The 2028 Kia Sportage is taking shape ahead of its next-generation redesign, with a production-body prototype spotted during hot-weather testing and towing evaluations. The heavily camouflaged vehicle provides a much clearer look at its new styling, including design cues influenced by the larger Telluride, while major changes are also expected inside the cabin.
2028 Kia Sportage Gets a More Chiseled Design
The current Kia Sportage features large vertical headlight clusters, boomerang-like daytime running lights, curving door panels and horizontally aligned taillights linked by a thin strip. The redesigned model takes a noticeably more angular approach.
At the front, the hood’s shutline appears to break where the daytime running lights will be positioned. Below them are new vertically oriented headlights, with the main beams sitting as low in the body as the wheel arches.
A redesigned pair of intake grilles sits between the headlights, while the overall front-end design has a more slab-like appearance. Moving toward the rear, the glasshouse adopts sharper angles and appears to provide rear passengers with more glass to look through.
The black A-pillar suggests that the floating-roof design will remain, although the roofline is considerably less swoopy than before. It ends in a substantial spoiler, reinforcing the more upright appearance of the redesigned Sportage.
New Sportage Rear Design and Interior Technology
The rear follows the same sharper design language as the front, with new split vertical taillights positioned on either side of the tailgate. The tailgate has a low opening, which should make loading groceries and pets easier.
Physical door handles will remain, while two-tone wheels complete the exterior design seen on the prototype. The spies were unable to get a close look inside this time, but earlier sightings have already revealed significant cabin changes.
The current Sportage’s dual-screen infotainment setup will reportedly be replaced by a single large display handling both driver information and media. The system will run Kia’s new Pleos Connect operating system, while physical buttons will remain in place.
2028 Kia Sportage Powertrain Details
The larger and roomier 2028 Sportage is expected to receive the same powertrain options as the latest Telluride Hybrid. That includes a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine producing a combined 242 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque.
Those figures would represent an increase over the current Sportage’s 232 hp and 271 lb-ft. Plug-in hybrid versions are expected to offer up to 62 miles of all-electric driving range, although that figure comes from the WLTP cycle and is expected to be slightly lower under the EPA’s testing cycles.
The towing evaluations shown in the latest prototype sightings may be intended to determine how much capability the upgraded powertrain provides. However, it remains unknown whether the redesigned Sportage will surpass the current model’s maximum towing rating of 2,500 pounds.
With its production body now visible beneath the camouflage, the 2028 Kia Sportage is revealing a substantially more angular exterior, a redesigned cabin layout and expected powertrain upgrades as testing continues.
