Overview & Reviews

Kia Motors is a South Korean automaker that's relatively new to the United States. In its early years, Kia largely catered to budget-minded consumers with well-equipped vehicles priced below competing models. More recently, this growing brand has kept value a priority while also emphasizing technology and sportiness.

Founded in Korea in 1944, Kia started as a producer of steel tubing and bicycle parts. The company's name has its roots in the Chinese language, and means "to arise, to come up out of Asia." By the early 1950s, the company had produced Korea's first bicycle; by the latter part of the decade, Kia had branched out into motor scooters, with the rollout of the C100.

The 1960s saw Kia expanding its lineup to include motorcycles and three-wheeled cargo vehicles. Naturally, the next logical step was automobile production, and the company began moving in this direction in the early 1970s. By 1973, Kia had built a facility designed to make its automotive dreams a reality; its Sohari plant held the distinction of being Korea's first fully integrated automobile production facility, and went on to spawn Korea's first internal-combustion gasoline engine. A year later, Kia unveiled the Brisa, Korea's first passenger car. By the end of the decade, Kia's technology was being used to manufacture vehicles like the Peugeot 604 and the Fiat 132.

By the late '80s, Kia's lineup included new models like the Concord, Capital, Potentia and Pride. In 1987, Ford brought the Pride to U.S. shores, rebadging it as the Ford Festiva. Seven years later, Ford dealers got a replacement for the entry-level, subcompact Festiva in the form of another Kia constructed product, the Aspire.

Kia finally began selling vehicles in the U.S. under its own name in the early '90s, trumpeting its presence with the introduction of the compact Sephia. The car's rollout was gradual; in the early days of its production, the Sephia was only available in select Western states. By the mid-'90s, SUVs had emerged as a phenomenally popular and profitable vehicle segment. Kia responded with the 1995 Sportage, a compact SUV. By the end of the '90s, Kia's nationwide rollout was nearly complete.

Financial difficulties in the late '90s prevented Kia from expanding its lineup beyond those two models. Hyundai, South Korea's other major automaker, acquired the company in a merger in 1998.

Kia has been on a major upswing since its purchase by Hyundai, with improvements in build quality, performance and overall refinement. Reliability, previously a weak point, has also improved markedly and consumers' confidence was further bolstered by Kia's substantial warranty program. Today, Kia is on a dramatic upswing and offers a broad lineup of well-built coupes, sedans and crossovers that stand out for their value, performance and sporty styling.

User Reviews:

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  Transmission - 2000 Kia Sephia
  By Jack - February 23 - 4:36 pm

  I bought the car in November; as soon as I drove off the lot I broke down. The car had a bad alternator. Luckily the dealer replaced it at no cost to me even though I bought it with no warranty. It ran great till two months later the transmission blew without warning; no prior transmission slipping or anything. With the bill running $2200.00 I was out of luck as far as the dealer was concerned. I only paid $1500.00; good deal at the time. I wouldnt pay $3700.00 for it.

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  Pick of the Litter - 2001 Kia Sephia
  By Saberus - February 21 - 3:36 am

  A steal for 11k new. My little red Kia wouldnt quit. I wasnt faithful in changing the oil after 18k miles, but the engine didnt seem to notice. Dealership mistakenly put in ATF instead of 5w-30 on that change, and ran for 9000 miles on it before I changed it myself and found out. The engine was stronger than ever. I dont know or understand how, but it was dynod after that at 240hp, and was getting 35ish mpg. She was unbeatable. But I couldnt keep up the payments, and she was repod in 2004. Never had a problem with her. Willing to bet that little car would have outlasted me if I still had her. I miss my car.

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  Sorento Shocker? - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By nickelhorse221 - February 15 - 2:53 am

  Well love the styling. cant beat all the options for the price. But could there be a downfall to all this value? Ive had my sorento just over 2 weeks. I have rattles and all kinds of noises for one. Now, my transmission is acting up. Has 1000 miles on it. Put it in drive and it acts like it doesnt want to go forward, then JUMPS forward and goes. Floor mats are completely falling apart for no reason, and the ride is very stiff. NOT what I expect from a 30,000.00 SUV.. I thought Kia came a long way, but man, I wish i would have bought something else. Never Never Never will I buy a Kia again. Im sticking to VWs from here on out!

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  I did not want it - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By His Car - February 8 - 2:53 pm

  When my husband was in the market to purchase a KIA, I had a fit. Now that I have it, no problem. Love the fact you get so much as standard equipment. Gas mileage could be better for the size of the SUV.

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  Fire - 2003 Kia Rio
  By jjszabo - February 5 - 10:00 am

  I bought my RIO new. Just after 3400 miles, it caught fire. The alternator shorted out (the car is stock with no equipment added by me)and melted two wiring harnesses and some vacuum hoses. The dealership made me jump through many hoops to get the thing repaired. I hade to call KIA customer relations to have a district manager sent to the dealership to approve the repairs. I finally had the car repaired under the warrenty program. Everything seems fine now, Knock on wood! The handling and braking are great. The car is fun to drive. But after the fire, I am paranoid about its reliability.

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  Great Start for SUV - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By Wrigley - February 5 - 10:00 am

  Car only has 2500 miles but so far so good. Small defects found in fit and finish of interior - minor fixes to be done during first service. Ride excellent on 1 long trip. Gas mileage better than sticker - 22 - 23 mpg highway on silver grade fuel at 75 to 80 mph. City mileage 19 - 20. Love the EX luxury package for the price. Looked at Suzuki XL-7, Ford Escape, Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, Suburu Outback, Honda CR-V,and Land Rover Discovery. Based on price dependence we chose the KIA. Price independent choice was the Land Rover. Dealership experience was very good.

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  Shes snarky, but a good friend. - 2002 Kia Spectra
  By Aenari - February 4 - 8:36 am

  It was my first car, and I was pleased. It worked, and the warranty is phenomenal. My power window motors were constantly iffy, but thats small potatoes - it drove, and drove consistently. The dash and what have you are fairly boring. The CD player developed an interesting quirk where it sucks the cd back in when you eject it before you can grab it. That was fun. But it was a dang good value with cruise control to boot. Keep up on the maintenance and shell behave. She is snarky; it never let me get too attached emotionally. But it was there for me.

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  Give Kia a go - 2010 Kia Forte
  By truth1107 - January 29 - 3:41 pm

  Any negative impressions I had previously about Kia have changed dramatically. I bought a 2010 Forte Koup recently and have enjoyed it more and more every day. Exterior styling is best in class. Great features like Bluetooth, satellite radio, ipod inputs. Car is very smooth especially at high speeds on the interstate. Drove the civic, the corolla, and found the kia to be more stylish. The Forte Koup could use a little more pep on the lower end and sometimes there are severe downshifts with the automatic transmission when you gas it hard. Feels great seeing the ECO light come on when cruising at 75mph.

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  Gas Cap - Escape light / check engine light - 2008 Kia Sorento
  By terry137 - January 24 - 11:21 am

  Bought the 2008 Sorrento used about 6 weeks ago. Check engine light/escape light has started coming on and vehicle will not run over 20 miles per hr. I have bought a gas cap and it still has not fixed the problem for more than a day. This is described in the book as a reason the check engine light to come on. A mechanic said the vents that vent the gas vapors can collapse. That is the next thing to have checked. I was looking online to see if any recalls but did not find any. Surely, this is not an isolated problem.

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  Better than a Sienna - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By Laz - January 18 - 4:06 am

  We recently had an accident in our 2004 Toyota Sienna and got a new minivan. The Sedona was a top contender because of its excellent safety ratings, outstanding warranty and value. So far great experience, I like it better than our Sienna. It has plenty of room all around, seems very solidly built (no problems so far, the Sienna had problems right away), offers a decent driving experience (hey, its a minivan) and was a terrific value. Not only $4,000 cheaper than the Sienna but fully loaded and 0% financing. There are a few issues, some inherent in minivans, some are just minor annoyances, but overall a great family vehicle. If you are on the market for a van make sure you check it out.