The Sorento is Kia’s long-running midsize SUV, and the automaker has expanded its offerings over the years to include hybrid variants. The 2025 Sorento Hybrid offers a smooth powertrain, excellent fuel economy, and an interior that would look at home in a much more expensive vehicle.
2025 Kia Sorento Hybrid Pricing, Specs, and Release Date
- What’s New for the 2025 Kia Sorento Hybrid
- Design
- Powertrain
- Interior
- Technology
- Safety
- Pricing and Release Date
- Further Research
What’s New for the 2025 Kia Sorento Hybrid
Kia gave the Sorento Hybrid a range of updates for the 2025 model year, including revised interior and exterior styling, a new infotainment system, and a larger touchscreen. The changes add to an already value-forward package, making the Sorento Hybrid one of the better picks in its class.
Design
The 2025 Sorento Hybrid sports a more grown-up look than its predecessor, borrowing some styling elements from Kia’s flagship Telluride SUV. It features the brand’s signature “tiger nose” grille, and top trims add tasteful chrome accents across the exterior. Some variants also get orange LED daytime running lights (DRLs), giving the SUV a unique look on the road.
Powertrain
Kia offers a single powertrain for the 2025 Sorento Hybrid. It includes a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine and one electric motor making a combined 227 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. That output reaches the front or all four wheels (FWD or AWD) through a six-speed automatic transmission. Kia’s choice to use a “real” six-speed gearbox instead of a continuously variable unit (CVT) makes the Sorento Hybrid more responsive and engaging to drive, and it helps prevent some of the engine droning and noise that often comes with CVTs.
Interior
The Sorento Hybrid comes with second-row captain’s chairs and seating for six people. Interior finishes and materials are nicer than they have to be for the price, and the synthetic leather upholstery feels more premium than expected. Heated, power-adjustable front seats are standard, and Kia offers perforated leather upholstery in higher trims. Ventilated front seats and heated rear outboard seats are also available. The first and second rows offer good space and comfortable seating, but the third row is tight and difficult to access for adults.
Technology
The 2025 Sorento Hybrid gets a 12.3-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, navigation, six speakers, wireless charging, and more. More expensive trims add a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster and a 12-speaker Bose audio system. Kia’s infotainment interface lacks much of the flash of some competing systems, but it’s responsive, easy to use, and less distracting than many others.
Safety
The 2025 Sorento earned a Top Safety Pick award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), an accolade which extends to the hybrid model. Standard safety tech includes blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keep assist, lane-departure alert, rear-seat alert, traffic-sign recognition, forward collision warning, driver-attention warning, and more.
Pricing and Release Date
As of the time of this writing, the 2025 Kia Sorento Hybrid starts at $38,690, while the range-topping SX Prestige model costs $46,890 to start. Both come with a $1,415 destination charge.