Road Test
ACROSS THE POND
I drove The Sun’s favourite family car in America – can you spot how it’s different and in some ways even better?
FEW car manufacturers have transformed their brand like Kia.
Barely 15 years ago the Korean firm was turning out cars that few people wanted. Today, it can't build cars like the Kia Sportage quickly enough.
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Part of that is value for money, but a larger part is the fact they got the bloke that designed cars like the Audi TT to do Kias instead.
The latest Sportage seems to be turning heads too.
At The Sun's recent Motor Awards it scooped TWO awards - Family Car of The Year chosen by us and the Reader Choice award chosen by your good selves.
But all Sportages are not equal, as I found out on a recent trip to America.
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For starters, the Sportage we get in Britain comes from Slovakia, but the one in the US is built on home soil.
Then - like many things in the US - their Sportage is bigger.
Specifically, it is getting on for 10cm longer between its front and rear wheels.
That doesn't sound like much (and adults will sit in the back of a UK Sportage no problem) but the extra rear space comes in handy with small kids and their bulky seats to get in and out.
The US version also has a slightly larger boot - another plus when you're a family of five.
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The US car's extra length also means a differently-styled side profile and rear end, but whether or not you prefer those is up to you.
Why go to the trouble of building two different cars? Well, Kia chose to make a smaller Sportage for us Brits because they felt it better suited our roads and car park spaces.
To be honest, the American Sportage didn't at any point feel cumbersome and would never feel daunting to drive in the UK.
Our car was the non plug-in hybrid, which was every bit as smooth, quiet and generally relaxing to drive as the UK hybrid is.
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OK, so there are family SUVs that feel more agile, but I'd wager most people will prefer the Sportage's more comfortable approach.
The US-built car felt no worse in terms of quality and you get the same superb touchscreen infotainment system to play with too.
So the American Sportage is just as nice to drive, has the same high-quality interior and lovely infotainment, but is usefully bigger.
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And, because it's built in the US, it's cheaper to buy there than it is here too.
Still, whichever side of the Atlantic you live, you can rest assured you won't be disappointed.
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