choice/experience/advice - Kuga vs Sportage

castle96

sort of narrowed new car down to 2016/17/18 Basic model petrol. Auto/manual not really important. Short trips/town. Ease of entry important (not sat in Kia yet). I am 6'6". Both are (to me) fairly small. 7 yr warranty good with Kia. Loads of each locally.

Anyone with any ideas or experience please. Thanks

gord115

I think Kias usually do better in the reliability surveys than Ford,and some fords rust.
But I think servicing is dearer on the Kia and you'll really need to have it serviced meticulously to keep 7 year warranty.

Me I would defo have the Kia

EssexExile

I've used the Ford Escape which is the American version of the Kuga. It was fine for getting in & out of, I'm over 6' with a bad back so that's important to me too.

I usually spend weeks deciding which car to go for, get a short list, then find out as soon as I sit in them that most on the shortlist are no good for me.

daveyjp

Avoid any Ford with the Powershift dual clutch autobox.

Gloomendoom

We had a previous gen Sportage. I'd recommend joining this forum and asking for advice there...

https://www.kiaownersclub.co.uk/forum/66-sportage-2016/

Arklight

I had a Sportage in the US as a hire car, obviously petrol. It was nice to drive but completely gutless, so check the spec.

owen_money

The KIA for me as its not a Ford, which are boring and more common, I'm not one to follow the herd, soz

nicter

We spent weeks test driving various 4x4s.Hubby is 6ft 5 so we were limited by headroom in some and some were downright uncomfortable !
we finally opted for the Kia sportage and couldn't be happier
Its really comfy , easy to get in and out of and unlike some we tried we dont have to shout at each other to be heard when travelling

walwyn1978

Test drove both albeit diesel not petrol. Bought a Sportage. Better warranty, slightly more visibility in the rear. Kuga seemed to have more ‘toys’ on the base spec if that’s your thing.

Gloomendoom

owen_money wrote: »

The KIA for me as its not a Ford, which are boring and more common, I'm not one to follow the herd, soz

That was one of the reasons my wife bought her 3rd gen Sportage.

When it came time to change she didn't replace it with the current model because she reckoned Sportages had become a far too common sight on the roads. She isn't one to follow the herd either.

JP1978

Had a couple of the Sportage's as hire cars - both 2WD and 4WD variants (not as you are interested in that) and both petrol and diesel.

Found the petrol a little underpowered for size of car (I think it was an auto though that may have sapped some power).

However, was a nice place to be in - easier to get in and out (I am 6 foot plus) and 20 stone.

I know you didnt mention it but have you looked at one of the last Skoda Yeti's? That was my previous car - again, easy to get into and loads of headroom beyond its smaller size. Been less of an SUV style than the Kuga and Sportage, they (especially the 4WD variant) handles really well on the twisties - certainly more so than the Kia's that I drove. Appreciate that may not be an issue for you though.