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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  Safety - 2002 Kia Spectra
  By dover - July 29 - 10:00 am

  The only bad thing I have to say about this car is it is underpowered. The milage is great, as well as the reliability. We did not have one problem with our KIA. We recently were in a head on collision in the KIA and this car withstood this impact and kept my family safe. The wreck was pretty bad, but the Spectra did its job preventing serious injury. The car is now totaled and I would not hesitate to get another one...

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  Wow!! What fun!! - 2010 Kia Soul
  By mikeyt - July 26 - 9:33 am

  I love this car. Best features, great sporty ride, engine has some nice pep to it, stands out in a crowd!

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  dont understand what this is - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By Hank Bossung - July 26 - 7:30 am

  Great van. Price was good with rebates, much lower than competition. No problems with vehicle whatsoever other than having to have a windshield wiper replaced.

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  Good for big people - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By assemblage - July 25 - 5:40 am

  Got this cause Im 64",280lbs and its very comfortable. Except for the parking brake placement Im very comfortable sitting in the SUV. Love the soft fuzzy cloth, engine power (much better than Sportage), being higher so others head lights arent blinding me, and it looks really stylish, very similar to a Lexus. Warranty is great & we paid a bit more for a 3rd party extended warranty to make it 10 year, 100k mile bumper to bumper. Fuel economy could be better, but with the price & warranty, itd be cheaper buying the extra gas then buying a Ford Escape or Saturn VUE.

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  Suggested Improvements - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By Areh - July 24 - 3:23 pm

  Had Kia since May. So far, Its good until it rolls onto any size road bump. Bad noisy, jarring & annoying suspension! It drives nice on smooth roads but you feel every bump to the point that you are shaken up. Camera is irritating, it blocks your vision. Radio power button stop working. Other features are commendable. Had major problems with Nationwide Dealership in Timonium MD. Very long story made short, got a call 3 wks after purchase saying I had to pay 3,800 more for my trade in. 2 mths later, they still have not paid off my trade in, which is now affecting my good credit.

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  best bargain - 2006 Kia Rio
  By lhennigar - July 23 - 5:56 pm

  This vehicle is all around a great one / good mileage & reliable. Front seats are hard, though wouldnt trade it .

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  Greatest Find of this and last century - 2005 Kia Amanti
  By Morko Berbeteoux - July 23 - 3:25 pm

  This is a great and special car. Glad to meet a quintessential sales associate with discerning abilities that conducted himself in a professional manner and wore fine Italian shiny suits.

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  Spectra LS is a great car... - 2002 Kia Spectra
  By spectraboi2002 - July 23 - 10:00 am

  I have just under 30,000 miles on it.I paid about $16,000 for this car and I got all of the goodies, Cruise, power windows and locks, XM radio. Another great thing that I like about the Kias that most do not know Alpine makes their radios.Also I have had very little problems with my car.The most major problem that I had was the Cruise control switch broke,and it was not because of poor quality,but rather me letting others drive it on vacation and them not knowing how to use the switches and they broke one off.I am extremely rough on my car and It is still going very strong for highway passing. So it is fun to drive and alot of "Bang for your buck".

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  Solid vehicle, great price - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By Kevin 73 - July 23 - 10:00 am

  Very good min-van for the price, solid build quality. Powertrain is good, gas mileage is sub-par, could use sixteen inch wheels and tires. But overall, so far our van has been a very confortable riding reliable vehicle, especially the great deal we got on it, other dealerships want at least four to five thousand more for the same. Me and my wife are very pleased with it.

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  Extremely nice car for the price - 2010 Kia Forte
  By Lazin - July 23 - 12:56 am

  The Forte EX with electric steering feels like Im driving a high end Lexus or Acura. Stay away from hydraulic LX model since it does not feel the same. The Forte handles very well with an adequate performance motor.