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:

• 

  Not A Bad Car For The Price - 2004 Kia Spectra
  By thj - December 1 - 2:00 am

  I dont care what anyone saids about Kia I think the spectra is a good car for the price.

• 

  GREAT VALUE - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By PAT GUY - December 1 - 2:00 am

  WELL BUILT NOT CHEESY AFFORDABLE BEST WARRENTY EX, HAS GREAT TRIM ON THE INSIDE.

• 

  Love my Sorento - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By mdgolfer - December 1 - 2:00 am

  This vehicle has been great. I travel alot 39,000 miles in first year. Get oil changed every 3000-4000 miles. I have had no problems at all.

• 

  Just Loving It!!!!!! - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Lina - December 1 - 2:00 am

  I absolutly LOVE IT!!!!! I cheked out quite a few SUVs, and for the money you just cant beat it. It has plenty of room, drives great, and looks nice. Thanks, Willowbrook Kia.

• 

  THIS CAR SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!! - 2008 Kia Rio
  By pinkpanda - November 30 - 6:57 pm

  this car has had problems since 1 year after buying it brand new i have had transmission promblems about 5 or 6 times and they say its something else the service people mess up stuff that i have to take back to have them fix the still havent fixed my transmission they are very rude and i would not tell anyone to buy one of these cars they will screw you over on the warenty and when its over they will finally tell you whats been wrong with your car the whole time so that you have to pay for it they need to do there job or go out of business

• 

  1st Mini Van - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By Corlisia Sims - November 30 - 10:00 am

  I bought this van on 7/27/02 as it currently has 1300 miles on it. I have not had any problems except for a little rattle coming from the drivers side dash area. Its a great van compared to other vans Ive drove and researched. The price is great. The gas miledge is poor. I guess Im use to driving my BMW which I can go 400 miles before I have to refill compared to 200 on the Sedona LX. Hopefully this Kia will hold up. Never thought I would be buying a Kia use to BMWs, Toyotas. But when I saw the KIA SEDONA I know I had to get it based on the price and the standard features!!

• 

  Excellent Value - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By Washington - November 30 - 10:00 am

  We love the Van - its a great volue and after one month would consider buying another KIA Vehicle. We spent a month reviewing the Honda, Toyota and Mazda vans and found them to be as much at $10,000 more in price. So the seats fold down in the back and the sliding doors have auto windows. - this was not worth the difference in price. The van has a lot of power the 3.5L engine moves in a heart beat and with 7 adults it can move. KIA has the best value and van in the market. The warrantees are excellent. I recommend a Buy!

• 

  great milage/great value - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By smulvey - November 30 - 10:00 am

  my 10th new car, best i ever bought. paid 21,000 with tax and still saved $ 4000 from cost of dodge van with v6. tires are heavy duty, 44 PSI rated. WIth 42 PSI i am getting 20 mpg with air conditioning on, even when stuck in traffic jams! would reccommend to anyone that wants a safe ,fun, long term relationship. last van was 1999 GMC Safari. Kia is far more comfortable and just as powerful.

• 

  Toyota Yaris Quality for a Kia Rio Price - 2006 Kia Rio
  By AndyH - November 30 - 2:43 am

  Test drove Toyota Yaris and the Kia Rio appeared to be a more refined and substantial ride. Out the door at $11,000 for an "06 LX Automatic with 500 miles vs. $15K+ for a Toyota Yaris with automatic made this an easy decision. 6 airbags for safety and a cute design on the exterior made this a perfect car for my daughter.

• 

  Traded in an F150 King Ranch for the Sedona - 2011 Kia Sedona
  By tomerikac - November 29 - 5:06 am

  Thats right. My wifes 2002 Kia Sedona was starting to get a little old in the tooth. But instead of trading it in on the 2011, I decided to trade in my 2006 King Ranch for it. Hey, the King Ranch was beautiful, but the Sedona gets 10 more mpg, hauls the kids AND the groceries and doesnt cost so much to maintain (tires, repairs, etc.) So she drives the new Sedona (safer and more dependable than the 02) and I carpool in the old Sedona. The o02 had a $1000 repair (AC) a few months back, but that has been the only repair in over 9 years. My wife LOVES the 2011...the kids too!!!