Kia Sorento Models and Sorento History

In 2003, Kia introduced the brand new Sorento SUV as the bigger alternative to their smaller Sportage SUV. It was designed to compete with other SUVs while also touting off-road capabilities at a budget price tag. The 2004 Sorento introduced the LX sports trim, which offered a number of sportier featured including alloy wheels and various interior and exterior upgrades. In 2005, Kia offered blacked-out headlights for the LX trim and replaced updated the four-speed automatic transmission to a five-speed one. In 2006, Kia made alloy wheels the standard feature across all trims. The 2007 Sorento offered a beefier V6 engine, and featured new interior and exterior improvements as well as various safety enhancements. In 2008, Kia offered a faster 3.3-liter, 242 horsepower V6 engine for the base and LX trims. The 2009 Sorento remained unchanged from the previous model year. In 2011, Kia redesigned the Sorento; it was now offered with a third-row, various interior and exterior improvements and a more powerful engine. Minor upgrades were made to the 2012 model year, with the most notable being Kia's "Uvo" voice-activated control interface. In 2013, a few minor updates to trim levels were made. The 2014 model year saw upgrades to the engine, and various interior and exterior upgrades made.