Kia Sportage 2011 UAE launch at new Dubai showroom

Kia Sportage 2011 UAE launch at new Dubai showroom


Technically, the 2011 Kia Sportage has been on sale in the UAE for more than a month now. However, the local dealer for Kia, Al Majid Motors, chose to hold the “official” launch of the new Sportage alongside the opening of their brand new showroom in Deira, Dubai.

The new showroom is the third one in Dubai for Kia, showing the growth of the brand in this country even during a recession. For the opening, the showroom was filled with Sportages only, with a bunch more Sportages parked outside to let the public know what’s going on.

The 2011 Kia Sportage will be available in various trim levels. The base model gets a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder with a choice of front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive, with standard power accessories, cloth seats, 6-speaker CD/MP3 player, USB port, ABS and one airbag. The higher models, with a 2.4-litre 4-cylinder, come only in all-wheel-drive form, and in top trim, features include a panoramic glass roof, leather, starter button, two airbags, cargo-area cover, stability control, rear camera with sensors and more.

Our close look at the Sportage revealed a very attractive vehicle that should sell even better than the previous version. Trimmed externally with chrome and LED lighting strips, it looks a bit like a tall hatchback due to the lack of side-windows in the rear quarters. But it stands out thanks to a low roofline and high shoulders. That low roofline translates to limited headroom for tall people, as our photographer Faisal kept complaining about, expecially in models with the glass roof. However, legroom is excellent both front and rear although the industry-standard hard-plastic interior is a let-down. The higher models at least get door-armrest padding.

Prices start at Dhs 63000 for the base 2.0-litre model and Dhs 68,000 for the base 2.4-litre version, topping out at a competitive Dhs 81,000. Certain showrooms in the UAE are also quoting the top version at Dhs 91,000.

Photos by Faisal Khatib.

See full UAE pricing and GCC specs in the Kia Sportage buyer guide.

What do you think?

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Comments

  1. man my office reciptionist has this car since last month almost , your late on news these days

  2. oh sorry did not read it properly my mistake appologies

  3. There should have been a 2WD option with the 2.4L. AWD isnt of much use in this car (on these roads) and makes the engine use up more fuel. Love the bold styling though. It looks a little less feminine than some other compact crossovers.

  4. i have have some confusion about the price…i checked in auh showroom they said the full option is 81000…when i checked in shj showroom they said its 91000 for full option and 81000 is for no.2 model…then again my friend checked in RAK showroom they gave him a different price…so now we are totally confused…

  5. Author

    I am confused too. Other mags report a 91k model. I asked a manager at the event and he said 81k.

  6. the difference they said in shj showroom is leather and xenon in 91K model…no.2 model everything is there except those 2 features…

  7. Outside is really cool. But from the interior pics, I don’t find the dashboard area all that great. and to be honest, they should have worked a bit harder atleast for the steering wheel.

  8. ^ True. The steering wheel looks very cheap with that grey monotone hard plastic. I bet it feels horrible to hold as well. It looks (and will feel) a lot better with the black leather that is stitched on to it in higher models. I dont get why anyone would choose a grey dash in such a beutiful vehicle. Black would have looked so much more upmarket even if it was hard plastic.

  9. Full option 90K with leather, LED lights, ESP
    83K with sunroof, rear camera, auto A/C.

    Both 2.4L…might go for a test drive tomorrow with a friend.

  10. with such rates; this car will not be able to compete with the CRV, RAV 4 and CX7.
    These cars are much better and worth to pay a bit more; KIA has to price around 30% lower to be convincing.

    The interior is very cheap. The rims are nice.

  11. Totally agree with Hassan, They need to keep the prices a bit lower, or else this Sportage might have to face the fate as the Mohave. Mohave too was all in the house vehicle, but pple didnt bother because of the pricing.

  12. Is it worth buying….what are your views?

  13. Author

    It is worth buying compared to other crossovers in its class, based on price and features. Personally I am not a fan of hard-plastic interiors and small engines in big cars.

  14. no, for me it’s better to buy CRV or ASX for simple reason these two are made in japan.

  15. myhusband and i just bought one for 25,000 nice rides nice drives nice good warrenty just anice vechile alltheway around

  16. I HAVE KIA SPORTAGE MODEL 2003, CAN U PROVIDE ME REVERSE GEAR SWITCH TO MAKE ON BACK LIGHT WAITING

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