Kia Sorento Facelift Revealed With New EV9-Inspired Face

Here's your first look at the face-lifted fourth generation Kia Sorento mid-sized SUV.

Following up from the debut of its wildly-styled new Hyundai Sante Fe cousin, the fourth generation Kia Sorento has undergone a mid-life refresh. Released earlier today by the automaker were these images that show substantial visual changes inside and out.

Starting with the exterior, the refreshed Sorento now rocks a set of slimmer, vertically-stacked LED headlights to flank the Kia brand’s signature tiger nose grille. The front bumper has also been restyled with cleaner lines whilst the bonnet now sits flush with the new nose.

Changes up front are the most visible as it sports similar looks as the EV9 through new headlights,  bumper, and bonnet. At the rear, changes are lighter with updated taillights and bumper.

Overall, it’s plain to see that much of these changes were inspired from the Kia EV9 flagship, and aligns with Kia’s recent nip-tuck efforts as seen in the Picanto supermini. It’s safe to say that we can expect more Kia models in the near future to adopt similar styling cues.

Back to the changes and, whilst the bulk of the exterior is largely carried over, some changes were also done with the near bumper, Kia brand emblems, as well as updated LED taillights that now feature connected clusters. New too are the wheels design, plus a bevy of a new exterior hues.

On board, the cabin has also been refreshed with a new curved dual-display, updated climate vents and control, plus a selection of new upholstery colour combinations.

On board, the cabin design sees a new, simplified dashboard design with cleaner lines. There’s now a new dual 12.3-inch curved panoramic display panel housing both the instrumentation and infotainment that’s been integrated with Kia’s latest software.

Other visible changes include te slimmer new air-cond vents, new ambient lighting stripe, revised climate control interface mirroring the EV6’s, and a new fingerprint authentication system on the entre console that enables drivers to start the car, enter valet mode, and make secure payments.

Capping off the interior changes are several new upholstery colour combination choices.

More details about the refreshed Kia Sorento are expected to be announced sometime next month when it goes on sale in South Korea.

Like the now outgoing pre-facelift model which, incidentally, was just launched locally earlier this year, petrol, diesel, and hybrid powertrain choices will be available, the latter also available in either 2WD or AWD setups too.

Kia is set to announce pricing and availability for the refresh Sorento in its South Korean home market sometime next month. Detailed specifications are expected to surface by said time too. As for overseas markets, the refreshed Kia Sorento is set to hit the North American market as a 2025 model instead.

Current (pre-facelift) Kia Sorento as seen during its Malaysian launch earlier this year.

Presently, the pre-facelift Kia Sorento is available through distributors BAuto (Bermaz Auto) across three guises priced between RM211,498 and RM255,228. What do you folks think of the refreshed Kia Sorento then? Hit the comments below with your thoughts on the matter…