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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  Great for the price and tows a boat too. - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By ronwass - March 30 - 1:10 pm

  Let me first state that I LOVE minivans. This one is very comfortable except for one thing: The gas pedal is too close to the drivers seat. We take it on vacations with 5 people to the beach, etc, and you cant beat a minivan for that. I got the towing package for a bike rack, and, surprisingly, two years later I bought a boat which the car tows nicely. Reliability has been excellent. I have had two warranty repairs, and had the brakes done once. The car is heavy and handles as such. MPG is bad of course, but I paid literally half what I would have paid for a similar Honda in purchase price, so Im still ahead on gas. Good luck.

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  My Amanti - 2005 Kia Amanti
  By folfer06 - March 28 - 5:36 pm

  Mine is a 2004 year model but on checking is almost identical to the 2005. I have received many compliments ;one of the main ones is the easy access to the rear seats. My wife loves the heated seats and the drivers seat auto memory.

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  Great Value! - 2005 Kia Spectra
  By mike - March 28 - 5:33 pm

  Got rid of my FORD Lemon and looked around. Was turned off by rude salesmen at Honda and went to Kia. Took the car for a test drive, loved it and bought it. Got a great deal. It gets better every week. Rides great and the gas mileage is above average. I recommend it highly (my kids think its cool!).

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  So far so good. - 2008 Kia Optima
  By new kia owner - March 28 - 6:26 am

  Got this car about 1 month ago. After much research, I decided this car would provide the best value for the dollars invested and so far we have few complaints. My wife is not pleased with the "bumpy" ride, but for me I like to "feel" the road a little. I told her for the price we paid that I could get better shocks that would provide for a smoother ride, but so far we havent made any modifications. For an out-the-door price of less than $15K (with $3000 in rebates) there wasnt anything new in this size of car that even came close. Been getting about 27 MPG with a 50/50 mix of city and highway driving. So far so good. We are very pleased with the purchase of this vehicle.

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  Best car Ive owned - 2010 Kia Soul
  By Mary - March 28 - 3:50 am

  Fun and roomy car with lots of features for the money. The Plus with 16" wheels rides a little better than the larger wheels with low profile tires. This is a great little car to drive. Seating is great. Cargo area with rear seats down is very good. A very safe car for the money. I would buy this one again with not a thought.

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  Very Nice SUV - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By mememe - March 28 - 2:00 am

  Great suv, fun to drive and loaded. This compares to the Lexus and Acura at a much smaller sticker price.

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  Very Nice SUV - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By Stringmusic - March 28 - 2:00 am

  Great suv, fun to drive and loaded. This compares to the Lexus and Acura at a much smaller sticker price.

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  Great car! Great MPG! Best car I have ever owned! - 2007 Kia Spectra
  By Vos - March 27 - 9:36 am

  I would have been happy with this car even if I had spent much more on it. With proper maintenance I did nothing to this car, and before I wrecked it in December it had 176,000 miles. I was very pleased with safety options, after a semi turned in front of me I totaled it, but was left uninjured. You could see how its design left it crunched in the front, but left cabin unaffected. Before the crash I was optimistic about making it to 250,000 miles, as the car still responded the same as the day I bought it new. The MPGs were great, normally averaging 33. It was not much to look at, but if you are looking for a reliable little car it will beat anything.

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  Gotta Love IT - 2010 Kia Soul
  By Casey - March 27 - 7:30 am

  When I went looking for a car I was in the market for used. My husband and I saw the Soul and my husband feel in love. It was new so I was a little leary but he talked me into it. I it has awesome features and it is great value for the price. I have driven other new cars that have had very cheap interior. The Souls interior may be cheap but it is much nicer than some of the other new makes I have test drove. I think that the performance is also up to par with the price. It is not luxury but it is nicer enough. This is a perfect car to release with the current economical situation. Just remember that you are buying a KIA not a BMW.

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  Transmission problem - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By PhilP - March 27 - 3:33 am

  Love the vehicle but have started having transmission/starting problems. Would not start in Park, dealer adjusted cable, now having trouble getting into Drive. Maybe dealer tech needs training. I am bringing it back to get fixed again. Only have 17K miles. Also drivers side passenger door sometimes will stay in open position and sometimes not, dealer lubricated but still is intermittent. I think it may be that the mechanics need more training.