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Kia gives the New England Motor Press Affiliation with incredible help. Each Kia we check appears to knock our socks off, and this new 2026 Sportage X-Professional Status was no exception. The Sportage is Kia’s mannequin competing within the RAV4, CR-V, Forester, and Bronco Sport (form of) phase, one that’s the largest total in America for personal-use patrons. As nice as this Kia Sportage is by itself, we discovered ourselves asking the query, “Is that this Sportage X-Professional Status a greater crossover than the Subaru Forester Restricted or Wilderness?” Let’s evaluate and distinction these two nice selections, with an emphasis what issues the Kia can supply that the Forester can’t.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – What Is It?
The Sportage is Kia’s five-passenger crossover SUV, which competes with the RAV4, CR-V, and Forester. Some would come with the Ford Bronco Sport on this grouping. The Professional-X Status is a really attention-grabbing trim that mixes some incredible creature comforts with a wholesome dose of enhanced winter functionality and the wanted tires and clearance to benefit from the automobile off pavement.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – What Isn’t It?
We added this part to present some readability to the X-Professional Status trim. The Sportage X-Professional Status isn’t a hard-edged off-roader just like the Ford Bronco Sport Badlands Sasquatch is. Neither is it actually a direct competitor to the Wilderness model of the Forester. It positively has some parts of what these specialty trims present, however in our opinion, Kia made a sensible option to cease with the off-road package at exactly the precise degree of substances. It’s not overdone, to say it plainly.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – What Does It Value? What’s Its Worth?
The Sportage we examined had a worth of $41,920, together with Kia’s Vacation spot Payment, however not together with Supplier Doc Charges. That is a particularly well-equipped trim, and the worth is not any shock to us. That is the place autos with this degree of content material land on the worth spectrum heading into 2026.
We really feel that the Kia Sportage affords an unusually excessive worth. The reason being that it has a guaranty for its first proprietor that spans 10 years / 100,000 miles. That’s about 40% longer than Subaru’s, Ford’s, and Toyota’s. That is one goal instance of how the Kia Sportage stands forward of Subaru’s Forester.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – What Powers It and Why Does It Matter?
The Sportage we’re reviewing is provided with a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder engine. No turbo, and no hybrid system, although different Sportage trims supply each. We had been ready to be underwhelmed by this engine, simply as Subaru’s 2.5-liter engine is taken into account “boring” by many reviewers. Nonetheless, we discovered it passable in most conditions. One huge motive is that Kia correctly makes use of an 8-speed geared transmission, and never a droning and moaning CVT. Moreover, in Sport Mode, the Sportage X-Professional Status was downright peppy. We felt this automobile would fulfill nearly all of patrons’ energy necessities. Would we’ve got most popular one other 100 lb-ft of torque, like that provided by Kia’s Sportage Hybrid trims? Sure.
We noticed a good 29.1 MPG over about 300 miles of freeway, suburban, and rural off-pavement driving. Included in that was about 100 miles of back-country mountain roads in Sport Mode.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – The Drive
We discovered the Sportage X-Professional very satisfying and satisfying to drive in virtually each scenario. Round city, it’s not precisely snappy, however I by no means felt just like the Sportage wanted to be faster in native driving. Within the mountains, this Sportage would have benefitted from the up-powered and far more environment friendly turbocharged hybrid powertrain Kia affords on some trims. Paddle shifters could have made the powertrain’s efforts a bit extra predictable and controllable.
This trim has all-terrain tires, they usually had been incredible. Even with the added sidewall, the Sportage handles nice. The suspension has lots of journey, too. We beloved driving this Kia on grime roads. The enjoyable was not restricted to simply gradual off-pavement runs. On downhill sweepers on paved mountain roads at round 50 MPH, the Sportage X-Professional can carve a nook predictably, and we had lots of probabilities to push the Sportage (safely) into some tight turns. It’s a rewarding crossover to drive assertively.
There are devoted Sport, Snow, Mud, and Sand Modes within the X-Professional. Kia even added a downhill descent button, which we love. We use that in winter when driving to our cabin on a regular basis, and it helps guarantee a secure descent of slippery hills. For almost all patrons, these modes and the downhill help can be straightforward to make use of and supply loads of functionality. Can Subaru’s twin X-Mode do extra in excessive conditions? Possibly. A aspect by aspect winter extremes check can be very attention-grabbing to see.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – Uncommon and Notable Gear
The X-Professional Status has 17-inch tires with BFG Path-Terrain T/A tires. These are incredible, and we’d purchase this trim simply to keep away from the ridiculous low-profile large-diameter tires so many prime trims include. These add sturdiness, traction, and winter functionality, and we discovered no draw back. They didn’t howl, and we couldn’t hear them when driving on the town, solely on completely easy freeway pavement are you able to detect a really delicate hum from the BFGs.. You will get tires like these on a Forester, however provided that you decide into the Wilderness trim. An enormous plus of tires with this design and sizing is that you could possibly air down a couple of PSI to make grime roads and trails really feel much more easy.
The X-Professional Status additionally has a fully-heated windshield with a wire mesh heating ingredient over its entirety. It will make icy and snowy days as much as the ski areas safer and extra satisfying, for the reason that wipers received’t find yourself caked in frozen slush. Nonetheless, you may see the mesh at night time. We’d counsel a night check drive to make sure you prefer it. Over time, we grew to become accustomed to it. We’ve by no means examined a Subaru of any mannequin or trim with this characteristic (and not one of the six my household has owned had it). Solely expensive European manufacturers have provided this on autos we’ve got beforehand examined.
The X-Professional Status additionally has a spare tire, a big glass moonroof with an influence sunshade, heated and cooled seats with a number of settings, a heated steering wheel, additionally with two settings, and essentially the most snug energy entrance seats within the class.
In case you plan off-pavement adventures, Kia affords a entrance skid plate. I’d add that and have it put in on day one. It’s simply $240.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – What’s Lacking?
There was no center-mounted energy knob, and there aren’t any paddle shifters within the Sportage X-Professional Status we examined.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – Off-Pavement Efficiency
We don’t want to faux that we “took this automobile off-roading.” We didn’t, and it’s not actually arrange for true off-roading. We did drive over quite a bit unmaintained and poorly maintained grime roads in New Hampshire. Right here, the Sportage X-Professional shines. It’s good. Even with out airing down, the Sportage X-Professional handles washboard gravel sections with zero rattles. It felt easy over these roads in all the precise methods. Up steep and free sections of grime and rock roads, the X-Professional by no means spun its wheels, and was secure and confidence-inspiring. We used the Downhill Help and it labored very intuitively. It could be an enormous plus in winter in case you have a steep driveway or entry street to your property.
Throughout our testing, we had been pleased to seek out that the BFG tires didn’t retain stones after which fling them into the wheel wells, one thing some all-terrain tires we’ve examined have carried out.
2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status – Conclusion
Most manufacturers now supply a trim with all-terrain tires and a little bit of off-pavement gear. The Sportage X-Professional appeared to supply the best degree for what we expect a crossover must be used for. It’s not pretending to be a Wrangler Rubicon, however its sensibly-sized BFG Path Terrain tires alone make it far more succesful, secure, and comfy than a “Restricted Elite Platinum Touring” sort of trim with foolish wagon wheel-sized rims and tiny sidewalls.
Along with the excellent guarantee, we might depend amongst this autos many pluses the tires, the downhill help, snow mode, super-comfy seats, excellent heating of the seats and steering wheel, and the novel windshield. In case you dwell in an space with poor roads, harsh winters, and unpaved sections of roads, the 2026 Kia Sportage X-Professional Status was constructed only for you. Go get one!
John Goreham is the Vice President of the New England Motor Press Affiliation and an knowledgeable automobile tester. John accomplished an engineering program with a give attention to electrical autos, adopted by twenty years of labor in high-tech, biopharma, and the automotive provide chain earlier than changing into a information contributor. He’s a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE int). Along with his fourteen years of labor at Torque Information, John has revealed 1000’s of articles and critiques at American information shops. He’s identified for providing unfiltered opinions on automobile subjects. You possibly can join with John on LinkedIn and observe his work on his private X channel or on our X channel. Please word that tales carrying John’s by-line are by no means AI-generated, however he does make use of grammar and punctuation software program when proofreading and he additionally makes use of picture era instruments.
Photos by John Goreham
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