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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  Buy one! - 2003 Kia Spectra
  By Mononeo - May 2 - 10:00 am

  My sister wanted me to find her a good value car, and this is what she ended up buying. The Spectra was actually cheaper than the Rio, so why not get it? We went and drove it around town (same exact one). The dealer paid for gas and didnt care how far we wanted to drive it. They fell in love with it. It rides smooth, doesnt lean too much in turns, and has lots of room. Dollar for dollar, you will be happer with a Kia than a BMW though. ONE FINAL NOTE: Buy the hatchback!

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  Love it so far-3600 miles - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By GraveDowser - May 2 - 10:00 am

  Got Sorento based on specs review/comparisons and features included in price (Black/beige EX 4X4 with Leather, ABS,Tow package, rear spoiler as options and "ventshades" added). Had concerns over HP but test drive proved adequate pep. Style is great and, after adding gold pinstripes, got comment of "best looking one Ive seen". On freeway @ 65-75 mph got 21.6-22 mpg with plenty of reserve accel. Steering wheel controls are helpful. Wife was comfortable on long trip and, although hearing impaired, enjoyed the stereo. With temp about 90 deg we were comfortable with open roof and partially opened windows - without A/C or excessive noise.

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  A Great Looking SUV - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By Jon - May 1 - 12:46 pm

  I just purchased my Sorento LX and couldnt be more pleased. I have owned many new cars before and this one is a lot of fun to drive! The price, the warranty, and all the standard options that comes with the Sorento made this purchase a no brainer. Looks exactly like the Lexus SUV but without the price.

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  A Home Run! - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By Robert B - May 1 - 2:13 am

  After seeing Kias serious entry into the luxury minivan market, the also excellent Honda and Toyota models are starting to look old. The Kia is big, comfortable, tight, powerful and fast with FWD and traction control. From the 3 power doors to the amazing 13 speaker Infinity DVD system with 7.1 surround sound, this car really provides a great amount of comfort in a utility oriented design. Were getting close to 24 MPG on the highway and its not broken in yet. 2 year old baby loves the ride. Safety ratings top the list. Driving this in heavy rain, this car feels just as secure as my Subaru Tribeca. Kia looked at the market and cherry picked the best from all others to make a great van!

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  Coming from a 99 Chevy Lumina - 2016 Kia Forte
  By John - April 30 - 8:39 pm

  Upgrading to this car from a ill-maintened Lumina was one of the best decisions ever. Then again, Ive jumped quite a few years into the new-car-world. Ive been owning the Forte LX for 4 months now, and to say the least, its a great car. Not perfect... but great. It runs smoothly, quietly, and if you want, super fast. I was impressed at how the engine keeps it quiet, like the Toyota Priuss. However, after putting-in over 2,500 miles, the engine starts losing its futuristic engine sound. Im a music enthusiast and I was extremely overwhelmed with the possibilities of connecting your phone/mp3 to the car via USB, AUX and Bluetooth. However, I am not impressed with the sound quality, but of course, that can be upgraded later in life. The windows are supposedly made to keep the heat out of the sun, but thats not quite accurate. Its like any other car window in its family. Trunk space is awesome! Fold down the seats, and you can practically sleep back there. All-in-all, the car does its job quite well. I forget sometimes to be grateful when I begin comparing it to other cars I should have bought instead.

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  Not bad, could be better - 2008 Kia Sorento
  By Looking to trade - April 30 - 2:53 am

  I traded a sedan for the Sorento. I use it to transport bikes and dogs (one of which is a 75 lb. Greyhound) and commute to work. I wanted a vehicle that sat higher than a car and had plenty of cargo room. I drive combined city/highway and get 22.5 mpg. Ive had trouble with the passenger airbag-my brother (140 lb.) has ridden with me and one minute the airbag sensor screen shows its on, then a few minutes later its off. Doesnt exactly make you feel safe. Theres a rattle (already) on the drivers side that the dealership fixed, then a few weeks later it came back.

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  I hope I didnt make a mistake - 2010 Kia Forte
  By bj - April 28 - 10:33 pm

  I bought this KIA 2 days ago. I really liked the looks and the price. Today I noticed that my front right bumper little loose. I took it right back the dealership after they looked at it they said they have to wait for KIA motors response since they dont see any damage and they never seen this happen before. Interior looks nice but the material is little cheap compare to my 11 yr old Honda Civic. Leather doesnt feel like good leather. Too many oily fingerprints. I hope I didnt make a mistake buying this car. We own 7 Hondas in the family, this is the 1st Korean car.

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  Overall good - 2004 Kia Spectra
  By L. Roberson - April 28 - 7:33 pm

  I like the car, although it fails to have enough leg room for medium to tall height drivers. It has a slow start-up speed but once it gets past about 30 its smooth sailing. For an economy car, its overall good.

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  Happy with KIA - 2005 Kia Spectra
  By Greg - April 28 - 4:56 pm

  Overall happy with the car. Could use a little more noise insulation a little thicker exterior metal and higher quality paint job.

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  Love my Kia - 2005 Kia Sportage
  By Charlie & Amy - April 27 - 1:23 am

  We looked at many GM SUVs. The prices with a limited warranty was outrageous. This is our first non GM vehicle. So far we love it. The 100,000 warranty sold me. Hopefully we will continue to love it and we will have a long relationship with Kia. The prices are $4000-$10,000 less than GM.