Sneak Peek: The Daring Design of the Upcoming Kia Sportage!

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The full change of the Sportage, originally set for release in the first half of 2021,

(NQ5) has now been postponed to around September this year.

Originally, this vehicle was supposed to be unveiled before the Kia K8,

but for some internal reason, its release has been delayed, though the specifics remain unclear.

Thanks to this delay, we have seen more of the new Sportage vehicles captured since last year,

and we have recently witnessed tests of the new Sportage vehicles.

The sleek headlamps

The new Sportage full change features a sleek DRL, similar to the existing K5 and Carnival.

This trend suggests that Kia has been focusing heavily on DRL design,

as they likely consider the headlamp and DRL design crucial for the vehicle's first impression.

(Headlamp Design)

The differences between the upper and lower trims' headlamps

We could preview the distinctions between the upper and lower trims through the headlamp design.

The right headlamp design features horizontal turn signal lights, while the left headlamp showcases a bulb format.

The lights illuminating the vehicle's view appear to use reflective light on the left and LED on the right.

The left side shows the lower trim, while the right side displays the upper trim.

(Left: Lower Trim, Right: Upper Trim)

The difference between the short body and long body was noticeable.

The short body vehicle is for overseas export, not for domestic sales. Therefore, it lacks the reflective light panel located at the bottom of the bumper, and the turn signal is positioned lower on the bumper. In contrast, the long body vehicle, expected to be sold domestically, features the reflective light panel at the bottom of the bumper.

Upon closer inspection, we can also see that it incorporates a reverse guide lamp.

The turn signals caught our attention.

Most importantly, the domestic long body vehicle applies turn signals at the bottom of the tail lamp.

The design of the turn signals uses the same material as the EV6's turn signals, which has drawn significant interest.

This new design elevates the previous turn signal design and harmonizes well with the overall vehicle exterior, which is a relief.

However, it's disappointing to see that the new Sportage also features a noticeable gap in trim levels.

During the K5 launch, the vehicle's pillars featured a matte finish instead of a glossy one, which became a topic of discussion for a while.

However, among the numerous test vehicles of the new Sportage, many of them displayed a matte finish rather than a glossy one.

While there is hope that specific options will allow for a glossy finish instead of a matte one,

it seems they will not make it impossible to choose, as was the case with the K5.

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