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:

• 

  my Kia - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By paul buckshi - June 8 - 5:03 pm

  I was going to purchase either a Ford Escape or a Chevy Blazer. I test drove both, liked the Escape. There is a Kia dealer across the road, went there for a laugh. After driving and pricing the Kia I quit laughing. The Kia handled better, looked better and had a 60,000 mile warranty. Kia was over $2000 less and has more options. 16 months & 21,000 miles later, not one problem. Great suv, will purchase another.

• 

  great car - 2003 Kia Optima
  By mstrwidget - June 6 - 2:00 am

  I have had no problems. It drives great

• 

  Love my Soul - 2010 Kia Soul
  By Pat - June 5 - 8:26 am

  This Little suv is fun to drive Ive owned it for two days now and my husband and I love it. I tried out Honda Element-HondaCRV-HondaFit-and Ponticac Vibe- and Subaru Forester and the SOUL all in one day. The soul won We traded in a 2005 Nissan Frountier I recomend this to anyone....

• 

  Great vehicle for almost 5 years - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By SoCal - June 4 - 10:40 am

  We bought our Sorento new in May of 2003. In 56K miles, weve never had a problem. Only routine maint. and a brake job, along with one set of tires.

• 

  Life Saver - 2009 Kia Spectra
  By DrAwkward - June 4 - 9:03 am

  This car saved my life, along with three passengers, when a drunk driver crossed into our lane. Its responsive handling allowed us to avoid a head-on collision, and the side-airbags minimized the seriousness of our injuries. Everyone in the accident thanked me for choosing this car after putting its safety to the test.

• 

  Great Car - 2008 Kia Optima
  By Maggie - June 3 - 11:43 pm

  I bought this car recently and it is really fun to drive. It is comfortable and roomy. It handles very well and I cant think of a better car for the price. I like the controls on the steering wheel and the temperature controls are very easy to use. I am very happy with this car and would recommend it to anyone. The warranty, roominess, and value are well well worth the cost. The body style is very sharp.

• 

  Kia forever - 2009 Kia Sedona
  By tommydriver - June 1 - 11:57 pm

  Was anti minivan until I traded in my too small baby jag for a family friendly Sedona in May 2010. Since then we jave put almost 15000 miles on it. Havent regretted buying it yet. I have used it as a cargo hauler and people hauler. Took it cross country from Illinois to California and loved driving it the whole three days. Very comfortable and roomy for the whole family, good gas mileage, and ate up the Rockies without even breathing too hard. I will be replacing this with another Kia when its time for a new vehicle. They may not be the most exciting, but theyre always the best bang for your buck.

• 

  Super minivan - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By Dont dodge kia - June 1 - 2:00 am

  After 4 months and 8,000km we have experienced no reliability problems with the van.The only irritating things about it are that the drivers seat makes a clicking noise when breaking and that there is a lack of carge space in the back . Other than that its a great van , its very comfortable on all roads given that the suspension is 4 wheel independent , engine noise and wind and road noise are almost non existent unless you accelerate hard you hear some engine noise but its not anoying. Drives as easily as a Mazda Mpv.

• 

  I love my Kia - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By Omar - May 31 - 6:53 am

  All I gotta say to anybody that is thinking of buying a kia sorrento is GO FOR IT!.. We recently bought a Kia Sorrento Ex for 28,000 and as a test drive we took it to Vegas. This car accelarated incredibly well we were passing every car on the way on the way up to mountains of 3000 and 4000 feet of elvation.... It is incredibly comfortable and sporty... Honestly people go get one if you can I strongly recommend it....

• 

  2010 Kia Forte - 2010 Kia Forte
  By platinum002 - May 28 - 6:36 am

  Price, quality, good looking car. Has more standard features then Honda,Toyota etc. Would have preferred the leather package but none were available and the cash for clunkers was ending. First tank of gas averaged 28.5 mpg city driving