2000–2002 Kia Sportage Soft Top Specs & Performance

Long before small SUVs became a mainstream formula, Kia offered the Sportage with a much more rugged personality. The Soft Top version stood apart from the usual family-oriented SUV, using a removable-style open roof and two-door body to give the compact 4x4 a recreational character. Its upright shape and conventional chassis were better suited to rougher routes than a typical crossover, while the five-seat layout kept some everyday usefulness. It feels like a product from an era when a compact SUV could still be distinctly utilitarian rather than heavily road-focused.

The 2000–2002 Sportage Soft Top is powered by a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter inline-four producing 126 hp and 129 lb-ft of torque. It uses a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission with four-wheel drive. With 0–60 mph in 14.2 seconds and a 107-mph top speed, performance is modest, but the drivetrain gives this unusual open-bodied Sportage the capability expected from a traditional compact 4x4.