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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  2001 kia sportage limited ex edition - 2001 Kia Sportage
  By Ruth DeBolt - January 5 - 2:00 am

  No engine problems so far. Found it to be excellent on snowy roads. Radio reception not very good. Dont like where the front cup holders are located since it covers up the h/ac dials and clock. Have had some electronic window problems with the back passenger window and the heater fan continues to blow after the heater has been turned off. had it fixed once but the problem returned and havent bothered getting it looked at again. The brake dust is a minor problem on the front wheels that my husband complains about. but all in all we have found it to be a good deal and will probably buy another kia

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  2004 Kia Sedona for Better or Worse - 2004 Kia Sedona
  By Galeana Kia - January 3 - 10:30 am

  I have owned this Kia for over 2 years and it is a great auto to own; for the money you could not buy a better van with all the equipment on it. The gas mileage is the only problem I have had to date; I get 10 to 12 in city and 15 to 16 on highway. They say everything is ok with the car but still gas mileage doesnt lie. Other than that it is a GREAT CAR!

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  No Problems Yet! - 2001 Kia Sephia
  By ladle24 - January 2 - 9:00 pm

  For an economy car -- paid $10,600 brand new (standard w/ AC), this has been a faithful car. Four years and 60,000 miles later, I have no complaints, although the older I get, the more uncomfortable the sparse interior gets. One great plus -- we live in a bad neighborhood, and our car is tough to break into. We see marks where people have attempted it, but so far no one has gotten into it (it took the tech 1/2 hour to do it once when I locked my keys into my car!). This car has taken us clear across the US (coast to coast) at least 3 times, and this summer, we took it all the way to LABRADOR, Canada (from Chicago) with 2 kids and camping gear. Weve definitely gotten our moneys worth out of it!

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  Little things mean a lot - 2014 Kia Forte
  By minaramsey - December 31 - 2:14 pm

  Have had the Forte EX w/Premium package since April 2013, and like it well enough. It will never be a car I love, and Kia has not won my brand loyalty with this model.

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  l-o-v-e i-t!!!!!!!!! - 2004 Kia Optima
  By Paula B - December 31 - 12:40 am

  I love this car....a friend had purchased one and I test drove it and immediately traded in my 2001 Galant in with only 35G miles on it- which I had planned on keeping for a long time due to low mileage. This car handles so much better than Galant and I love the styling and the price was almost unbelievable for only 12G for a new car in 2004!

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  Resale - 2007 Kia Spectra
  By nancy - December 25 - 5:16 am

  Bought new in 07, wanted to trade it in for a camry, well, disapointed to say the least, i still owe $12,xxx.xx and resale value is only $7,xxx.xx so I am kind of stuck with it. Has been a good car other than my key getting stuck in the ignition. Got fixed real fast. Also, th dealer will not cover you with a loaner unless you are getting the 30 and 60,000 mile check up. I wish I knew this before I bought.

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  Sweet! - 2009 Kia Sportage
  By CGB - December 25 - 12:43 am

  The reviewer who said the Kia Sportage isnt so fun to drive has not spent the last 10 yrs dragging around in a big van! Ive only had it a couple weeks but so far I am super impressed! Plenty of get up & go, great handling, surprisingly smooth ride, excellent stereo, quiet engine. I got the whole pkg; nice leather seats, classy brushed metal trim, nav system...accoutrements I have not experienced in years & could never have afforded in another comparable vehicle. But really, it is the ride & handling that totally impresses me. The rest is just the big cherry on the sundae. Time will tell but this just feels like a quality vehicle. Cant wait for my next road trip!

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  09/Sportage - 2009 Kia Sportage
  By Gil - December 24 - 8:40 am

  This is our third Kia, and, as per the other Kias that we owned, the quality, and dependability is there.

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  Great car for the money - 2001 Kia Sephia
  By Me - December 23 - 11:30 am

  I bought this car brand new. I have not had the first problem with it. Paid $10,060. I had timing belt and all drive belts replaced at 70,000 miles. Car had never been in the shop before that.

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  what I like about my van - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By john bourque - December 23 - 8:46 am

  We have an EX fully loaded. We use it for long distance travel only because we take a lot of trips that are over 500 miles or more. You said gas mil. is bad, but traveling on the highway at 65 to 75 mph, we get at least 25 mpg We never really use it for city driving. What made us choose this type of van was the seats were more comfortable than other vans we tried ( we have leather) and the road side assistance / 5 year-100000 mile warranty cant be beat. Besides I think it is a better looking minivan than Honda, Dodge or Ford. It does ride heavy, but it rides smooth and is a very quiet vehicle.