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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  What the Heck???? - 2016 Kia Sorento
  By Lea Beghtol - June 19 - 6:44 pm

  Love my 2016 KIA Sorento but, a tree branch went through our windshield our first winter storm. It has been almost 7 weeks now and our body shop has been unable to get parts. We have also been told that our local dealer does not have the proper equipment to test the electronics on the 2016 models! We havent even had our first oil change!

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  Best PHEV - 2017 Kia Optima Hybrid
  By Chris Doan - June 19 - 11:17 am

  Ive owned BMW, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz in the lasts 10 years and have been shopping around for a PHEV for months. I was considering and test driving the Ford Fusion Energi, Chevy Volt, Totoyta Prius, Nissan Leaf, BMW i3, Huyndai Sonota Hybrid, Tesla Model S but finally traded in my Mercedes for a KIA Optima EX PHEV for its styling, infotaiment system, technologies, range, price/value ratio, long warranty. This car met all my expectations: stylish, smooth/quiet/comfortable interior, reasonable EV range. It did deliver the 29 all EV range as advertised. Ive installed a 240V outlet and used an inexpensive level 2 charger I bought from Amazon.com for less than $250, it charged the car from empty to full battery in less than 3 hours. Well done KIA!

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  Happy - 2016 Kia Sorento
  By JENNIFER CANNON - June 18 - 6:05 am

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  It Aint a MINI - 2011 Kia Soul
  By katiemurphy - June 17 - 1:51 pm

  First off, let me admit my bias as I am a three-time MINI owner (Cooper, Convertible, and Clubman) and sort of bought the Soul out of a desperate situation, and not because I was in love with it. The Soul is a competent (at best) smaller car, and is probably worth the price IF you get to haggle a bit and dont finance the whole thing. I was surprised to find out my insurance AND fuel costs are significantly higher with the Soul even though its a cheaper car. Its fine for buzzing around town, and gave me the little bit of extra space I needed for an infant car seat and dog(s). The handling is not aimed at performance or fun. While uncomfortable, the seating height is good.

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  After 1 day, nearly perfect - 2016 Kia Optima
  By Scott - June 17 - 12:06 pm

  I purchased my Optima SXL last night. I feel like I stole it. With the $2500 rebate, I paid under 29k for the car. Yes, you read that correctly, UNDER $29k. Thanks to a GM who honored a price shown on his website that the salesman claimed was a mistake.. But after I contacted the GM telling him that the salesman told me the online price from another dealer is always a lie, then when their price was $10 less, I called them out on it.. and so they basically had to eat their own words, or practice a bait and switch on pricing as they accused another dealer of doing. That turned out to be my gain! The tech on this car is incredible. I ding the car a little because for some reason there is no Homelink garage opener in this car. I will have to decide if I want to keep a transmitter in the car, or opt to pay for dealer installed option review mirror with Homelink. There is a little bit of turbo lag, but other than that, the car is very quick. Steering is a little softer than I am used to, as I am coming from and Acura. Acuras typically have very tight steering. All of the feature on this car are awesome.. Huge sunroof, heated steering wheel, ventilated seats, and all of the accident mitigation built in is awesome. This car feels very high end and very expensive. I am surprised this is a KIA. I didnt think I would EVER own one, but here I am. Even the 10-spoke chrome wheels look almost identical to that on the Jaguar XJ. The attention to detail is great. Little bits of chrome in all of the right places.. illuminated outside door handles when you approach, and red painted calipers. I am still shocked that I bought a KIA and even more so to say after 1 day, that I LOVE my KIA. Ill do another review after I have had the car for a few weeks.

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  This is a no go! - 2004 Kia Optima
  By TJ - June 16 - 10:06 pm

  I bought this 2004 4 banger in 2007 with 33,000 miles. I expect problems (serious) around what? 100K at the lowest. coil pack went out at 55,000. Gas filter something out at 63,000. Ok those are small things. But heres the big thing. I have only 74,000 miles on it and the engine roars at you like the tranny is going. I depend on this car. I need a car. I still owe 6100 on it and it is about to flop out on me i can tell that tranny is going! This car really sucks. I treated it well. Put lots of miles on it quickly, but drove it slow never raced it and still it causes to many problems and way to much stress! Way too Much

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  pleasantly surprised. - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By lhasadaddy - June 16 - 7:53 pm

  This Sorrento was a replacement for my previous vehicle. It was used and abused. Previous owner did no maintenance on it. Spent a couple of hours under the hood cleaning MAF sensor, throttle body. Had my buddy replace the oil and all the tires. Not to mention complete brake fluid change( no charge for any of it. For which I am eternally grateful) it now runs like a champ. Roomy , comfortable, fun, and a pleasure to drive. Still needs to have a few little things done. The fact it ran as good as it did considering what wasnt done in it 255,000 miles of service is testament to its build quality. Called KIA about recalls. Booked in same day.

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  Sorento ex - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By Linda - June 15 - 10:20 pm

  I really love this car. I was very hesitant to even consider a foreign made auto, but I was stopped next to a sorento Ex at a red light and couldnt take my eyes off. So I immediatly rushed to the nearest dealer to test drive. It is very smooth to drive, and exceptionally roomy. The exterior is aero dynamically designed. I purchased the 2-tone ex model. It is just amazing how many options are standard equipment. Kia has done a superb job. The gas mileage could be better, but it is a small price to pay when safety is involved. Wheel base is short,makes for a slight uncomfortable bump over speed bumps, etc, but overall, this is a fabulous car. All I need now are arm rests

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  Love my Kia - 2006 Kia Spectra
  By Weasley - June 15 - 1:36 pm

  I rented a Kia Spectra in 2005 and enjoyed the vehicle so much, I bought one in 2006. For the price, it is a comfortable ride, looks great from the ouside, but I bought it for the safety features. As an urban traveler everyday it is just a matter of time. The light interior I purchased is not the best, but that is not why I bought the car. I am petite, but passengers are not and the cabin fits us all, short trips and long. I want to drive the wheels off this, but if I need another car I will purchase another one.

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  Kia review - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By joseph d. proctor - June 15 - 5:23 am

  I chose this vehicle for the following reasons: 1. The price 2. It doesnt have a whole lot of road noise 3. It has a standard V-6 engine. 4. It has a great standard warranty. 5. And most importantly my wife liked the way it looked.