Where each one leads
Kia Sportage
Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.
Lexus UX
- Against cars of the same age, the Lexus UX comes out better at its first MOT test (passes 8% more often than average) than the Kia Sportage (passes 1% less often than average).
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 Lexus UX uses 5.6 l/100 km, the 2026 Kia Sportage 8.3.
- New Lexus UX cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 104 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 123 for the Kia Sportage in 2022.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Kia Sportage | Lexus UX | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1995–2026 | 2019–2023 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 1,107,190 (2010–2022) | 4,597 (2019–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 420,691 | 25,281 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 52,257 | — |
| In traffic in Finland | 11,596 | — |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Kia Sportage | Lexus UX | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 77% | 94% |
| … against cars of the same age | −1% | +8% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 1.2% | — |
| … against cars of the same year | +9% | — |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 1.7% | — |
| US owner complaints | 4,714 | 10 |
| Most complaints about | Engine | Air bags |
| Model year with most complaints | 2017 (403) | 2020 (5) |
| US recall campaigns | 36 | — |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 1,725 | 125 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 63 | — |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Kia Sportage | Lexus UX | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2027) | — |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Kia Sportage | Lexus UX | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 8.3 l/100 km (2026) | 5.6 l/100 km (2026) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | 7.4 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 8.0 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel hybrid | 5.6 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | 5.3 l/100 km | — |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 123 g/km | 104 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 119 kW (159 hp) | 101 kW (135 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 1,652 kg | 1,696 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €30,790 | — |
| Average odometer in Finland | 170,000 km | — |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).