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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  Glad to be rid of it! - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Julie - April 18 - 4:46 am

  I had nothing but problems from the time I bought my Kia brand new. Crack in the drive shaft with less than 300 miles on it a month after I bought it. Constant electrical problems that the dealer couldnt fix: brake lights out every 3 months, headlights out every 6 months. Both headlights blew out at the same time once! $400+ to replace sensors, including throttle and airbag, which warranty had just expired (conveniently). Bad catalytic converter, which went bad 2K miles after warranty expired. This is the WORST purchase of my life. The only reason I didnt get rid of it sooner was because I was STUCK with it: they depreciate too fast you cant trade them in. PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE @ its best!

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  IRRESPONSIBLE AND PATHETIC - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By Sorry Sorento - April 16 - 4:00 am

  I have over $6000 dollars in maintenance and service in my car. This does not include my rental car expenses because of the numerous times my car has been in the shop. I have replaced headlights, brake lights, parking lights, dome lights, fog lights and interior lights repetitively. I have replaced the timing belt, various ac parts, brakes, power seat motor, power locks, radio, battery, and car alarm parts. This is an attractive SUV with wonderful bells and whistles. It is an irresponsible and pathetic product. The 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty is useless and misleading. They do not stand by their product and it has awful resale value. Do not buy this vehicle regardless of the price!

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  Dont buy a Kia Sportage - 2008 Kia Sportage
  By Linda - April 3 - 4:10 pm

  I own a 2008 Kia Sportage EX which my daughter got into an accident with. The front end had damage and the engine needed to be replaced because the liguids were drained from the vehicle after the accident and the engine got ruined. Kia replaced the engine and the engine light kept coming on. After returning the vehicle again they have now replaced it with its 3rd engine and there is still the same low compression in the #2 cylinder. Kia cannot figure out what is wrong with these engines, so they have sent a Kia representative to the dealership to try to find out. I believe Kia is supplying faulty engines for replacement. How can the same thing be happening to this car for the 3rd time?

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  Would not wish this thing on my worst enemies - 2016 Kia Forte
  By Nick F - February 18 - 9:07 am

  I would advise anyone looking to get a 2016 Kia Forte Ex steer clear. The transmission is very hesitant, especially on the freeway. The car rattled until on the fourth repair attempt they finally fixed the issue. The car is a nightmare for anyone who has an interest in cars. The engine makes pretty good power but it does not start to really get moving until around 5000 RPM. The transmission is always in the wrong gear. Eco mode just means the throttle will not respond almost at all. When cornering the traction control system tries to intervene and does a horrible job at that (even when the system is turned off it still tries to work.) The brakes overheat and fade pretty quickly in a stop and go higher speed situations. The drivers seat is extremely uncomfortable and lacks support. The plastics look cheap and feel the same way. I have had two bad tires because the stock tires went bad when in both cases a small rock on the road hit the sidewall of the tires. I am very upset and honestly will never own another car from Kia. I would suggest anyone to look at other upscale CPO cars instead of this one. I am not going to bother trying to fix anymore of these issue because at the end of the day it is not worth wasting my time. I honestly have stopped caring about my car. I used to wax it and wash it all the time but with all the problems I have had it doesnt seem like it is worth the care I would normally give to a car.

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  Worse new vehicle I ever owned - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By Worse vehice I owned - February 14 - 9:36 pm

  Bought in MD, live in WV, could not get thru inspection 1st week we owned car due to light bulb issue (& we have had numerous bulbs changed / numerous electrical issues). Brakes/tires eaten up regular basis & other mechanical issues. Many problems with getting warranty issues handled correctly. WARNING WARNING **DONT BUY** Worse new vehicle we have ever owned!!

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  I HATE THIS CAR - 2008 Kia Rio
  By casey - January 28 - 4:50 am

  My car also is slow to shift from park reverse or drive to revervse. It also has been in the shop five times because something is draining the power from the battery that no one can figure out why. It has been thru two batteries and they put in a whole new fuse system... i drove it three weeks and the battery is dead again. They still cant figure it out so while it sits in the shop i have to borrow parents and friends cars because good ol kia doesnt provide loaner cars and i dont have the money for a rental. All this for a car ive only had four months!!!

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  Bad purchase! - 2001 Kia Sportage
  By Zooball - January 22 - 1:26 am

  My story is not as bad as others, but here are the problems: unstable in winds, spark plugs a pain to replace, -cannot drive on any amount of snow -drink holders break easily -one passenger window stuck for a year -fuel pump squeals -check engine light constantly on -exhaust rattles -underpowered -extended warranty was a Ponzi scheme fraud -replaced battery only to cause more electrical problems -air conditioning weakens in a year -KIA dealership service is a joke at best -paid off car only to have it become un-driveable soon after -cannot fit three childrens car seats comfortably -would not sell on used market -mileage drops off rapidly -alarm so difficult to turn off it goes unused

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  Money Saver - 2003 Kia Rio
  By ChadHutchy - January 14 - 8:53 pm

  The car is money saver, Its uncomfortable, noisy, unsafe (poor at stopping), but I’ve saved so much. Yes, 41 mpg, is obtainable by keeping the air filter replaced, along with running 93 octane and your good to go (on a 10 gallon tank it’s only a buck more to put the 93 in). The 2008’s I would expect to be a little better in comfort.

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  Dont waste your money - 2002 Kia Rio
  By total garbage - January 5 - 1:16 am

  I bought this car and have had nothing but problems. the dealer is crappy they dont even work with the buyer. The car makes a horrible squealing sound when driving, the bolts from the steering wheel fall out when driving the car. the air bag light stays on, the car rattles when driving, this car is a total lemon and I am not afraid to share it with anybody, You couldnt pay me enough to drive another Kia. when I am able to get rid of this one it needs to go to a junkyard so no other poor soul has to deal with the cost of monthly repairs to keep it on the road.

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  Kia unable to repair. - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By Gunter Dresler - December 31 - 9:00 pm

  After driving my 1.5 year old 20,000 km Sorento for 10 meters in 50 cm deep water, it stopped running. The Dealer/Importer had the car for over 6 month in the shop and could NOT get it running again. I paid for a new Computer, but still, as of today it is not running. The location of the air intake is for an SUV on one of the most stupid places you can find in an 4 weal ATV. and so is the location of the Computer.