Powertrains and Performance
Two engines are offered on the Sportage LX: a 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder (140 hp and 136 pound-feet of torque) and a 2.7-liter V6 (173 hp and 178 lb-ft). The Sportage EX comes standard with the V6. The inline-4 can be had with either a five-speed manual transmission or a four-speed automatic, while the V6 is automatic only. One may also choose front- or all-wheel drive in either trim.
We timed a Sportage V6 at 10.7 seconds from zero to 60 mph, about a second or so off the quicker four-cylinders in the segment and more than three ticks off the class hot rod, the RAV4 V6. Fuel mileage estimates for a 2008 Sportage V6 with AWD are 17 mpg city and 21 mpg highway, a few mpg under the class average. The four-cylinder gets only a few city mpg better.
See also:
Introduction
Long ago, sport-utility vehicles replaced the station wagon as the
quintessential family hauler. In the beginning, truck-based, body-on-frame SUVs
were all there was. But car shoppers' desire for ...
Acceleration and Power
All Rio and Rio5 models have a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 110
horsepower. A five-speed manual transmission is standard on the Rio sedan, and a
four-speed automatic is available for ...
Overheating
If your temperature gauge indicates overheating,
if you experience a loss of
power, or if you hear a loud knocking or
pinging noise, the engine has probably
overheated. Should any of these symptom ...