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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  Premium and Value - 2012 Kia Optima
  By Acclaimed - January 22 - 7:19 pm

  I currently own a fully loaded 2012 Kia Optima EX Turbo and it has been "smooth sailing" with minimal problems since my ownership back in April 2016. My car had exactly 60k miles on it at time of purchase which was slightly high miles, but I was too thrilled about getting rid of my old 2004 Chrysler Sebring that was moderately reliable with the exception of significantly ignition coil and repeated oil leaks issues. Back to the Optima, after one week of ownership, my car kept dying and come to find out it had a dead battery cell and I had to replace it, alongside with my proximity key fobs that were dead after purchasing my vehicle. Several months later, my fog lamps have stopped working and I think it has something to do with the wires and now I need a coil spring to enhance my cruise control and steering wheel features to become accessible again. Most importantly, last December Kia had to replace a coupling part to stop my vehicle from clicking at every left and right turn. With that said, the value and luxury and performance of my car have been great. I love the panoramic moonroofs on hot summer days, and speaking of hot summer days, the climate control seats work wonders not to mention the rear heated seats for the winter months, along with the heated steering wheel. Oh -- I cant forget about the 2.0L Turbo that has V-6 power with 4-cylinder fuel economy with 274-horsepower and 269 lbs. ft. of torque with a modest to none torque steer.

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  Have to hand it to Kia - 2010 Kia Forte
  By guyonastage - January 20 - 3:19 am

  The sport tuned suspension really makes this car fun to drive. Its no sports car by any means, but it is a beautiful blend of fun and practicality. Theres a half inch dead spot in the throttle which makes first gear a royal pain, but its a very simple fix for someone with a little know-how. Even with the mod, the gas pedal is REALLY light and sensitive. It takes a little getting used to. Blue tooth isnt great, but its there. Back seats have an impressive amount of space for a coupe. Drivers seat sits high and and only raises from the back. Steering wheel controls are great, audio sounds good, interior controls have a comfortable and logical layout. Well done, Kia.

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  Test drive review - 2011 Kia Optima
  By canreda6 - January 20 - 12:54 am

  I have been test driving the 2011 Sonata and Optima. Optima looks like an Infiniti or Audi and offers features the Sonata doesnt like hill start assist and dual exhaust on all trims. I am leaning towards the Optima and I really want to buy a manual trans, but Kia decided, in a truly bizarre move, to not allow you to get cruise control with the manual trans. Otherwise the car is excellent. Very good acceleration and you cant hear the valve train noise like you can on the Sonata which is nice. Also seems like the suspension is more upscale than the Sonata. No options allowed or a turbo with a manual trans?? Change the packaging and they would steal sales from BMW/Audi and others...

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  I love my car - 2003 Kia Rio
  By girl - January 19 - 2:00 am

  I love how smooth this car drives. It is very comfortable and quiet. they also made great colors for the cars this year. I think this is a great family car.

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  surprisingly good - 2007 Kia Amanti
  By kickboyface - January 18 - 1:43 pm

  rented one of these for a week on a trip to las vegas based solely on the prompting of the counter clerk - "theyre REALLY nice." she was completely right. fun. powerful. fast. loaded with features. i rented a Cadillac a few days later and this car was REMARKABLY better. if i was ever in this type of car market, id buy a used one in a heartbeat (they have terrible residual value and its a spectacular car) -- you could get it for a steal.

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  Great car for anyone with realistic expectations - 2011 Kia Optima
  By titan415 - January 17 - 8:51 am

  Im always interested to see how people react to things. Some people drive this car and see it for what it is: a great value and a really good car. And then there are those to say that its not a good car because they have driven, owned, or dreampt of better. Youll see plenty of those reviews here and other places. The reality is that this car is great for the money, offers a huge range of features, has a warranty that should allay any fears about the uknown, and, finally, it looks hot. Its not a perfect car, true. The wide c-pillar creates a blind spot, the engine isnt V6 smooth, and its true that the seats arent the best. But nits aside, this is a seriously good car.

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  Just bought one on the 26 of Dec 04 - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By Paul - January 16 - 1:33 am

  Just bought this ex model on the 26 of dec 04 and am so far impressed with it. The only thing I would recommend is that ABS should be standard equip. on all models, not sold as an option. So far very impressed with the entertainment system. This is our first minivan, so my wife and I really dont know what to expect in ride and comfort. I have noticed that the ride is stiff kinda like a truck, but that is o.k. for the money we paid we did get alot for what we have. Cant tell you much about the gas mileage cause we are still on the 1st tank of free gas. Driving around in D.C. traffic i am sure i will not get what the manf. recommend though. Enjoy the van. great purchase.

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  Good value, roomy for its class, lacks great handling - 2011 Kia Forte
  By turgon - January 15 - 8:09 am

  I traded in my 8 year old Pontiac Vibe for the Forte EX (ECO), which I use as a long-distance commuter car. I purchased the Forte on price and decent reviews after test driving some of the competition in this class. I am happy with the acceleration, comfort, interior space, and styling of the vehicle. Combined gas mileage thus far through the first 2k miles has averaged in the low 30s mpg in my commute of mixed highway and city driving, which is virtually identical to my former Vibe and acceptable to me as the Forte ECO is rated 37/27. Steering still feels a bit uncertain to me and handling on windy roads does not compare to my former Vibe, which I did not notice in my initial test drive.

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  Great Little Car - 2013 Kia Soul
  By loversoul - January 13 - 10:24 am

  We got a Soul+ with the 1.6L and are glad that we did. The over all ride is good. If you can, like I did, take off the factory tires and get a good set of tires like good year or such it will make the ride even better the tires that are on them are what they call hard tires and make for a bit of a bumpy ride not bad but it is there. Also you should understand that there are blind spots that are really bad that is cause of the back pilards are so thick. The shifting when down shifting in the auto can be a bit jerky. 1.6L has good amount of horse power enough to get you going when you need to. The real test for us anyway is the back seat lots and lots of room for tall people

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  Kia Forte - Seats - 2010 Kia Forte
  By Chris - January 11 - 2:53 am

  I purchased this car back in August. Its a nice car it has over 3000 miles I bought the ex with fuel economy pkg I do mostly city driving I was getting 30 mpg which added up to 400 out of tank now im getting 360 per tank whats up with that? Second the drivers seat is killing me I can feel the steal construction of the seat with the air bag in the way. Kia wont do anything about it beware if your a tall & mature man stay away from this car!!!! The engine lag is some thing I still cant get use to? All other options for the money are great. I just wish it was more comfortable. I only drive to work and thats it The steering is not tight it pulls or leans to the right.