Kia Sorento diesel electric hybrid features dual clutch transmission and  a163-horsepower diesel engine.

At the on-going Frankfurt Auto Show, Kia exhibits a wide range of eco-friendly concept cars and production vehicles. Some of those cars are already well known to all of you Kia fans, while other are improved or brand new vehicles. We are going to dedicate a few minutes to each one of them to take a look at their technology, specs and other facts.

One of the most impressive ones among all is a diesel-hybrid Sorento, which features advanced powertrain technologies that will be applied to Kia vehicles in the following years.

Sorento hybrid is Kia’s first-ever diesel-electric hybrid. Under its atractively shapped sheetmetal, it features Kia’s latest hybrid powertrain technology. At its heart is Kia’s 1.6L U2 turbo-diesel engine, which can be found in the Soul crossover, new Kia Venga and cee’d facelift.

The 1.6L U2 engine in Sorento hybrid is a follow-up engine to the current 1.6L U2 diesel unit. It features a two-stage turbocharger instead of the current VGT-turbo technology and generates impressive 163 horsepower.

The 163-hp diesel engine in Sorento hybrid is mated to Kia’s all-new dual-clutch transmission and a 40 horsepower electric motor. The innovative “Integrated package module” located in the trunk under the floor, combines Lithium Ion Polymer Batteries with an Inverter and Converter.

By use of lightwieght materials and extreme engine downsizing, the weight of a concept car has been reduced by 100 kg or 8 percent when compared to the 2010 Sorento crossover while aerodynamic tweaks, such as airflow-smoothing under floor panels, a set of aerodynamic alloy-wheels, rear-window spoiler, lower suspension (-25 mm) and narrower tyres have helped reducing Sorento’s drag coefficient.

The final result of all these aerodynamic tweaks and technical enhancements are reduced C02 emissions which were lowered b 30 percent to just 119 g/km  when compared to the 2010 Sorento. This is a truly remarkable achievement for such a large vehicle!

Kia did not reveal if it has a production of Kia Sorento hybrid in plans but it did announce that the model is now entering a testing phase and will be driven over many thousands of kilometres across the European continent to generate data for inclusion in the design process of Kia hybrid vehicles during the next couple of years.

Kia Sorento diesel-electric hybrid gallery: