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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  SEDONA GOOD BET - 2004 Kia Sedona
  By MR JAE - December 15 - 10:00 am

  I have had the sedona for 14 months put on 7500 miles. The only problem i had was the rear door would not open from the inside. But that was easy to fix. The minivan comes with 5 years or 60,000miles bumper to bumper. This is a good all around minivan. I have the EX model it has everything except leather seats. If u are looking for a minivan take a close look at this one.

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  really nice suv - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By duffygg - December 15 - 10:00 am

  I PREVIOUSLY HAD PURCHASED A KIA SPORTAGE, AND I ENJOYED THAT VEHICLE, BUT THE SORENTO IS A WHOLE DIFFERENT BALL GAME. IT IS STYLISH, STURDY, AND HAS THAT GREAT WARRANTY. I LOOK AT ALL THE SUVS ON THE ROAD AND I FIND MYSELF SAYING, "THIS IS REALLY A NICE VEHICLE". THE ONLY NEGATIVE, IF YOU CAN CALL IT ONE, WOULD BE THE 20-22 HIGHWAY MILEAGE, AND THATS OK FOR ME. GREAT LOOKING INTERIOR AND EXCELLENT SOUND SYSTEM. I WOULD PURCHASE IT ALL OVER AGAIN!

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  Evaluation after one year and 12,000 mi. of driving - 2014 Kia Sorento
  By ttadych - December 13 - 9:51 pm

  We live inWisconsin and therefore opted for the all wheel drive version. All systems working very well and generally we are completely satisfied with the decision to purchase. KIA engineers need however, to make the passengers seat fully adjustable. NO WAY TO RAISE SEAT LEVEL. You sit too low in the passenger seat ! This is the top of the line model with nearly every option, but there is no power adjustment for height of the seat. Very short sided on KIAs behalf….. Like the power of the engine and would not sacrifice the power for a bit more economy…however there must be a way to engineer at least a few more mpg out of that engine. GREAT CAR OVERALL

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  Reason why it needs 100,000 mile warranty - 2012 Kia Optima
  By DEBRA GREEN - December 13 - 6:25 pm

  This car I bought new it has needed so many things replaced. Eat tires going on my 4th set and dealership says noting wrong with car dont know why it wears tires so quickly. Yeah warranty is great its the constant inconvenience of having to take in for repairs. Never will buy or recommend Kia ever

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  Not comfortable - 2008 Kia Sedona
  By clhughart - December 12 - 6:23 pm

  In 2012 we purchased a 2008 Sedona with 65,000 miles to replace a 92 Plmouth Voyager that had 210,000 miles. The Sedona handled much better and had lots of power compared to the Plymouth. Our Sedona had non-power cloth seats; my back would hurt after about an hour and my wife complained about her legs hurting. We sold the Sedona after owning for three months. First time Ive had a vehicle for such a short period of time. Also, the carpet was sort of like that trunk carpet where you cant hardly sweep anything out of it (sand/grass/etc.). The doors would easily freeze shut in the cold, and the interior trim just didnt look like it was gong to hold up as well as the Plymouth did.

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  Better than I thought. - 2006 Kia Rio
  By Steve Chase - December 12 - 3:43 pm

  This car is easy to drive and park. I like the pick up the engine has, rides smooth, the air conditioning is great, cools down fast - living in Florida thats a real plus. Also like how the floor mats stay in place. Has a lot bigger trunk than I thought it would.

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  2000 Kia Sephia LS - 2000 Kia Sephia
  By pgluck826 - December 12 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car used with 19,500 miles on it for $8700. It has been reliable and gets great mileage (I average 23 MPG city and can get nearly 30 MPG highway). It performs well. I have had to do some minor repairs (alternator and A/C system). Its low on frills, but the engine and powertrain are still under warranty. I added a trunk-mounted CD changer. Overall, a great little car for not much money.

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  DONT BUY IT!!!!!! - 2000 Kia Sportage
  By KANNA - December 12 - 2:00 am

  I bought this thing because I thought Id make my first ever new car purchase something different, innovative and hoping Id be a trendsetter{like early Toyota buyers-HAH!}. I have had to replace rotors,[with deep grooves, MY MONEY],brakes,battery at 12,000 miles. Within six months of purchase the power windows would go down, but not up! Hold button sticks in very cold weather.Now the brake pedal cover fell off. Snow, ice is embarrassing. I fishtail like crazy.Metal dents easily. Cant wait to get rid of it.

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  happy at the anniversary - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By bepeace - December 12 - 2:00 am

  we have had our Sedona now for 12 months...while many relatives looked at us cross eyed when we told them we bought a Kia, we decided (based on the price) to take a chance...it was a good call...we have only had one problem (the front cup holder) other than that it has been entirely reliable, easy to drive, very functional!!! we have the scaled down LX (no leather, no CD, etc) but it was money well saved...the dealer required maintenance has also been economical, fast, and friendly...no complaints thus far...if you need to seat a car pool and dont want to have to pay through the nose to do it, this van is a great choice!

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  a good van - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By mrbobo - December 12 - 2:00 am

  a good van to drive and have fun with the kids love all the cup holders and places to put their toys