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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  Nice Vehicle - 2010 Kia Sedona
  By Patrick - December 27 - 11:20 am

  I previously owned a 2004 Chrysler T&C that repeatedly required maintenance from the day I bought it, so I was at wits end and decided to trade it in for a Kia Sedona. I purchased a 2010 Sedona EX with Luxury and entertainment packages. I have owned my Sedona for a month now and it is a really really nice vehicle especially compared to my T&C. Its very comfortable, the ride is extremely smooth and the amenities are terrific. Would definitely purchase this vehicle given a second opportunity.

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  Electrical System is Bad - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By marilynh - December 23 - 7:50 am

  I researched my Kia and made my decision to buy. My Kia runs well but have had many other problems, the wheels lost their paint, Kia replaced them, the new set is losing their paint. The gas cap door latch broke, the gas pedal stuck, I had to pay. Ive replaced 4 headlights 1 turn signal and 1 break light within 6 months at my expense. Did I make the right choice? No. Also on my second set of tires.

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  Cant complain - 2001 Kia Optima
  By Erika S. - December 21 - 1:46 pm

  I have owned my Optima for a little over 10 months. There have been a few more little problems than expected, but I just cant part with it! I ran a risk buying it used and paid for it. Maintenance things such as brakes, tune-up, belts, filters, electrical etc. were never replaced. I am currently experiencing a problem with the passenger side-curtain airbag. $1400 replacement probably due to the car possibly having been in an accident at one point. I love this car to death, though. Looks and drives like a true luxury vehicle. I am a college student and it was an amazingly affordable vehicle that attracts a lot of attention at school. 102,700 miles and still running like new!

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  Love it! - 2010 Kia Forte
  By Tara - December 20 - 2:33 am

  We purchased the Forte EX in Titanium after an exhausting search. We initially had settled on a Nissan Sentra then saw this and decided to drive it and we were sold. Most of the complaints that the editors at Edmunds had about the automatic transmissions shifting is easily resolved by using the auto-manual feature. Comfort is fantastic, handling is great for a car of this class.

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  Happy with KIA - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By Jimbo - December 16 - 7:03 pm

  I have only driven 4200 miles since bought this car. Most of miles on a trip to Las Vegas. It drove really good and was fun to drive. Around town I drive my l995 Geo Tracker just to save using the Kia. I hope to take another trip soon. The only thing I think is crazy, they say to change oil at 7500 miles. All my cars get changed at 2000 - 3000 miles. I have always done this and have never had any engine trouble with any car regardless of the make.

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  Kia review - 2005 Kia Spectra
  By bepell - December 14 - 10:06 pm

  Overall a quality vehicle. May not be a popular brand, but gas, comfort and reliability is very good. My wife hit another car, messed his car up pretty good and all we messed up was our bumper, which can be replaced. After the accident, the car doesnt shimmy, shudder or ride funny. Its a well built car. I havent had one problem mechanically. I even went more than 6 months without changing oil to see what would happen and the car didnt skip a beat. Maybe a more sleek design, but thats stretching.

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  Solid so Far - 2003 Kia Spectra
  By deathsaid - December 11 - 8:08 am

  Our Spectra has 120, 000 miles on it and has been pretty reliable so far. I have it for the last 20K or so and before that my father-in-law owned it. It has gone through some brakes and needed some work to fix in the brake fluid system. Front brakes put off a lot of dirt, hubcaps are literally black at this point. All things considered this car has been great, not the sexiest car or most comfy (i am 66) but very dependable. Nothing fancy or flashy about it but it gets from point A to point B.

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  Over 2 years and still going strong - 2001 Kia Optima
  By kiaoptimadriver - December 9 - 2:00 am

  Besides the horrible re-sale and trade- in value, this has been a great car. We have yet to have any real problems out of this car.

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  fun stuff - 2000 Kia Spectra
  By byron - December 8 - 10:00 am

  Wow, what a thrill! You get some good stuff in small package!! I like that there is room for stuff by folding down the back. The sound system is pretty good. Its almost set as a low-rider. Ill keep it.

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  Beats GM! - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By Pablo Beanski - December 8 - 10:00 am

  Beware of cracking windshields - no one mentioned this yet. Its under warranty but a bit of a pain. Great features except for the single power door lock button and remote. Beats the crap out of the Venture I just returned. The automatic intermittent wipers are interesting. Cant believe there is an ashtray, and that there is no clock on the radio (its up on the computer). Miss the navigational feature on the GM onboard computers. Still get funny looks from all my friends - time will tell if we were smart, so far so good.