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 = Bad - 2000 Kia Sephia
  By Morgan - June 5 - 6:40 pm

  My dad bought me this kia from one of his friends and i have never driven a more horrible car. It goes in the shop for engine problems almost every month. Gas will last me maybe a week not even. And it is rusting horribly. I hate this car. In the winter the door locks freeze and my doors wont shut, i have to drive while holding my doors shut trying not to let them swing open. The car is so noisy, the muffler is loud, just the whole car. It goes 0 to 60 in like five minutes. Not an exaggeration!

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  The 45,000 miles Kia - 2003 Kia Sedona
  By theld62 - May 2 - 3:36 am

  It appears that KIA products are good for about 45,000 miles. After that quality significantly falls off. At 45,000 miles I had a $1,000 scheduled maintenance bill at the dealer. My KIA Sedona died of terminal engine failure at 79,000 miles. KIA says they are not responsible for the repair. So much for the long haul warranty. Needless to say I will never purchase a KIA or Hyundai brand product ever again, and I will tell everyone I know about my experience with KIA "no service" Even other auto makers call the KIAs throw away cars because their resell value is next to nothing after just a few years. Mark my words you will be sorry for the day you ever bought a KIA or a Hyundai.

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  My first car - 2001 Kia Sephia
  By NoMoKias4Me - April 19 - 2:00 am

  I bought it brand new with 1 mile on it. 3 days after buying it, it was back at the dealer for 4 days. When I got it back, they had replaced the computer, the fuel injector and something else (cant remember). 2 Days later, back at the dealer. This time for about 1 week. When I got it back, they had supposedly put a brand new tranny in it. Well, just a few days later guess where it was? Yep! At the dealer for almost 2weeks. This time, when I got it back, I learned that last time they had put a reconditioned tranny in it and that this time they put a brand new one in it.

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  My Kia - 2001 Kia Sephia
  By Gina - April 4 - 8:36 pm

  I knew that I was not buying a luxury car, so I didnt expect it to be comfortable. But I did expect that for 20,000 (with interest) my 2001 Kia Sephia would be reliable. My car has failed on me 10 times in the past two years, all ten times the problem being my battery...dead, no matter the weather or how long my car was sitting. My dash lights also go out on occasion which really sucks because its usually nice to know how fast you are going. My Kia stinks.

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  Do not buy one! - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By hransdelljr - February 18 - 4:06 am

  With less than 750 miles we developed a problem in the start up which Kia says they do not have a fix and do not know when a fix will be available. We bought their top of the line model and have been left "in the cold" as the saying goes. We were told absolutely not to refund or replacement and that we had to remove our vehicle from their service lot (still with the problem) or face storage fees. In my opinion do not waste your time looking at this vehicle.

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  The worst drive ever - 2009 Kia Rondo
  By Troy - November 16 - 11:20 am

  I do not know what to say. The car has the worst seats of any car I have driven, the visibility is not the best, the transmission shift like a 1980 Chevy Citation with 100k on it. The 4speed auto is so outdated. I have this as a long term rental.

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  WHAT A LEMON - 2008 Kia Rondo
  By jskayaker - November 15 - 5:20 am

  I bought my 2008 Kia Rondo used with 19,000 miles on it...I really liked the car it suited my needs for hauling kids, dogs, kayaks and camping gear...but now at 51k miles the engine has locked up. I had the car serviced regularly and keep up on oil changes the whole nine. This is very very disheartening.....I still owe 9800 on the car and the new engine will cost 4800 to replace. I will never buy a KIA every again! I will also tell anyone buying a KIA to think again.

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  Toy car - 2000 Kia Sephia
  By kia_sux - November 12 - 10:23 pm

  What a piece of junk. Poorly made in EVERY sense of the word. Cheap paint, cheap interior, cheap everything. Youd be better off buying a pony. Dashboard warps severely on driver and passenger side. Although it has been a problem for several years Kia REFUSES to do anything about it.

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  This thing has 4 wheels and an engine! - 2015 Kia Optima Hybrid
  By Tesh - November 11 - 2:04 pm

  I dont think KIA knows what the term hybrid means!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can get a 6 cylinder Honda sedan that will give me the same mileage as this junk! Passenger seat feels like your liteally sitting on the floor! you see jack from the seat! The rear view from the drivers seat is a joke as well!

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  save your money - 2002 Kia Sportage
  By worstchoiceevermade - November 5 - 2:00 am

  this car sucks! it stays in the shop. 2 wks after i got it the window switch broke, the interior seat covers had to be replaced...the belts gave out..the brakes messed up, the air went out and now the windows dont work at all...no wonder they come w/that long warrenty..youll need it. how can i get rid of this piece of junk???