Kia Sportage Towbars

Kia Sportage Towing Specifics

The Kia Sportage was first introduced in 1993 by the South Korean manufacturer as a compact SUV, designed with strong towing capabilities. We will cover the towing specifics of this model below.

Kia Sportage Towbar Electrics Kits

It is recommended that all tow bars fitted to a Kia Sportage vehicle are done so with a dedicated electrics kit, rather than a universal electrics kit. A dedicated electrics kit not only ensures all modern features such as; trailer stability and parking sensors are functional but also helps to keep your vehicle's warranty unaffected.

We offer both universal and dedicated electrics kits for the Kia Sportage vehicle towbars, but be aware that universal electrics kits can invalidate any manufacturer warranty your vehicle has and may also require a bypass relay.

Check your Kia warranty for more information.

Bypass Relays

All tow bars for the Kia Sportage 1994-2005, 2005-2010 models will not require a bypass relay if universal electrics are fitted.

All tow bars for the Kia Sportage 2010-2016, 2016-2018 and 2018 onwards models will require a bypass relay if universal electrics are fitted.

A bypass relay works by powering what it is you are towing through transferring power straight from the battery instead of taking too much current away from your vehicle.

Whereas a dedicated system works in harmony with your vehicle's ECU and all of its functions.

Coding

This is the coding of the ECU to accept the dedicated system, this updates your vehicles software to run smoothly with the new towbar.

All Kia Sportage models will not require coding.

Coding is used to update your vehicles software in order for it to run coherently with the new towbar through the dedicated electrics.

Bumper Cuts

Depending on the towbar, Kia Sportage models will require a bumper cut. A bumper cut is when a fraction of the vehicle's rear bumper is cut in order to fit the towbar.

All Kia Sportage 1994-2005 models have towbars that require no bumper cuts.

All Kia Sportage 2005-2010 and 2010-2016 models have towbars that require visible, non-visible and no bumper cuts.

All Kia Sportage 2016-2018 and 2018 onwards models have towbars that require non-visible and no bumper cuts.

Nose Weight

Nose weight is the amount of weight pushing down on the tow ball, it is important not to exceed the nose weight set on the tow bar, failure to do so could damage the car chassis and/or tow bar mounting points. Nose weight varies depending on the towbar you choose and are displayed under each tow bar below.

All Kia Sportage 1994-2005 models have a nose weight of 70kg up to 75kg.

All Kia Sportage 2005-2010 models have a nose weight of 75kg up to 90kg.

All Kia Sportage 2010-2016 models have a nose weight of up to 80kg.

All Kia Sportage 2016-2018 models have a nose weight of 100kg up to 120kg.

All Kia Sportage 2018 onwards models have a nose weight of 100kg up to 133kg.

Towing Weight

Towing weight is the weight that a Kia Sportage vehicle can tow safely, without any risk of damaging the vehicle. Towing weights are bar specific and displayed below each towbar.

For a Kia Sportage 1994-2005 vehicles, the towbars have a towing weight capacity of up to 1800kg.

For a Kia Sportage 2005-2010 vehicles, the towbars have a towing weight capacity of 1600kg up to 2200kg.

For a Kia Sportage 2010-2016 vehicles, the towbars have a towing weight capacity of 2000kg up to 2400kg.

For a Kia Sportage 2016-2018 vehicles, the towbars have a towing weight capacity of 2200kg up to 2300kg.

For a Kia Sportage 2018 onwards vehicles, the towbars have a towing weight capacity of 1900kg up to 2200kg.

You will need to check the towing limit for your Kia Sportage vehicle model as it may not be able to tow up to the weight limit that the tow bar can tow.


How to tell which Kia Sportage generation you own

The image above is the rear of the 2005 - 2010 Kia Sportage, the rear lights to not appear on any part of the rear door, on this model.


The white Kia is the 2010 - 2016 Kia Sportage, the rear lights now can be found on the rear door.

The silver Kia is the 2016 - 2018 Kia Sportage, the rear has a red reflective trim across the full rear between the rear lamps

The image above is the front end of the 2016 - 2018 model, you can see the on the image below (front end of the 2018 model) there is a chrome trim across the front bumper, this is trim is not present on the 2016 -2018 model.