Overview & Reviews

Fresh from last year's redesign, the Kia Sorento gains a few more upgrades for 2012. Topping the list is a new, optional four-cylinder engine with direct fuel injection for more power and better fuel economy. Also new are a ventilated driver seat, stain-resistant seat fabric and Kia's "Uvo" voice-activated control interface.

• Long warranty.
• Optional fuel-efficient four-cylinder
• Plentiful standard features
• Decent-size third-row seat, sporty handling
• Optional punchy V6

• Five-passenger model lacks a sliding second-row seat.
• Suspension tuning is a bit too firm

User Reviews:

Showing 11 through 20 of 73.00

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  Disappointed - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By brianandr - September 17 - 4:23 am

  One of the big selling points for me was the HWY MPG. It has been a BIG disappointment so far. I have put 6000 miles on it and have yet to get better than 24MPG. KIA states 32...HOW?! My last 3 Nissans(Rogue, Versa, 350Z) all got at or above what the factory claimed, including the Rogue(which I should have gone with again). I love that it has plenty of room and comes at a great value but if I had known I wasnt even going to get in the ballpark of their HWY MPG, I would have gone a different route.

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  POOR gas mileage - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By horse8 - September 15 - 10:02 pm

  Excuses by Bairl Kia in Pgh for poor gas mileage: the snow, the hills, and the government sets those gas mileage ranges! I cannot get over 20mpg on the highway going 70mph. I bought this vehicle for the listed gas mileage. Not even close! The ride is hard. It has the bells and whistles but I would have liked what was advertised by Kia. I am disappointed.

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  Good SUV - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By jrgleason2003 - August 11 - 9:19 am

  I purchased the LX with the GDI Engine. So far I am impressed with the way it drives. I had a 2010 ford escape that was plagued with problems. Leith Kia in wendell, NC really worked with me to get me into a 2012 sorento. It really drives smooth, Im not sure why they say its a firm ride...has anyone rode in a civic? Thats a firm ride. I got the LX w/convenience pkg for a little over 23K. My only complaint is that at low speeds (idle or under 5mph), the GDI engine seems a little "rough". However it does accelerate VERY smoothly (smoothest tranny Ive felt) and gets up to speed adequately. The GDI engine wont blow your hair back or anything, but there is a little extra pep to get into traffic

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  Rear Passenger Door Wont Open - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By annoyed7 - July 2 - 10:26 pm

  Purchased 2012 Sorrento Ex in June and 3 days after purchasing it we had problems with the rear passenger door. It would either stick or would not open at all. We had it at the dealership numerous times to try and fix it. The last time we had taken it in they said they were going to order a whole new door panel. We had to wait weeks for it to arrive from Korea. It was finally fixed or so we thought. About 8 weeks later the door will still not open. Presently the door has not opened for close to two weeks now. We have 3 children and feel this suv is not safe to drive. Trying to get Kia to help is very difficult. It is usually days to get a response from them.

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  32 MPG my [non-permissible content removed] - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By mjwitz - June 4 - 11:47 am

  Let me start out by saying this is a nice SUV. Quiet smooth ride. Decent power with the 4 banger. The brakes are solid. I did not get 4WD to get better mileage. If I had it to do over I would have gotten the 4WD because the mileage sucks anyway. I do combined driving and get 23.5 MPG. No where near the stated 32.

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  V6 verses 4cyl AWD - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By trippingman - April 3 - 8:20 pm

  We previously owned a 2011 Sorrento EX V6 AWD. I thought moving to the 2012 EX AWD with a 4 cylinder would help with gas mileage. However, it didnt turn out that way. While we did get some improvement (apprx. 3mpg for both city and highway) it was not significant enough to give up the 6 cylinder. Fortunately for us we got such a good trade in value on the previous Kia, that we actually lowered our payment. The cars were both EX AWD models. The 2011 had a sunroof but no navigation system or premium sound. The 2012 does not have a sunroof but does have the premium sound and navigation system. Overall, we prefer the 2012. We think it rides smoother with a less jarring ride over road bumps.

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  Great value, overacheving car - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By pmfarmer - December 23 - 4:30 pm

  Purchased a 2012 Kia Sorento. I couldn’t be happier with the purchase. I currently have 8,000 miles on it. Drives great in any weather, has all the extras(heated seats, auto dimming mirror, back up camera) without paying the luxury car prices. Don’t waste your time with the 4-cylinder. I have the v6 AWD, it has excellent power when you need it, even when weighed down with luggage ect, for a week long trip for 4 adults. I have expierienced 23-24 mpg for the city and 25-26 mpg on the highway. Our times at the kia service center for oil changes has been great. I’ve had great luck with asian vehicles and the 2012 kia sorento has only set my standards higher.

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  Gas Mileage - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By chupacabra1 - August 23 - 12:22 pm

  Got my Sorento 4 cyl GDI eng 4 months ago and I have around 3800 miles on it. I purchase the vehicle for fuel effeciency. Well after driving almost 4000 miles I can see that what Kia advertise is not really true.. most of my driving is on highway I keep the speed from 65 to 70 on flat road and the best I can get is 24 to 25 MPG on the hwy... First time trusting KIA and last... Im going back to Totoya after I drive this vehicle for another 12 months. I went to the dealer and I was told that "I will get this kind of miliage after the engine get some more additional miles".... What 30,000 miles????

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  Really Enjoying it - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By carconnoisseur - August 18 - 3:57 pm

  We have now had our 2012 Sorento for 2 months/3800mi and we are loving it. We sold our CRV and upgraded to the Kia. The Kia seems much better made and the interior is vastly more comfortable. Most notable is the interior is much quieter. The MPG for us has been very good, with mostly highway I calculated 31.5 mpg, almost exactly what it should be. Also over the CRV you get a direct injection engine and a six-speed transmission. And do not forget the Stellar Warranty!

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  2012 KIA Sorento LX AWD - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By lamplighter30 - December 3 - 5:25 am

  Due to a blown headgasket in my 02 Liberty I had to move up my plans to buy a new car. I had been looking at the 12 Sorento for a few months. I am a very tall person, no way I can fit in a sedan, I have more than enough leg and head room, seats are very comfortable, excellent visibility front and back, 2.4 GDI engine, more than enough pickup to be able to merge into highway traffic. Have to wait for the winter to be able to evaluate the AWD system. Already took a 150 mile trip, estimated 26 mpg city/highway driving. Still too early to do a detailed evaluation, Ill do another post if anything changes.