According to reports, the 2021 Kia Sorento (rocking a modest facelift) will debut in full on February 17. But before the mid-size crossover makes its official showing and goes on sale later in the year, leaked photos circulating on social media (these specific photos come from a Facebook page called Kurdistan Automotive Blog) preview most of the updated crossover in the sheet metal. And it looks good.

From the front, it appears Kia has channelled the pint-sized Seltos for inspiration when styling the new Sorento. The same "Tiger Nose" grille with a U-shaped treatment from the smaller crossover carries over here. The sharper LED headlights, meanwhile, feature a new chrome surround, and there's a larger lower vent located just beneath the new grille.

 

The back of the new Sorento looks to be more distinctive, though. Two vertical light bars rest on either side of the body, a look we haven't seen from Kia before. Otherwise, the rest of the rear diffuser is still covered by camouflage, so there's not much else to see. Overall, the exterior shape remains familiar – with only a few modest updates –but inside things look much different.

There's a larger centre screen that lives in the centre console, a digital instrument cluster located behind the steering wheel, and vertical air vents now flanking the climate control housing. There are a handful of new textures and features, from what we can tell in the images, but hard details won't be available for another few weeks.

We don't know much about the upcoming 2021 Kia Sorento thus far. Rumours point to possible hybrid and plug-in hybrid models, but we won't know for sure until the Sorento debuts in just a few weeks.