If you are choosing between a Sorento and a Carnival for a family of six or seven, the shades are a small part of the decision. They do show up one difference that matters, though. On the current cars, we can shade every window of a Carnival, third row and tailgate included. On the current Sorento, our listing stops at the doors.
This page puts the two side by side, generation by generation, for families weighing one against the other. For the Carnival on its own, our Carnival guide goes further into the two vans and what Carnival buyers order.
The four listings
| What you have | Years on the listing | Windows we cut | Product |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current Carnival (KA4) | 2020–2026 | Front doors, sliding doors, third-row windows, tailgate | Carnival 2020–2026 |
| Previous Carnival (YP) | 2015–2021 | Front doors, sliding doors, third-row windows, tailgate | Listed as Grand Carnival 2015–2021 |
| Current Sorento (MQ4) | 2021–2025 | Front doors, rear doors | Sorento 2021–2025 |
| Older Sorento | 2011–2020 | Front doors, rear doors, third-row windows, tailgate | Sorento 2011–2020 (read the caveat below first) |
The door prices are the same on all four: front pair $49.99, rear or sliding pair $59.99, all four doors $99.99. Where a listing has them, the third-row pair is $49.99 and the tailgate panel $59.99, and the complete set is $199.99. Both Sorento listings hold on with magnets against the door frame. The Sorento page and the Carnival page carry the same listings.
Where the glass sits on each car
The two cars put their back-seat glass in different places, and that shapes which pieces you want.
On a Carnival, the second row sits behind sliding doors, and the sliding door glass is the biggest side window on the van. Behind it is a long fixed pane running beside the third row. The Carnival's third row is a full-width bench, so in a van that carries seven most days, that fixed pane has someone sitting next to it. The shade fits into the door frame rather than onto the glass, so the sliding door still opens and closes as normal with the shade in.
On a Sorento, the second row sits behind ordinary hinged rear doors. Behind each rear door is a smaller fixed quarter window, and the third row sits beside and slightly behind it. The Sorento's third row is tighter than the Carnival's. If yours stays folded flat most of the time, the rear doors are most of the job.
Our listings call the fixed panes "Third-Row Side Windows" on all three Kia listings that have them. On the Carnival the name is exact. On the Sorento it is the quarter glass behind the rear door. Our quarter and third-row window guide explains why that pane needs its own pattern on every body.
The current cars: KA4 Carnival against MQ4 Sorento
This is the comparison most families buying now are making, and it is the one where the shade menus differ most.
The Carnival 2020–2026 listing has every position: front doors, sliding doors, third-row windows and tailgate, alone or in combinations. The two sets Carnival buyers pick most often with us are the sliding-door pair at $59.99, and the sliding doors plus third-row windows at $99.99, which shades the second and third rows for the same price as the four-door set. The full Carnival price list is on the Carnival guide.
The Sorento 2021–2025 listing has three options: front pair, rear pair, or all four doors. There is no third-row piece and no tailgate panel on it. If your family uses the Sorento's third row in summer, or carries a dog in the boot, those two panes stay bare with our set. Get in touch before ordering if you need them; they are not listed today, and we would rather tell you straight than have you assume.
For the second row, the two cars come out even. Both get a rear pair at $59.99, cut to the door glass.
The older cars: YP Carnival and the 2011–2020 Sorento
Here the menus match. The YP listing and the 2011–2020 Sorento listing both offer doors, third-row windows and tailgate, at the same prices as the current Carnival.
Two things to know before ordering either.
The YP listing's name. It is titled Grand Carnival 2015–2021 and its web address says Sedona. In Australia this van was sold as the Carnival from 2015 to 2020. The older Grand Carnival of 2006 to 2014 is a different van, and we do not cut it. Most of the YP menu is made to order, so allow extra time if you are fitting before a holiday. The Carnival guide has more on telling the YP from the KA4.
The Sorento caveat. The Sorento 2011–2020 listing covers ten years with one set. In Australia those years span two bodies: the earlier Sorento sold here until 2015, and the redesigned one sold from 2015 to 2020. Every workshop photo on that listing shows the same door, the earlier body's, photographed on a car from another market.
If your Sorento was built before the 2015 change and the rear door looks like the one above, this is your set. If yours is a 2015 to 2020 car, do not order it on the year alone. Send us a photo of an open rear door first, and we will tell you whether the set fits before you pay for it. The same goes for a 2009 or 2010 car, which falls before the listing's first year.
The changeover years
The Sorento listings meet at 2020 and 2021. The current Sorento arrived here in late 2020, so a car registered in 2020 or 2021 could be either body, and the sets are not interchangeable. The build date on the compliance plate settles it; our generation guide shows where to find it.
The Carnival listings overlap at 2020 and 2021 for the same reason. The KA4 is the squarer van on sale now and the YP is the rounder one before it.
The Sorento 2021–2025 listing runs to 2025. If yours is a 2026 build, ask us before ordering.
Which windows to start with
For a Carnival, start with the sliding doors. Add the third-row windows if that row is in use, which in a Carnival it usually is. Add the tailgate if the boot carries a dog or the van is parked outside most days.
For a 2021–2025 Sorento, start with the rear pair. That is the whole second row, and on the current listing it is the piece that does the most.
For a pre-2015 Sorento, the rear doors plus third-row windows at $99.99 covers both back rows, and the tailgate panel is there if you need it.
Front door shades on any of these cars are for when the vehicle is parked. Our guide to the rules in each state covers what you can have up while driving. If you are unsure how many windows you need, the which-windows guide works through it.
Ordering
Find the body before the windows. A van from late 2020 on takes the Carnival 2020–2026 listing; a 2015 to 2020 van takes the YP listing titled Grand Carnival. A Sorento from late 2020 on takes the 2021–2025 listing, doors only. A Sorento built before 2015 takes the 2011–2020 listing. A 2015 to 2020 Sorento needs a rear-door photo sent to us before you order.
If your car is not on the list at all, the measuring app lets you send us the windows for a quote. The full Kia list has the Sportage, Seltos and the other Kia fits.
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