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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  My Sorento! I Love it! - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By danoarx - September 8 - 10:00 am

  I checking the SUVs that are affordable for me and also are comparable to expensive SUVs, since one year. Came across KIA Sorento. As it was KIA so I wasnt sure whether it is I should buy it or not. Started to read its reviews, and found that everyone is saying it is a great SUV. Finally I decided and got one last month. I really like this SUV.

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  Fun lovin SUV - 2005 Kia Sportage
  By Mike - September 8 - 2:06 am

  I purchased my 05 Sportage EX about a month ago and it is great. Yeah, the mileage is little to be desired, but gets a little better with time. I did do some modifications, like a new exhaust system and K&N filter, and that made a huge difference in the performance and a few extra miles in mileage as well. I love that the rear seats recline back a bit for long trips. If you are thinking of buying a small SUV, I definitely suggest you go look and drive one. I used Costco to purchase mine and saved a few bucks, but most of all, I didnt have to haggle over the price. I got mine for right at $20,000 (with cloth seats). Kia has come a long way and really improved on their vehicles.

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  Minor glitches, not getting MPG advertised - 2011 Kia Forte
  By sschultz - September 7 - 2:41 am

  I bought the 2011 Kia Forte 5-door four weeks ago and already need to head into the shop. The clock quit working on a drive the other day, the key fab control for the hatch isnt functioning and the power outlet casing comes out when I try to remove my ipod charger. Relatively minor things - but it is a new car. Averaging 30MPG (not included in the trip computer, but a manual calculation) driving 60 miles highway every day. Im not an inefficient driver so unclear on when Im going to start getting 34MPG. Overall its a fun car to drive but have concerns about the build quality and reliability of electronic components specifically.

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  Our first minivan - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By Military in Minot - September 6 - 10:23 pm

  I bought this van for my wife after extensive online research. The determining factors for buying this model were quality, safety and price. I looked at all vans from the "lowly" KIA to the "mighty" Toyota. What I discovered in those other brands was, in order to protect your family you were forced to buy the upgraded models with cameras and fancy seats. I want quality and safety to surround my family. KIA offers the same level of safety in ALL their van trims!! All comments I have received are of absolute appreciation for the build and material quality inside and out. KIA may be a Korean company, but they built exactly what we needed. My next vehicle will be a KIA/HYUNDAI.

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  My smaller SUV - 2007 Kia Sorento
  By Ruby - September 6 - 8:16 pm

  I bought my Kia by trading in my Nissan Armada. I was commuting on weekends from my home in Dallas to my parents in Jacksonville, Tx. I went from $65 in gas to $40 and also about 4 more days before I had to fill up. My son has plenty of room in the backseat in his carseat with his books, crayons, and DVDs. The Armada was so high, I always had to open the door for him. Now, he gets on in. I do contract work for a florist and the easels fit nicely. I make arrangements in my home and I have plenty of room to put everything. The engine is very quiet, it handles great in the rain. I love my Sorento!

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  BEST CAR I HAVE EVER OWNED!!!!! - 2012 Kia Optima
  By mrcwby - September 6 - 6:55 pm

  I am 56 and have owned many a vehicle but i have never, ever, had anyone walk up to me and admire my vehicle on atleast 4 different occasions. I even had one take a picture. I am 66" and this car even fits me with the panoramic sunroof. I really enjoy driving this vehicle every day and currently i am getting 30.2 mpg going back and forth to work. Granted it is mainly highway until i reach the city but i did take a jaunt to PA and that was two months ago and i was getting 35.1 mpg. I purchased this vehicle in Oct 11 and i currently have 10k miles on her.

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  My Experience with my Kia Rio - 2009 Kia Rio
  By Inrm - September 6 - 10:00 am

  I bought this car about a month ago. Everything is fine but it has a very weird squeaky noise with the rear brakes. Ive taken it to different places and nobody knows whats going on with it. The car is cheap and is no luxury at all. Everything inside is very simple. Is a little bit small, but i dont care about it because i use it to commute. Fuel economy is OK. Car is very quiet on both streets and highway. Tires are a bit small. I think that what you get for the money is fair.I like my car. I just wish We could find out whats going on with the brakes.

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  Fun to drive - 2012 Kia Sorento
  By dagreene57 - September 6 - 7:29 am

  Have an EX with the V6. Fun to drive, but definitely have the throttle lag mentioned in other posts. Weirdest thing was a week or two ago started to get apulsation/vibration under acceleration. Took it to the dealer and they found a snap-ring on the left-front had slipped and was allowing the front axle-shaft to move around. They put on a new one and found that the correct part was undersized. They found a correctly sized part and no more problems. The service manager said this was the 3rd one he had seen. This was at about 15K miles. Other than that, a blast to drive, handles great, good power.

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  Test Drive - 2018 Kia Stinger
  By Matt K - September 6 - 6:17 am

  Okay. So I have been waiting for this car to arrive for almost 1 year. I test drove the GT1 and really liked it. This is a really nice sports sedan. I compared the features and performance to the A5 sport-back (the other car I am considering). This car far exceeds the Audi. The only item I preferred that the Audi has is a full digital instrument cluster. But that is really not a deal breaker for me. Even though the car just came out, the dealership I was working with was fine in selling me the car at $750 over their cost. I will be looking to purchase the car on Jan 2, 2018.

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  Good van - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By busmunoz - September 5 - 10:58 am

  Bought the van used in 2009, and other than the required maintenance I never had to fix a thing. I love this van. I put about 75,000 miles on it and it is more reliable than any new car I ever bought.