New Sportage papped day after official sketches released

Kia got its official sketches out just in time. The new Sportage, only just revealed in the form of those drawings, has been caught without any disguise by sharp-eyed Korean photographers who have circulated the images on social media.

The photographs show a car that looks a good deal less sleek and sexy than the one in the drawings. The high-set Porsche-style headlamps and big fog lamps give it a strong family resemblance to the (hugely impressive) Sorento but also seem to give it the look of a startled amphibian. Whether current Sportage buyers – and there are many – will be put off by that remains to be seen. Many of them cited the outgoing car's styling as a key purchase point.

Around the back things are a deal more conservative, and cleaner and simpler for it. Again, there’s a strong resemblance to the Sorento, and it’s hardly surprising that it looks like a cross between the Sorento and the outgoing Sportage.

The interior will also borrow heavily from the Sorento, with a big central touchscreen (incorporating a reversing camera) and far fewer physical buttons than the current model.

Kia says that the cabin takes the car a significant step closer to premium-brand levels of quality, with “simple, modern style with rich material quality”.

Kia, which is using its existing 1.7- and 2-litre diesels, in lower-emissions forms, is teasing that it will introduce a “new drivetrain” for the new Sportage – although whether that means a pure electric vehicle, a plug-in hybrid or a downsized turbo engine remains unclear. It will presumably become clearer when the car is unveiled in full, at the Frankfurt motor show in September

The new model is critical for Kia, both globally and in Ireland. Around the world Kia and its sister company Hyundai have seen sales stall for the first time in a decade, as buyers look for ever more variations on the crossover and SUV theme.

In Ireland the Sportage has been a huge success for the brand, snagging premium buyers for Kia along the way. Even this year, when it has effectively been a run-out, the Sportage has already shifted nearly 5,000 units. The new Sportage will go on sale in mid 2016.