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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  Love this car - 2010 Kia Forte
  By Robin - August 28 - 1:13 pm

  I bought my 2010 Kia new. I love the way it handles. It has a sleek design. It was priced right... in the seven years Ive had it, I have done nothing more than put on a new set of tires, alignment, new battery, and oil/fluid changes. I would have had it seven more years had someone not rear-ended me hard and totaled it. I will now buy another new Forte Koup EX.

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  Fun with Turbo - 2012 Kia Sportage
  By christophg - August 28 - 3:32 am

  Overall I am very happy with my purchase. The car is actually faster then I expected. The Turbo must work wonders with the little 2.0 liter. Even at 80 MPH, it still has some room to go. I have the Navigation option which I think is overpriced & would probably be better off with just using my iPhone. Fuel economy is not as good as I expected but it never is & I drive it pretty aggressively. It seems to have more road noise than some of its competitors & this was supposed to be improved on this model year.

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  I will buy another! - 2004 Kia Sedona
  By SchlingBlade - August 27 - 10:56 am

  Purchased our 2004 KIA Sedona LX new near the end of 2004. Lots of extended highway driving when we go on trips, and the van performs well. 20-22mpg on the highway if we keep it under 70mph. I have replaced the original tires (56K miles), and windshield (rock cracked it). No other work outside of normal scheduled maintenance (fluid changes, tire rotation). Will need to have the front brakes serviced for the first time when 60K miles rolls around. Interior has worn well, except for the drivers side floor where the carpet is dirty. Van is driven every day, regardless of weather, so it gets quite dirty in the winter. Once this van is paid off, Ill be purchasing another KIA!

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  Not Happy :-/ - 2007 Kia Sportage
  By 07kiaowner1 - August 27 - 10:54 am

  I just got the car about two weeks ago. i had a 2001 chevy suburban and with todays gas prices i was ready for a gas saver. The dealership told me the gas mileage was 22 city and 27 highway. i was truly excited about the car till i went out of town the first time. in fifth gear going 70mph my rpm is running about 3000!!! when i checked my gas mileage i got 23 mpg and nothing but highway no city driving at all!!!! i get 21 mpg in town very happy with that but highway sucks im a 22 year old college student that still cant afford the trips home to see family thanks to a lie of a dealership and the poor gas miles of my new kia :(

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  beware - 2008 Kia Rio
  By gmclover1 - August 25 - 3:12 pm

  this is in response to some who say they need to purchase a good car great on gas. This car does ok with those two aspects but I recently had to take the car in to have the motor taken out of the car for the air conditioner. Not under warranty when they say it is your fault and you have put papers in the glove box!!! Who says you cant put papers in the glove box, there was nothing saying we couldnt, but now that the air conditioner has sucked in my oil change receipt, because of their design flaw in leaving a hole in the glove box, I shouldnt have to pay for this, now they are saying I cannot have my car back if I don;t because they fixed it!!! Did they fix the hole?????

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  Good deal. - 2003 Kia Spectra
  By braedyn - August 25 - 10:00 am

  Dont pay attention to the editors. They think everyone can afford a BMW. I have a 2002 Spectra GS, with air, auto and a nice sounding cd player. With incentives, I paid less than $13000 for the car out the door. Ive put over 18000 miles on the car and have not had a single problem. The car is comfortable to drive, handles quite well, and looks very nice inside and out. If you dont have alot of money to spend, but need a new car, I highly recommend looking into a Kia.

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  Fun to drive, good MPG, Inexpensive - 2012 Kia Rio
  By shawnmh - August 24 - 3:02 am

  I bought this car new to replace my 91 Imperial and Im averaging 33 (70%/30% C/H) mpg at the pump and Im loving it. Although the ride isnt the smoothest, its definitely better than many others Ive driven in this class. When you turn the ECO setting off, you get a significant boost in power and throttle response. Handles great in the city, but acts like a small car would on the interstate. I love the SportShift, although not the quickest shifts, it is a blast through curvy roads. The high beams illuminate very well as do the regular lights. Steering has good feel and the car is very nimble up to about 45 when the electric steering starts to show. Design cues from Audi shows.

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  Kia review - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By Richard Gilardi - August 23 - 9:40 am

  I am very pleased with the purchase of my new kia sorento. I choose the kia after looking at one that a friend had purchased. I had narrowed it down to three choices,the chrysler pacifica, the nissan murrano, and the kia sorento.The features that the kia offered dollar for dollar was the best value. I liked the nissan murano alot,but was turn off by the fact that it required premiem fuel. The performance is great along with the styling and qulity of workmanship. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a great car with comfort and value

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  Be wary of Kia Sorento - 2007 Kia Sorento
  By Kelly - August 23 - 2:03 am

  I bought a new Kia Sorento in Aug 07. In less than a month the engine had to be replaced. In March 08, there was a cooling system problem. In Aug 08, the key got stuck in the ignition. In May 09, there was an oil drain plug leak plus a recall on the airbag. June 09, there was a recall on the stop lamp switch. Sept 09, the key got stuck in the ignition again. This time I was told it was a shifter issue. Just want to warn people about all of the issues that I had. After the last problem I have now traded for a Toyota.

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  like it - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By nikki - August 21 - 10:00 am

  We just bought ours a few weeks ago and I am in love with it awesome pick