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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  very nice so far, but... - 2011 Kia Sportage
  By jlg1875 - December 7 - 6:49 am

  Bought the LX 2WD on Saturday and though so far I like it, I have a few gripes. I traded in a 2010 Hyundai Santa Fe SE after only 9400 miles. It was a decent vehicle, but living in NJ just outside NYC with constant stop and go traffic, my MPGs were averaging around 20. I agree so far with other reviews, the Sportages ride is very firm, and with a lot of local streets looking like the moons surface, I found that out quickly. However, Im used to it already as the Santa Fe was not the smoothest ride on its 18 inch rims (Sportage has 17 inch). Steering is also very light and will take some getting used to. Interior a little too plasticy, but I dont agree that rear visibility is all that bad.

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  Used 2004 Kia LX V6 - 2004 Kia Optima
  By s4templeton - December 5 - 7:50 pm

  I used to have a Civic so the V6 is a lot of power for me and I love it. Gas mileage has been 27 with mixed but mostly highway driving. I like this car a lot because of the price. If it holds up, I feel its a great car for the price. Everything Ive read says the Kia is quality and shouldnt fall apart on me. V6 is quiet compared to our 4 cylinder Spectra and as a young couple we feel like weve bought an adult car. The best selling point is the price. I bought used for $10,300 with 24,500 miles on it. Reliability is yet to be seen.

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  Gas Mileage Disappointing - 2008 Kia Rondo
  By FredG - December 2 - 2:46 am

  Love the look and handling of the car- pleased with the price. My only problem is with the gas mileage. After 4 fill ups I am averaging about 16 miles to the gallon. I traded in an 11 year old Subaru with 130,000 miles and was getting an average of 15 mpg doing the same type of driving. Granted most of my trips are less than 4 miles each way, and the air conditioning is running. Hopefully, when fall comes, and the air is no longer needed, the gas mileage will improve. Still, I expected to average 20 mpg. Very disappointing so far.

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  Unsatisfied - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By Andrea - December 1 - 6:00 am

  After 3mths of owning this SUV, problems started happening. First a mousy sound comes from the radio console, 2nd my belt screeches from time to time and they cant find a problem, 3rd a paper crumbling noise comes from the dash/windshield area and they tried fixing it 3 times. I give up! 4th, the ac blower was replaced, 5th, a squealing noise from the outside happens when going slow which is the power steering rack and is being replaced, 6th the power window on the drivers side is moving slow and the motor is making a noise, 7th, when accelerating (I have 5 speed) a ringing noise can be heard when the windows are down and 8th, door handles and seat belt holders make noises. I have a lemon!

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  2005 Kia Spectra - 2005 Kia Spectra
  By finngirl - November 30 - 5:23 am

  I bought the car with 44,000 in 2007, and at 85,000 the engine became completely clogged with oil despite regular oil changes every 3,000-5,000 miles. The manual recommends changing the oil every 7,500. A Kia dealership just said to change the oil every 1,000 miles, to clear the clog but that didnt work, and I had to replace the engine. After the replacement, Ive since learned this has been a problem with this particular engine, and Kia has stopped making it.

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  so far so good - 2012 Kia Optima
  By dawoj52 - November 29 - 2:38 pm

  I got my kia optima 2012 LX used. I thought it would make a great commute car i drive around 80 miles per day to and from work. I currently have 80,000 miles on my kia and so far it has been a joy .I do have some minor problems like the passager and rear windows cant be rolled up or down from the driver control panel ,r/s cigarette lighter does not work,inside temperature gauge quit working ,so i have to take it back to the dealer. The tires on the kia are very cheep and need to be replaced asap upon purchase. MPG is great i drive from Chicago to Indiana all highway miles and i spend no more than $ 55 per week on gas . I get complements on a look of the car all the time !!

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  Terrible Gas Mileage in a Well Built Car - 2012 Kia Rio
  By worknman - November 27 - 11:03 pm

  In Dec 2011,my wife and I bought a brand new Kia Rio 5Dr Ex in red. The people at the Kia dealership were great and practically one of the only reasons we bought the car when we did besides the supposedly excellent gas mileage. Unfortunately,this car get barely 30 miles per gallon hwy and 26 miles per a gallon city. And the great six speed auto transmission downshifts two gears on even the smallest hill,making the cruise control practically unusable for gas mileage runs. Our Kia is extremely well built and attractive. It is fun to drive too. But we really needed it to make the gas mileage Kia said it would. Now we will get rid of it to buy a 5 speed Toyota Yaris

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  Sorento EX V6 AWD 2006 RAV4 Limited AWD - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By sarge - November 26 - 10:00 am

  For $2K more than I paid for my RAV4 4 years ago, I got a lot more. Leather, GPS w/bluetooth/voice activated, rear camera w/backup warning, chrome 18" wheels, more room in 3rd row seat and easier to get in/out, 6 speed auto, FOB keyless, etc. Paid $30K (w/o tax, lic). RAV4 drives stiffer. It will also blow the doors off the KIA with its 269 HP 5 spd auto! Kias mpg has gotten better. Was 16.5, now 18-19 city. Hwy can get 23 mpg. Now, all the complaints other reviewers had, I havent experienced. Hope I dont. But, the tranny on the RAV4 (64K miles) leaked oil. Dealer said $1800 minimum to fix. Shaft to transaxle had 3 cracks on it! Out of warranty. Toyota did a good-will on it. Cost me $165.

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  First Kia and Impressed - 2009 Kia Borrego
  By Ron - November 24 - 10:33 pm

  Purchased an LX about a month ago after seeing a newspaper ad. Was looking to buy a slightly used SUV, but was able to buy my new Borrego for only a couple grand more. Out-the-door price was about $24K after rebate and discount. The strong engine and brake perform flawlessly. Transmission, however, sometimes hesitates. Fuel economy is a little disappointing at 16+ MPG (mostly city). The interior is mostly quiet, and ride is good except over rough pavement. It can get jarring, and mine rattles a bit in the back area. All controls are laid out intuitively. I wasnt sure about the red-lit center stack, but its actually quite soothing at night. Overall, Im satisfied with Borrego.

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  Ongoing Problem Kia Cant Fix - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By SWFang - November 22 - 2:10 pm

  I love the vehicle inside and out. It drives and handles well. The only problem I have is the engine light comes on and off at random always giving the same code (P506) and the vehicle stalls at random usually from a cold start, but sometimes when the vehicle is in motion. Kia has tried to fix these problems at least 4 times each but have had no success. Apparently, they want me to constantly take the vehicle in for service each time the problems happen, but its impossible for me to do so every week. Kia doesnt seem too concerned about the problems and has said they will make no offer to resolve the problem.