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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  SOUL IS THE BEST - 2010 Kia Soul
  By TwinsPlusOne - April 3 - 9:03 am

  I never thought I would write a review on a car, but I must say that I would recommend this car to ANYONE! I was a little afraid of how it would handle in bad weather and got stuck in BAD weather last night and the car handled better than any car I have ever owned. (about 30 different cars). Even next to MACK trucks in horrible rain, this little car was truly AMAZING and you would have never known it was such bad weather! I really do love this car and I am so happy with my choice to get it!

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  Great Car - front end clunking noise - 2010 Kia Forte
  By Melissa - April 2 - 11:50 am

  Car has been great for me. I had the clicking / clunking noise on my front end as well, brought it in in a month after I had purchased and they said they couldnt find anything. 3 Months later I bring it back in and they said they figured out what the noise was on all Fortes as there is something behind the front tires that needs adjustment. BUT they will only tell you if you tell them you hear the noise first. Otherwise, they will not tell you about this problem. Hopefully this helps a lot of you out there.

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  Fun and Safe - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By Louis - April 2 - 10:46 am

  I have had my Sorento EX for 5 months with no problems. Great for mountains or anywhere but I do not off road. High winds and big trucks passing, no problems. Gas mileage 20 in town and up to 25 on the highway. Comfort great, looks great, rides great. Placement of cup holders just right. No complaints.

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  Amanti upgrade - 2008 Kia Amanti
  By CapeKia - April 2 - 10:20 am

  We just traded in my wifes 06 Amanti for an 08. We were very happy with her 06, but I was a bit uneasy that hers was no longer under warranty since it had just over 50K on it. Her father has the same exact car and was beginning to have some issues (catalytic converter) and had already had the lower end of the engine replaced - all under warranty. We found the 08 with 16K so it still has the remainder of the 5yr/60K warranty left. The car is a completely different animal from its predecessor! Love the new ride, power and interior style! I also would have liked to see real metal inside rather than the plastic on the interior finish. Just ordered the Opirus numbers and oval badge!

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  Likin it - 2011 Kia Optima
  By bobpdd70 - April 1 - 6:08 pm

  Had my Optima SX Turbo for about 6 weeks now and Im likin it so far. I didnt buy it to be a luxury car substitute so Im mindful to not compare it one. It looks great, the power is there and I really enjoy driving it. If I did have one gripe, it would be the tires. I think alot of the issues (left pull and road noise) that are posted in the previous reviews may be tire related. Ill find out in about 35,000 miles when I change mine out.

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  dig it - 2008 Kia Rondo
  By BOPPALOPP - April 1 - 1:36 pm

  Got an 08 KIA Rondo of the used lot of a dealership, for under 10k. Only had 20,000 miles on it. Looks brand new for the most part. Drives well, i love the extra kick that the v6 gives. Adds a lil boost that some other crossover wagon type veichles dont give you. all the usual stuff, power windows, power doors, am/fm/cd, ac/heat. The rondo is very spacious in the back. Lots of room for kids, groceries, camping...whatever. Im pleasantly suprised with this ride, so far!

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  great car for the money - 2004 Kia Optima
  By edeagle - March 31 - 10:00 am

  my second kia optima was very satisfied with first one which was totaled when hit in drivers side door side airbag saved me from injury just bought my second one to replace it

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  A Mixed Bag - 2010 Kia Optima
  By sronald1918 - March 31 - 8:39 am

  I bought this car as as a former rental car in December 2010. I had no significant problems for about a year and then a dying out problem occurred that required me to go all the way up to a vice president of Kia Motors America (KMA) to get it fixed. This problem required multiple repairs by the KMA engineer for the Eastern United States but it was finally fixed after about a year. My experience is that Kia has a long and difficult warranty. Some minor paint issues also appeared after about 4 years that were not covered by the warranty. As to performance and comfort the car is fine.

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  Great SUV for the price. - 2009 Kia Sportage
  By br2000nc - March 30 - 1:43 pm

  We bought the Sportage because it was thousands cheaper than the rest of the compact SUVs and has a better warranty. Kia was also offering a $2000 rebate at the time. Have about 27k on it and so far it has been great. posted fuel economy is 20/25/23, we live in the country and average about 26 mpg, not bad. The only disappointment so far is the tires. They already need to be replaced. The 2.0 I4 is ok at highway speeds but acceleration is a little slow. Get the V6 if you want the 4WD model. Other than that its a great SUV at a great value.

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  My Third Love - 2005 Kia Spectra
  By YoDa6669 - March 30 - 1:40 pm

  I call it my third love after my wife #1 and son #2. I bought a black Spectra 5 back on January and compared to my old Hyundai Accent 96 I traded-in, is like floating on a cloud. I love this car! It has more standard featured that the Focus, the Mazda3 or the Matrix (I compared all 3 by total price with the extra goodies). Its fast, roomy, and best of all, stylish. As soon as I get out, people compliment my car. That makes me real proud! It still works perfectly, no breakdowns, good on fuel economy, the a/c cools like a freezer. Its a shame that I dont see more of them on the road but thats good too in a way.