Kia will unveil the fourth-generation Sportage at Frankfurt a month from now. And to whet your appetite, the company has released its first official sketches of the vehicle.

Designed in Europe – Frankfurt, coincidentally – the new Sportage bears some resemblance to the 2013 KX3 concept. It’s more upright at the front, with Kia’s Tiger Nose grille featuring prominently, and the rear has been tightened up to suit.

Inside, you can expect Kia to pull out all the stops in a bid to shift the vehicle upmarket as it bids to keep moving away from its old budget image.

Kia says you can expect the Sportage to have the best-quality interior it has ever made. It hasn’t yet given out any clues as to the engines it’ll offer, but the range is likely to start with a newer, cleaner version of the 1.6 from the current range and climb to offer a 2.0-litre diesel range-topper driving all four wheels.

All will be revealed at Frankfurt, at any rate, with sales kicking off in the first quarter of 2016.