Kia Sedona Spied With Updates To Take On Odyssey, Pacifica

Crossovers and sport-utility vehicles rule the driveways and garages of American families, but minivans are still alive and well. Caught here is Kia's stalwart Sedona, hiding under quite a bit of camouflage on the roads near Hyundai's North American design center in California. The current-generation model launched in 2015 and is ready for a facelift, and the camo suggest there's quite a bit taking place.

If we look to the Kia Sportage and Sorento for inspiration, cosmetic changes to the front and rear fascias with redesigned lights are likely hiding beneath the coverings. Minor changes to the side glass and perhaps some tweaks to the sculpting on the doors could also be in store. Bigger news will surely come beneath the skin, with rumors saying the Sedona will get an 8-speed automatic and some new infotainment systems.

Kia has good reason to invest in its minivan. The company sold 44,264 Sedonas in 2016 – still a far cry from the 114,000 Sorentos sold in the same timeframe, but the number still represents nearly a 20 percent gain from the prior year. The strong sales suggest the Sedona has legs to go the distance, but if Kia wants to build on that trend it will need to step up its game. The Chrysler Pacifica strikes an exceptional balance of style, functionally, and luxury, while the new Honda Odyssey wows families with a plethora of technology and a configurable interior so easy to manipulate that you can literally stow seats with one hand.

We have plenty of reasons to love these Sedona competitors, so we'll have to patiently wait to see how many stops Kia is prepared to pull out in the interest of staying competitive in the minivan segment.