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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  Great Deal, Love mine! - 2010 Kia Forte
  By ikn0wbetter - September 16 - 11:46 am

  Ive been a loyal VW customer, but after my last fiasco with an 03 Passat I had to move on. The Forte is smaller than my Passat but I LOVE IT. I got the dark cherry (the interior and exterior color is so nice and matches very well), it is a little jerky when it shifts gears though and the paint does seem to scratch a little more easily than Id like, but overall I LOVE IT. I got the fuel economy package and can get almost 450 miles to a tank when Im driving long distances. It has already been on several 5-9 hour road trips and there has never been a problem. The Bluetooth comes in VERY handy- I hate driving other cars without that feature now!

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  02 OPTIMA LX - 2002 Kia Optima
  By JOHNNY B - September 16 - 10:00 am

  I BOUGHT A FORMER RENTAL OPTIMA FROM A LOCAL DEALERSHIP.SINCE DECEMBER OF 03 TO PRESENT I HAVE HAD TO TAKE THE KIA IN 5 TIMES FOR SMALL STUFF. WINDOW REGULATOR,KNOCK SENSOR,RECALL ON EMMISSIONS,SPEAKERS NOT WORKING,AND A DOOR LOCK SWITCH. OTHER THAN THAT THE CAR IS VERY NICE TO DRIVE,COMFORTABLE.

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  Poor Reliability - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By Mschloe - September 16 - 10:00 am

  Eight months after we bought the van it had an electrical problem. Five more electrical problems in about two and half years, we sold the van. Dealer would say I left copper pennies in the outlets -- I pay for them to fix. Then within 24 hours, they would have to come get it for the same problem. This time it was the alternator. Less than 24 hours they have to come get it again, say it was the battery (this would be the third battery in this van / had to pay for prorated battery). That was the last straw. Other items replaced on van included air compressor, left fog light bulb, cargo bulb, radio replaced, and lumbar switch.

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  love my kia - 2004 Kia Optima
  By lizzy - September 16 - 10:00 am

  I JUST GOT MY KIA A MONTH AGO. I GOT NEW TIRES AND RIMS AND LOVE THE LOOK. THE CAR HANDLES VERY GOOD AND I HAVE TWO KIDS SO I LOOKED AT THE SAFETY FEATURES. THE SIDE AIRBAGS GOT ME HOOKED.I AM GETTING GOOD GAS MILEAGE AND FOR ALL U NEW BUYERS----WAX UR CAR AFTER U GET IT HOME AND ITLL CLEAN UP REAL GOOD

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  I had no problems, worries or hesitation - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By jamesjean - September 16 - 10:00 am

  this car is reliable

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  love my sedona - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By jlaubin - September 16 - 10:00 am

  after 6 months and 6000 miles..the car is still like new..no rattles or screw ups..it"s only been to the dealer for an oil change..the es delux package is a must.....22 mpg on the highway,,18 in town..nice stereo..

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  Pretty good so far - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By mikepm - September 15 - 11:02 pm

  Im at just about 2000 miles and thus far, the only issue Ive had is with the Bluetooth. The MPG that some people complain about I can understand a little. I can easily achieve 29mpg on highway IF and only IF I travel at speeds of 50mph to 65. The highways around here are sometimes 75-80 and Ill only get 24mpg there. Other than that, pretty good stuff.

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  Kia Sedona at 5000 miles - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By micwalk - September 15 - 9:56 pm

  Weve recently passed the 5,000 mile mark with our "loaded" 2005 Sedona. Those miles included two trips over the 2004 holidays, totalling about 3,000 miles. So far Id say we have a somewhat less than average impression of our first KIA. Probably the biggest complaint we have is with the gas mileage. Our expectations - as set by the salesman- were 22+ mpg, Needless to say we were dismayed when we got a little over 18. The second area we found lacking in this vehicle is with the interior space. Utilizing the available space behind the third row seating reduces the "recline" feature and makes for a less comfortable trip. Overall, the features are nice but the controls are confusing.

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  Love everything but the infotainment! - 2016 Kia Sorento
  By Cindy Logan - September 13 - 10:34 pm

  Great car! Drives very smoothly, and the gas mileage is great for an SUV. The interior feels very upscale. It is quite comfortable. If not for riding so high, you would think you were in a regular car. I am very happy, except for the infotainment system and navigation. First, you cannot change the home screen. It automatically defaults to navigation every time you turn on the car. I dont know about most people, but Im not using navigation on a day-to-day basis, so I really dont need a map visible at all times. So, every time I get into the car, I have to switch the view to the radio/satellite screen. Why cant I choose that as my default, Kia? Second, there are 18 presets for the satellite, and you have to scroll through all 18 (or go backwards) to get back to the beginning. Not the end of the world, but kind of annoying. I ended up choosing 6 stations and programming each in three times so I can scroll through without having to go backwards. Also, the volume function is not responsive--no chance of turning the volume up or down quickly. You can spin it as fast as you want, but it still raises and lowers at the same speed. Finally, the Bluetooth works great. It connects immediately. However, the voice-activated phone book is a disaster. It rarely recognizes the name I say. Its almost not worth using. So, there are kinks in the infotainment system, but all-in-all, I am happy with my Sorento.

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  Best Midsize Car for 2011 Update #1 - 2011 Kia Optima
  By dankocke - September 13 - 7:49 pm

  So I too have noticed the left pull issue after a few days of driving. This is a known problem by Kia with no good fix for it YET. This problem is not found on all Optimas but only a select few. Please test drive your car on the highway at speeds more than 65mph. My left pull is pronounced but not ridiculous. I did call Kia Custoomer Service and they are very helpful. If you open a case file with them on this issue they will guide you and the dealers through a preliminary fix until Kia engineers figure out a better fix. Gas mileage has been 28 mpg on all 4 tank fill ups in mixed mostly highway driving. Overall still love the car. NAV traffic is great!