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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  I Love my Kia Optima - 2002 Kia Optima
  By Adriana - April 17 - 2:00 am

  My Kia meets and exceeds all my expectations. For the last 14 years I have been a Toyota Camry Customer and I didnt think I would EVER like anything else until I drove my Kia, this car has all the bells, whistles and performance I need at a great price.

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  5 reasons I returned mine.... - 2002 Kia Rio
  By lizm1 - April 17 - 2:00 am

  I drove mine for one full week. 1. After 300 miles, my tires are already squeeking. 2. The car has absolutely NO control in icy or snowy conditions...Ive been slipping and sliding all week. 3. The trunk doesnt close properly. You have to push down precisely in the middle. 4. My insurance company wouldnt insure it because (and I quote) "They fall apart too easily". 5. The "new car smell" is very fishy and gave me a headache. ---I was lucky enough that they tried to pull the "Your Financing Didnt go Through scam". I opted to not try to finance it again and I returned it. Im buying year old Honda instead.

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  Go buy it, well worth it $$$ - 2007 Kia Rondo
  By Oscar - April 16 - 5:40 pm

  I bought this car for my wife, but I must say I love it just as much. I drive it to work for 50 miles on the highway and it is very quite and handles quite well. I have not noticed any blind spots and everything is at your finger tips. Night time driving is also very good as the Driving lights and Fog lights are very bright. Also braking and acceleration are just as good and it comes with great Michelin tires. Interior Lighting is also good and lots of interior connectors for those portable CD players - 1 front, 1 mid, and 1 in the rear as well.

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  Sweet Chariot - 2009 Kia Optima
  By bargain hunter - April 16 - 10:13 am

  Nabbed this Midnight Blue MT baby 10 days ago and am in love with it! Researched for months to narrow my search; thought Id opt for a Honda Fit or a Scion XB as I wanted utility, cargo room and decent mileage. But when I realized this was the only car under $20k with standard stability control, traction control and disc brakes on all wheels I was sold. The 10 year warranty and $2k rebate were icing on the cake. Amazing what comes standard on this base model! Almost bought the smaller Elantra but figured the Optimas extra HP and larger engine with only a 1 to 2 mpg penalty was well worth the minor price difference. Excellent gearing + short throw 5 speed = FUN RIDE!!!

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  Buyer beware - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By Jeremy B - April 16 - 2:00 am

  Ok..I got rid of a 03 Kia Sedona that was literaly falling apart as we drove down the road. We decided to buy a middle of the road 11 Kia Sorento since the price was 10k less than comparable SUV. SO, biting the bullet and thinking that KIA, after years of bad press and horrible customer satisfaction would IMPROVE quality when they built 11 Sorento in GA., we were shot point blank. Car has driven 250 miles and the car needs back rotors replaced, front realignment due to a hard right pull and an alternator recall service, this is after two recalls. To top it off, the airbag module box on the front passenger dash creates an outline through the dash covering. Warranty may fix but this is bad!

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  AMADOGON - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By AMADO V GONZALES - April 14 - 12:43 pm

  Bought this 2004 Sorento EX 4WD in 12/2004 with 19 miles on the odometer. Tested vehicles 4WD performance during the snow blizzard of Jan. 2005 here in Suffolk County (Long Island New York). Did the stop and go run about 15-20 mph on 10 inches snow on the road, went through like a bulldozer, no skidding, zigzagging (SUV equipped with disc brake/abs systems). I am giving a perfect 10 score for this vehicles performance. Also, tested vehicle performance on the highway; handles excellent.

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  works for me - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By steve - April 13 - 11:10 am

  i use the Sedona for work, loaded with tools and parts. It has performed very well. city/hwy combined mileage is always above 20mpg. It can be fun to drive for a minivan and acceleration is exceptional for a vehicle this size. I have had a couple problems, turn signal stopped working; but seems to have fixed itself. my biggest problem has been finding a competent dealer and the prices they charge are comparable to infinity(for 60k service) I purchased the van because my wife has a 2003 optima which has been problem free. And the KIA was the last car I wanted her to buy. oh yes, plan to keep it as resale is nonexistent.

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  good cheap car - 2001 Kia Rio
  By cpatriaw - April 13 - 2:00 am

  this car is great for single guy and not suitable for family car.I bought mine on Oct 00 and in Feb 04 ive drove over 60K miles. In 2003 I drove this car from New York to San Jose,California without problem. Things that should be improved from Kia is they need to bigger their second row seat.

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  Great vehicle all around - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Packer fan - April 13 - 2:00 am

  Bought this vehicle after testdriving the Hyundai Sante Fe and Mazda Tribute. This has much more room. Excellent head room and room for 3 adults in back. Handles great.Looks great. Have 4500 miles already on this 2004 LX and have not had a single problem. We have highway mountains to climb and this has plenty of power.

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  Best Bang For Your Buck - 2010 Kia Rio
  By mikeyt1818 - April 12 - 9:56 pm

  Fun car, sporty and peppy despite 1.6 liter engine. Great features on SX like leather wrapped steering wheel with audio and cruise controls, metal pedals, 16" inch alloys, rear spoiler, sport cloth with red stitches. Very sporty looking!