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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  my new sedona - 2004 Kia Sedona
  By newman - May 1 - 2:00 am

  as a family eith five, and the need for a car seat. the kia offers a roomy interior. The stereo does not have bass and treble controls. I wish it had better miles to the gallon for around the town driving.the pick up is good for passing and parkway driving. love the color. I think for the money, and the warranty it cant be beat.

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  04 Rio - 2004 Kia Rio
  By jessi - April 27 - 10:00 am

  I bought this car a week ago and just love to drive it, the only thing my vehicle doesnt have is the power locks and I am used to them from my old car.

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  Solid performer w/minor illnesses... - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By Gramotey - April 24 - 4:36 am

  Our Kia purchase was quite impulsive: weve liked the ride quality right away,and weve been specifically looking for 4x4 capabilities, some economy...bought this as no 4x4 Tuscons were available in Texas :) Body is incredibly rigid,some serious off-road performance.Comfortable and predictive road manners,good breaking backed-up by standard ABS.Reasonable controls,very good visibility,very good stock sound(although we both are missing mp3/USB/AUX jacks).Outlet in the trunk was quite a nice find!Minor problems weve seen so far is 2 blown turn signal lamps(they are doubled,however) which I had replaced and that was the end of it as of now, and main dome light is incommunicado. Thats minor...

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  2005 Sage Sedona - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By bcsparks4 - April 23 - 5:36 am

  A lot of minivan for the buck. Kia is motivated to compete and it shows. Common sense features + extras. Nice to drive. Well designed. Happy with it.

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  my review - 2004 Kia Optima
  By grannyRae - April 20 - 10:00 am

  Ive only had this car 2 weeks, but it has been most pleasurable to drive. it has all the cajones and good looks to go with it. it feels very solid to drive. comparable to my ford, which i truly loved. With this car i dont miss her as much as i thought i would.

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  I Really Like This Car! - 2005 Kia Optima
  By Mark in Cinti - April 17 - 4:23 am

  Ive had this car for about seven months now, and Im surprised at how much I like it. It is comfortable, smooth, powerful enough, and incredibly easy to drive. I have owned and driven a good number of luxury cars, but right now, Im more pleased with my Optima than any of them. Well see how it goes over the long haul, but Im still smilin today! Definitely go with the EX V6 with leather.

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  First Car - 2001 Kia Sephia
  By Class of 09 - April 13 - 2:13 pm

  This was my first car given to me by my mother.She bought a Ford and handed me the Kia. So I had nothing to compare it to. I would have to say it was and still is a good car. Its never broken down, or had any major problems. Only regular maintenance. My only complaint is that when i have the heat or a/c on the cars acceleration is greatly slowed. This may be due to its age but at times it can be annoying.

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  Best car Ive ever owned - 2004 Kia Optima
  By 1Canuck - April 11 - 11:20 pm

  Bought this car in 2006 with 18K miles, now (2009) just went over 70K miles. Hands-down the best car Ive ever owned. I track gas mileage every fill-up and have averaged 27mpg combined city/hwy driving. Car has been very reliable though I did make sure to preemptively change my timing belt at 50K miles just to be safe! Car is comfortable, handles great, very strong for a 4cyl and looks great. Would definitely buy another Optima without hesitation!

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  Honest Review - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By kehaak - April 7 - 9:11 pm

  I purchased my Sorento late November 2010 replacing a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee (V8). I did about 6 months of research and test drives before I made my choice. I travel for work quite a bit and was looking for something with better mileage. I currently have 12,000 miles on the Sorento and nearly 70% are work related. The mileage was very disappointing at first, only averaging 21 MPG. After the first service, the mileage spiked. I am currently averaging a little over 24 MPG. I didn’t change my driving habits, maybe coincidence? I had one issue with the Sorento, the rear brake calipers were faulty and leaked brake fluid basically giving me a dead brake pedal. I took it to the dealership when I noticed the issue. They were very helpful and accommodating to get this fixed. This happened on a Friday. The dealership gave me a loaner out of their stock and I picked up my Sorento the following Tuesday. As mentioned in other reviews, I do get a little bit of a rattle in the middle/lower dash but this only happens when the interior of the car is cold. Living in Northern Illinois, the roads are far from perfect and any car hitting multiple pot holes and road damage is going to make noise. I am very happy with this Sorento. It was a great replacement against the Cherokee and the Sorento V6 seems to have as much get-up-and-go as my old SUV. For price/options/warranty, no other SUV/Crossover can compete. For an additional piece of mind, I paid an extra $500 through my dealership to get bumper-to-bumper warranty for 10 years/100k miles versus the standard Kia power train warranty.

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  Good car for my money - 2013 Kia Forte
  By dreadnought - April 7 - 8:49 pm

  I have owned my Forte for two years now. It has 17000 miles on it and we have driven it in all weather, all terrains, over much if the country without a problem. Ride is comfortable for class. I recently got 42.6 mpg on a trip from the northeast to Georgia and back , and The car usually averages about 36-38 highway, 28 local. Love the exterior staying for its classic, clean look.interior is bland, yes, but not junky, either. This is my second Kia, the first,a Sportage was a great car which I traded in at 80K to get better more economy, never gave me a problem. I trust this car will of as well.