2021 Chevy Equinox vs Kia Sportage

The 2021 Equinox features a striking exterior, offering aerodynamic sculpting and accents that combine style and function. This five-seat compact SUV offers tremendous rear-seat legroom and ample headroom that allows tall adults to sit comfortably. The front seats will keep you supported on a long drive with its well-shaped seats. It is mixed in its interior quality because of hard plastic surfaces, but soft-touch accents are also present. Standard features included are cloth upholstery and four-way manually adjustable front seats. Standard and available features on the LT and Premier trim include leather upholstery, eight-way power-adjustable front seats, heated and ventilated fronts, heated rear seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, a heated steering wheel, and driver’s seat memory seat. You will get about 30 cubic feet behind the rear seats and around 64 cubic feet with the second row folded down.

The 2021 Kia Sportage is filled with upscale materials and comfortable and supportive seating for five. Both rows offer plenty of space for adult passengers, with generous head and legroom. The Sportage offers 30.7 cubic feet of space behind the second row and 60.1 cubic feet with the row folded down. Cloth upholstery and manually adjustable front seats are standard, while a leather-wrapped steering wheel, heated front seats, a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, a heated steering wheel, and ventilated front seats are available.

The Equinox offers plenty of driver’s assistance features to feel confident on the road. A lot of features are standard on all trims, but you’ll need to move up to the LT and Premier trim to get the available Confidence and Convenience packages that include added safety and convenience features; such as a power liftgate and a universal garage door opener. Standard features include forward collision warning, pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, following distance indicator, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, automatic high-beam headlights, rearview camera, Teen Driver system, and rear-seat reminder. The Chevrolet Infotainment 3 system comes standard with some great technology features. The L and LS offer standard features and the LT and Premier add a little bit more. Standard features on all trims include a 7-inch touch screen, Apple CarPlay, four USB ports, a Wi-fi hotspot, Bluetooth, voice recognition, and a six-speaker stereo.

The Sportage features standard advanced safety features that include a rearview camera, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, lane keep assist, lane departure warning, driver attention monitor, and high beam assist. Available safety features include blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, parking assist, and frond and rear parking sensors. The Sportage offers user-friendly technology, using Kia’s standard UVO infotainment interface and an 8-inch touch screen that is positioned toward the driver. Additional standard features include Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, six speakers, Bluetooth, a USB port, and voice recognition. An eight-speaker Harman Kardon audio system is available, along with navigation, satellite radio, and wireless device charging.

Equinox dropped its more powerful 2.0-liter engine this year, making the only power the Equinox offers for this model year a 170-horsepower 1.5-liter turbocharged engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. The transmission shifts smoothly, but acceleration is a bit lackluster in its only engine. The Equinox delivers a comfortable ride and takes turns with composure but opting for larger wheels, will give you a jittery experience, especially over large bumps in the road. Some class rivals are more agile and athletic. The Equinox will tow up to a maximum of 1,500 pounds with its only engine and front-wheel drive is standard and all-wheel drive is available on all trims. Fuel economy is estimated at 26/31 mpg city and highway. The Equinox comes in four trim levels: L, LS, LT, and Premier. Starting price is $23,800 for the Equinox L and ranges to a starting price of $31,400 for the Premier.

The Sportage offers two engine choices and delivers a comfortable ride, poised handling, and responsive steering. A 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine with 181-horsepower is standard and drives well for most driving situations. If you want something with a little more power and quicker ride, you can opt for the top-of-the line SX Turbo trim, which will give you a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, with 240-horsepower. Estimated fuel economy is 23/30 mpg for the base engine and 20/28 mpg for the turbocharged engine. The Sportage comes in four trims: LX, S, EX, and SX Turbo, with a starting price of $24,090 for the LX trim and ranging to $33,750 for the SX Turbo trim.