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:

• 

  Kia Sorento - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Ariell77 - May 22 - 2:00 am

  The Sorento has a roomy interior and is easy to convert for more cargo space. The ride is good for a four wheel drive vehicle and the handling is good

• 

  Glad I chose this vehicle! - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Natalie N - May 22 - 2:00 am

  I was looking for an affordable SUV - something that I thought I would never find! Then the Kia Sorentos came out and I hit the jackpot! Not only was it affordable but it was good looking too! It only got better when I took it for a test drive - it drove beautifully. I am pleased with my purchase and the compliments on my vehicle keep rolling in.

• 

  I Love my Kia Sorento - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Sicily - May 22 - 2:00 am

  My Kia Sorento is perfect for our family of four. It drives well and handels well in the snow and icey condictions in Indiana. I feel very safe riding in my SUV. It has the highest side impact rating by the government. The Kia rodes high off the road so you can see a lot of whats ahead of you. It comes with lots of standard features that I consiter extras.

• 

  Nice Suv - 2007 Kia Sportage
  By mattblue - May 21 - 11:46 pm

  I like the Kia Sportage. I traded in my 2005 Kia Spectra and got this Sportage. I liked my Spectra but wanted something higher profiled. Gas mileage is quite a bit lower than my Spectra but knew it would be.

• 

  HAPPY FOR 1 YEAR NOW - 2002 Kia Rio
  By Bandido - May 21 - 10:00 am

  I have delivered pizzas part-time for 12 years. Out of all the cars that I have had for the job, the Rio is the best. I am at 13,000 miles now and satisfied. This is the best car purchase I have made. The stereo is GREAT, the car is as fast as a Civic, and is affordable for whatever you want to do with it. I wish I could modify the body roll with stabilizer bars though.

• 

  Love It - 2016 Kia Sportage
  By Ed Xiques - May 19 - 10:59 pm

  The only negative I have found is that when it is damp, initially the brakes are a little grabby. But after you use them a bit, they are fine.

• 

  Love it !!! - 2009 Kia Sorento
  By Corey - May 19 - 2:40 am

  Okay I will be writing back in about 6 months with an update.. Only having it for a few days I love it..

• 

  Warranty will be used frequently - 2002 Kia Spectra
  By Andy - May 19 - 2:30 am

  2002 Kia Spectra LS is basic transport. I bought car brand new and I am original owner. Some of warranty repairs in chronological order: All items listed are true replacements under warranty - exhaust purge cannister, front brakes, front exhaust, heater switch,drivers back board seat,engine gaskets, front struts replaced, rear main seal leaking, sun visor, arm rest. After timing belt replacement the check engine light came on for eight times, the timing belt was changed incorrectly by dealer. Summary : A big headache to own.

• 

  What Youd Not Expect - 2006 Kia Rio
  By carlovermda - May 18 - 2:03 pm

  When purchasing the car, I read that the newly redesigned Rio would utilize Hyundai technology, being a vast improvement over the old model which was based on the old Ford Aspire platform. Though a little loud at hard starts, the engine is very smooth and not hard to get off the line. The seats are VERY comfortable which is a feature that some upmarket models still have not fully embraced yet. Overall NOW this car is a formidable candidate for anyone looking for an affordable car of high value and good quality.

• 

  Its got its pros and cons. - 2014 Kia Optima
  By tylorness88 - May 17 - 11:44 am

  I bought my Optima in late May of this year and have been in love with it ever since. I went with an LX model but opted to get the convenience package for the back up camera. With any car though here will be issues and the 2014 Optima has a big steering issue. Everyone I talk with agrees that they dont have control of their car at high speeds and that the slightest correction to the steering grows the car too fast and far to the other side of the lane. Im also not a huge fan of the grey and beige options as well as the gas mileage.