Compare the2026 Kia SorentoVS 2026 Toyota Grand Highlander

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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Both the Sorento and Grand Highlander have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Sorento has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Grand Highlander’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Kia Sorento achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Toyota Grand Highlander has not been tested.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Sorento has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning with Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist, systems which detect vehicles approaching from the sides and can automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. Only the Grand Highlander Limited/Platinum/Nightshade offers Parking Support Brake.

Both the Sorento and the Grand Highlander have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia Sorento is safer than the Toyota Grand Highlander:

	Sorento	Grand Highlander
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	23%	39.3%
Neck Stress	208 lbs.	355 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	340	356
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.6 inches
Neck Stress	139 lbs.	199 lbs.
Neck Compression	52 lbs.	60 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	118/119 lbs.	384/277 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Kia Sorento is safer than the Grand Highlander:

	Sorento	Grand Highlander
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Restraints	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Head Neck Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Head injury index	83	112
Peak Head Forces	0 G’s	0 G’s
Steering Column Movement Rearward	1 cm	5 cm
Chest Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Hip & Thigh Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Femur Force R/L	1/.8 kN	3.5/1.3 kN
Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L	0%/0%	1%/0%
Lower Leg Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
Tibia index R/L	.56/.53	.69/.57

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Kia Sorento is safer than the Toyota Grand Highlander:

	Sorento	Grand Highlander
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	25	42
Hip Force	196 lbs.	199 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	29 G’s	39 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	15 inches	17 inches
HIC	228	344
Spine Acceleration	32 G’s	48 G’s
Hip Force	552 lbs.	823 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The Sorento comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Grand Highlander’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Sorento 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Grand Highlander. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Grand Highlander ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in initial quality. With 19 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated below average.

Engine

As tested in Motor Trend the Sorento EX/SX 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Toyota Grand Highlander turbo 4 cyl.:

	Sorento	Grand Highlander
Zero to 60 MPH	6.3 sec	8.3 sec
Quarter Mile	14.8 sec	16.3 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	97 MPH	86.9 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Sorento gets better mileage than the Grand Highlander:

			MPG
Sorento
	FWD	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	23 city/31 hwy
	AWD	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	23 city/28 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/27 hwy
Grand Highlander
	FWD	2.4 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/28 hwy
	AWD	LE/XLE 2.4 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/27 hwy
		Limited/Platinum 2.4 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/26 hwy

Both the Sorento and the Grand Highlander have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. All Sorento’s have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily. The Grand Highlander Hybrid doesn’t offer a way to disable start/stop.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Sorento uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Grand Highlander Hybrid Max requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

Transmission

The Sorento offers an available sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

Brakes and Stopping

The Sorento stops much shorter than the Grand Highlander:

	Sorento	Grand Highlander
60 to 0 MPH	115 feet	128 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	143 feet	145 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Sorento EX/SX’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Highlander Limited/Platinum/Nightshade’s 55 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The Sorento has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Grand Highlander XLE AWD pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Sorento X-Line SX Prestige executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.1 seconds quicker than the Grand Highlander XLE AWD (26.5 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Sorento has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Grand Highlander (8.2 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Sorento to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Chassis

The Kia Sorento may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 500 to 700 pounds less than the Toyota Grand Highlander.

The Sorento LX/S/EX/SX is 11.8 inches shorter than the Grand Highlander, making the Sorento easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Cargo Capacity

The Sorento has a standard third row seat which folds flat into the floor. This completely clears a very large cargo area quickly. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer seats that fold into the floor.

Pressing a button automatically lowers the Sorento’s second row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Ergonomics

The Sorento Prestige’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Kia Sorento and the Toyota Grand Highlander, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Kia Sorento outsold the Toyota Grand Highlander by 36% during 2024.

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