2019 Hyundai Santa Fe vs Kia Sorento - Which one we prefer?

The Santa Fe is an important product for Hyundai in the Philippines market, as it’s capable enough to give a good fight to the rivals in the category. Considering the importance of the Santa Fe, Hyundai brought in some new changes to make sure that the 2019 model is more capable and ahead in the game. The competition is growing day by day, filled with some very good entrants like the Kia Sorento. The Sorento falls in the same 7-seater SUV category. So let’s find out more about both these cars.

Exterior

This is the part where Hyundai has really worked a lot. Borrowing design cues from the Hyundai Kona, the 2019 Santa Fe features the new separated headlight design scheme. It has very sleek and stylish LED daytime running lights with incorporated turn signals. These two are joined together by beautiful chrome slat that merges into them perfectly. The LED headlights are situated in the bumper along with the LED fog lamps. The cascading front grille is quite imposing and is based on Hyundai’s new family identity. The rear end of the new Santa Fe features two-piece combination LED tail lights that are quite large and cover quite an area of the boot lid to suit the overall dimensions of the car. There is also a roof-mounted spoiler for that extra sporty touch. Overall the 2019 Santa Fe is definitely a head-turner and much better looking than its old model.

The Kia Sorento features a conventional headlight setup. It has got projector headlamps that are sleek and manage to give a mean and angry look to the car. Combine them, along with the LED daytime running lights, with the nicely-designed front grille and the overall picture turns out to be quite well than expected. Moving towards the back of the Sorento, you will be greeted by a set of large LED tail lights as well as a roof-mounted spoiler. Undoubtedly, Kia has done a good job in making the Sorento a modern-day elegant SUV.

Interior

The cabin of the 2019 Santa Fe is quite luxurious and well-thought. The color scheme used just fits the ambiance perfectly. The seats are well padded and provide a good amount of comfort and support. There is ample space even for tall passengers in the second row. The big windows make the cabin appear much roomier and the passengers at the rear wouldn’t feel claustrophobic. We like the 7-inch touchscreen display that sits vertically on the center of the dashboard. It features Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

Kia has opted for a black and grey color combination for the interior of the Sorento. It really feels nice and sporty. You will notice that how smartly Kia has provided all the switches and buttons with a red background light. This really pops out in a dark cabin like this. We like the way the seats are contoured to accommodate you perfectly. The rear seats are also very comfortable. We also see air-con vents and power sockets for the rear passengers.

Engine

Talking about the 2019 Santa Fe specs, we get to see a familiar 2.2-litre turbocharged diesel engine that develops 200 PS of max power and peak torque of 441 Nm kicks in at just 1750 to 2750 revs. This engine is mated to a new 8-speed automatic transmission which replaces the old 6-speed unit.

Coming down to Kia Sorento specs, the engine is similar to that of the Santa Fe; it’s a 2.2-litre diesel mill which has been tuned to produce 200 PS of power and 422 Nm of torque at 1800 to 2500 revs. These figures are supported by a smooth and fast 8-speed automatic transmission.

Price and variants

If we look at the Hyundai Santa Fe variants, we’ll find that there is only a single option available - a 2.2 CRDi GLS. Both the Santa Fe and the Sorento are very similar to each other in terms of technical specifications, however, they do differ when it comes to price. The 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe price has been set at Php 2,338,000 which might turn off many people, whereas the Kia Sorento price is quite less at Php 1.9 million and it is available in only a single variant - 2.2L 4X2 DX.