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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  KIA...Car Paint Job is a Joke - 2005 Kia Amanti
  By coachshopper - September 23 - 1:58 pm

  Bought this car 4 years ago; wanted a luxry car but not the price. Saw this beauty and took it home. Had the car a month and the paint on the front bumper started to bubble and the paint clear coat started chipping. Took it too the dealership and was told there was nothing they could do and it was my fault. Took it too a paint and collision shop and I was told when it bubbles it is bad paint & clear coat from Kia. Went back to talk to the manager and still refused to fix my paint. Then the electrical need to be replaced and the fuel injectors went bad and air conditioner went out. Stay away if you can! Kia doesnt care about your or there cars.

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  Spotty quality. - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By njw1224 - September 20 - 12:36 am

  Terrible gas mileage - about 12 city, 16 or 17 highway. Eats front end tires quickly due to the heavy weight. At 49,000 miles Ive already gone through 2.5 sets of 60,000 mile tires on the front. Ive had to have the front brakes worked on twice, already replacing the brake rotors - not covered in warranty. A/C isnt very cold anymore, and the engine (or tranny?) is getting very noisy at only 49,000 miles. Im expecting something to go wrong within the year. Also - BEWARE - make sure you do all of the required servicing at the required mileage intervals or your warranty may be void. Check with dealer. There are a number of services that need performed at various intervals.

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  Do not buy this cheap poor mans car - 2003 Kia Rio
  By terence gomez - September 19 - 10:00 am

  I bought this thing two months ago and let me tell you its a real piece. No power and horrible gas mileage (for its size),handling and build quality. The suspension set-up is a joke, I mean a solid rear axle? come on now. I guess you cant expect much though. This is what I get for being cheap and poor. If your poor like me then just buy a decent used car for less, youll be much happier.

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  great car - 2003 Kia Spectra
  By Kia fan - September 19 - 10:00 am

  I traded in my 2001 Honda Civic for a 2003 Spectra and Im so glad I did. The Spectra handles better than my old honda and it comes with a cd player and more ammenities such as vanity mirrors. I owed quite a bit on old car and my payments are $10 a month less!!! Obviously the "professional reviewer" is name brand guy. I wish I looked at Kia before I bought the civic!!

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  orlandospin - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By kiakat - September 19 - 10:00 am

  The Sorento is a great vehichle although the gas mileage could be better. My Sorento started out getting 13.5 mpg at first and now with 2000 miles its up to 17 around town. Great midsize SUV.

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  KIA HAS A WINNER - 2010 Kia Soul
  By Gary McAdams - September 19 - 6:50 am

  I just have lees than 600 miles and this is a winner. It is comfort front to back and my KIA dealer was fare and I felt like I was buying a roles, I have always bought American but know KIA is a car for EVERY ONE TO LOOK AT ! Thanks KIA for building a WINNER

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  its a keeper - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By arhowell - September 19 - 3:06 am

  I have to say I love this van. It drives great, it has a lot of pick up and go and it looks great. This is my third van I owned and my favorite. I had a Ford before and a 2004 Kia Sedona. This model is so much better than the older one by far. Im keeping this one for a long time

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  yes its a kia - 2009 Kia Borrego
  By sallen - September 17 - 10:00 am

  Just got it and very happy. The v6 has as much hp as my 4.7L. tundra. You cant beat the standard equipment that it comes with. The dealer was selling these for $11,000 under list, so couldnt go wrong. needed something that towed and it came ready to go. This is a "$40,000" domestic SUV and they still cant match the 10/100,000 war.Friend has 05 sportage with v6 thats going on 100,000 mi. and still going strong.(tows two wave runners to lake). Cant see buy any domestic SUV until they can match this one.

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  2011 Kia with Soul! - 2011 Kia Soul
  By dudpete - September 17 - 10:00 am

  Researched a lot of cars on the web before I selected my 2011 Kia Soul+. I like to find cars that I want to drive, but also feature a factory subsidized lease. Kia was offering $169/mo for 36 months with $1,999 drive off. Was able to dicker for $189/mo and only $600 drive off, a savings of almost $680 over the term of the lease. Interest rate is 1.454% with a 59% residual. Love the car and all of the included features. It is really fun to drive and gets very good gas mileage too! I was able to exchange the stock tires, which were OK, for an excellent set of 215/55x16 General Altimax HP tires for $250 out the door. This is a much better rated set of tires. Love the small turn radius too!

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  Horrible Mistake - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By Belen - September 17 - 10:00 am

  The worst mistake ever, we decide to give KIA a chance, and now we are full of regret. After only 5 months of having the car, the second row seat broke after pulling it down for the first time, it took 3 visits to the dealership to have it fixed, and now I was left stranded in a gas station at 10:00 pm with 3 small children by myself because the gas door would not open, I tried the "emergency" handle to open it unsuccessfully for 30 mins. By the way the "emergency" handle is a big joke, is just a very thin thread. Dont waste your money!