offered only with 1.6 liters of engine with more varied technology, there are 48V millid-hybrids with a power of 148 hp and 250 Nm torque, then HEV type with a gain of 227 hp and 350 Nm torque.

Not only that, the latest generation of Sportage also has the PHEV variant with a power of 261 hp and 350 Nm torque plus a 13.8 kWh battery, which allows it to run with pure power up to 54 km.