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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  SEDONA SATISFACTION - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By MITTOWE - November 29 - 10:00 am

  I AM SATISFIED WITH CAR AND THE VALUE PRICE.

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  Dont Buy One! - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By Palmtree - November 29 - 10:00 am

  Picked up EX on Wed. Heater defective. On Sat., they say bring back on Mon. Go back on Mon. (after a very chilly 5 days), and get rental car. Finally call me on Thurs. to say its fixed and they had to order a part and take apart my whole dashboard. Pick up my car again on Thursday. Immediately notice a 4-inch knife gash in passenger door upholstery. Show manager. Promises to replace entire door panel today. So now I have a brand new, 10-day old car that Ive gotten to drive only 3 days. AND, theyre never the same once they start taking apart the dash, door etc. Exceptionally poor service given by Fette Ford -- during both sales process/repair.

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  Increasingly Disappointed - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By fivefold - November 29 - 10:00 am

  At first I would have written reccomending this minivan like others, but at 15,000 miles I cant. It has been in service many times for many different reasons. To be honest it sounds like a rattle trap. The seats rattle, the doors rattle, the back gate rattles. For the last serveral months the cruise has not consistently worked. They cant find the problem! The vans largest draw card is a lot of high-end features for reasonable money. And yet, you have to be able to enjoy those features while driving down the road. Would I buy the car again? Positively no. Be willing to give up long term integrity to fancy features.

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  AWD is terrible! - 2011 Kia Sportage
  By smallsuvdriver - November 29 - 8:15 am

  I think Kia forgot that above all, it is supposed to be an SUV! In the freak blizzard we had this past October, I was driving home when my windshield wipers stopped working simply b/c snow had built up under them, I tried turning them off, back on, spraying blue stuff, nothing would make them come back...I got out in almost white out conditions & scooped the extra snow & slush from under the wipers. They started to work again..... cant imagine if I had still been on Interstate and that happened. The next day, it couldnt even get up the hill outside our house! Our Subaru Forrester had no problems at all! After only a year, traded it in on a Ford Escape.

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  Like a Go-Kart - 2001 Kia Sephia
  By FastWRX - November 28 - 8:00 pm

  When the car is working it drives like a go-kart. It has little get up and go but when it goes in to 2nd gear it starts to slow down. I think the only good thing about the car is the gas mileage when the car is working. One major problem Ive had with the car is the alternator belt and bracket. Ive had to replace the belt 5 times now, and the OEM bracket is such a poor design. Its a good 1st car if you have the money to keep fixing it all the time. Other than the repairs its been a great little car.

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  You must have soul to buy a Soul - 2011 Kia Soul
  By Jack Schwartz - November 28 - 6:51 pm

  Great vehicle for running errands around town. A lot of room for what looks like a small car.

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  Good Enough to Drive - 2010 Kia Soul
  By A.W. - November 28 - 12:46 pm

  I like my Kia Soul.It is a nice car It gets me from point A to Point B. Problem is has large blind spots almost got into two accidents in two different ocations I really had to move my whole body just to make sure there is no one beside me in order to get into the choosen lane.I also feel the road bumps :( those are my experiences with my Kia. Its cute,But..... they have there flaws.

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  Kia at its best - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By govenor - November 28 - 1:13 am

  Vehicle is great! I traded a GMC Jimmy for the Sorento and have not been sorry. Vehicle is fun to drive and performs better than my GMC in the snow. It is very comfortable on long trips.

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  An Excellent Car - 2007 Kia Spectra
  By T. Ast - November 27 - 11:26 pm

  I did a thorough search when looking for a new car (Mazda, Ford, Hyundai, Toyota) and decided on a Kia Spectra. This car came standard with everything I needed. Some options like air and six airbags came at extra price on the other cars I looked at. I was amazed at how quiet the ride was and what a zippy little car it is. So far in mixed driving I have been averaging 32 mpg. The sound system is fine and the car hugs the road even in a heavy downpour. This car came with 4 wheel disc brakes that work so well I think anti-lock brakes would be overkill!

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  My first new car. - 2011 Kia Optima
  By pacoug - November 27 - 7:24 pm

  Ive driven a succession of Maximas, Infinitis and a couple other decent 4 doors, all bought used with moderate miles. This time I went for new for similar money, to see the difference. I must say, a G37 or Maxima is a lot more car than this--but look at the sticker of a new one. I find in most situations the lower power of the 4 is more than enough to get the job done, even if not as thrilling as a 3.7 liter Nissan 6. It sure is a thrill at both the gas pump and the insurance counter. I get 10 more mpg with this car than I did with my last. It has a great warranty while my previous car had no warranty. Cost of ownership: far lower!