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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  Continual Electronic Failures - 2012 Kia Soul
  By ohmysoul - April 15 - 9:31 am

  I purchased my 2012 Kia Soul with all the extras, my first brand new car in 25 years. The added features only work part of the time which is majorly disappointing. I have complained several times and the dealer admitted there were problems and replaced the system, TWICE! All my music was wiped out. Ive had the music go haywire while driving going between one song and another almost causing a wreck. The sun roof sometimes wont open and the backup camera sometimes wont come on. I was in a car accident that wasnt my fault and my blue tooth would NOT call 911! After all repairs the system completely locked up and I could not make or receive calls.

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  Rondo LX Excellent Value - 2008 Kia Rondo
  By Ed - April 15 - 7:46 am

  I recently purchased a used 2008 LX Rondo V6 with 9,700 miles. I sought a vehicle that was a good value, had a practical aspect for light duty hauling, and that would be reliable with decent gas mileage. I have been happy with the Rondo and it has mostly met the above criteria. Bonus features that I found are that the V6 has good pickup and handles around corners well. Also I am 65 and about 210 lbs. This car provides excellent headroom and decent leg room. I like that the driver sits up fairly high with good visibility too. Overall, there are better vehicles in this category Id say, but they will cost you significantly more. This is a reliable vehicle at a good price I believe.

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  best used car value - 2007 Kia Optima
  By usedcarbestbet - April 15 - 7:00 am

  Was looking for a 2006 Hyundai sonata used then found this beauty which is a 2007 and got a way better price than the 2006 sonata and car is very similar. Has the same engine as the sonata and a better 5 speed auto trans sonata has 4 speed. This car gets better fuel economy than the sonata. The sonata does have a quieter and smoother ride however not as sporty on the turns as this car.

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  Good SUV but not on Fuel - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By Dan - April 15 - 4:30 am

  I must state that overall my wife is very happy with her new car. Though, I am not since the gas mileage is nothing near HWY EPA. Sorento is underpowered with AWD and has averaged 20.5 mpg the last couple of weeks. We took it on a 300 mile trip through hill country Branson, MO and the gas mileage was terrible. Dont buy 4 cyl if you have hills. Get the V6, it seems to get the same gas mileage. Aside from poor gas mileage, interior amenities are top notch. Nice to have 3rd row and back up camera. Seats are comfortable but a bottom cushion is a bit awkward, try it out for a while first. Car looks good and price was great. Super quiet..much more than CR-V.

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  Shake Rattle and Roll - 2016 Kia Sedona
  By john schuler - April 14 - 9:58 pm

  Between the highway noise and the rattling it is the worse car we have ever owned. We owned it for a little over a year and put on 17 K miles (mostly highway miles.) Went to trade it in at a Kia dealer and lost over $15K in value. Was looking to trade back to a Sorento which we had and traded in for this vehicle. As far as options goes it has it all. Would never own another Sedona.

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  Big Bobs Cadenza Review - 2014 Kia Cadenza
  By Robert Dena - April 13 - 9:22 pm

  I have owned or leased 5 Kias! This includes an Amonte, three ( 3 ) Optimas, and the Cadenza I am reviewing. The 2014 Cadenza I just traded in was one of the finest cars I have ever owned. I never had one bit of trouble with it and it ran like a dream. My ONLY criticism was getting in and out of the vehicle. Because the car was low to the ground and I have a back that gives me trouble on occasion, it was a little bit of an effort to get in and out. Once seated, I had no problems. I would highly recommend this vehicle to ANYONE, and that includes luxury car owners. I can make that statement, because I have owned Cadillacs, Lincolns and other high end vehicles. My advice is simply this, if you can afford a Cadenza, buy it and you will not be disappointed.

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  Maybe Just a Lemon - 2008 Kia Rio
  By Prime# - April 13 - 2:13 pm

  I recently bought a 2008 Kia Rio and after only having it for two days my transmission went out. There was only around 8,000 miles on the car when I bought it, so i figured it was going to be very reliable...Well maybe I just got unlucky but it made me never want to buy a Kia ever again. Besides the transmission going out, I felt that it was a pretty attractive car(granted I had gotten a black Rio which meant that the tacky plastic trim was not as noticeable). It was a rather smooth ride, but I did feel kind of unsafe in it because it was so small. Besides the transmission going out, I guess it was cute little car...

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  Really Like Car - 2013 Kia Rio
  By natlikescars - April 13 - 1:34 pm

  Excellent car for the money. Gas mileage is as advertized. Combined miles of city and highway for me is 36 to 37 mpg. Highest mileage so far was 45.8 and on a combined trip of 450 miles it was 42.8. Worst mileage so far was 34.5. and we have 3200 miles on car so far. Very quiet car with smooth transmission and peppy engine. In LX you dont get cruise control and I miss that. have the power option for door locks and windows.

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  Disappointed Consumer - 2004 Kia Sedona
  By Lisa Grimmer - April 13 - 10:00 am

  I have had my sedona 2 years, and I have had to take it back in 6 times for repairs. 3 times were for check engine light, which is still not repaired. Both of the sliding doors had to have the rollers replaced, and the passenger side mirror is stuck. All of the repairs have been under the warranty, but what happens when the warranty ends?

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  Very Surprised! - 2006 Kia Sedona
  By dmanley - April 12 - 9:30 am

  My wife and I recently had our third child age 5 and under. Given car seats, stroller, diaper bags etc. we felt like we had to succumb to a minivan. After researching/comparing other minivans the Sedona seemed like the best bang for the buck. We have owned our Sedona for 5 weeks now and we are thrilled with the very comfortable car-like ride, smooth handling, climate control throughout the cabin and all the extra room. We are extremely pleased at this point, and cant imagine not having this wonderful vehicle. Highly recommend at this point in our ownership.