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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  Do yourself a favor - 2009 Kia Borrego
  By Franman - December 3 - 1:13 am

  Wife wanted a comfortable and safe suv she could see out of. The Borrego passed with flying colors! This car is a pleasure to drive both in town and on a trip. We put over 1500 miles on it the second week a am totally pleased with this vehicle. Get the EX package, its a great value. All seams all correctly aligned, outstanding workmanship.

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  You get what you pay for - 2010 Kia Soul
  By coloskibum - December 3 - 12:03 am

  Fun for the price, drives like what it is, a fancified econobox. Good sound system, nifty bluetooth. Seats not very comfy for short or tall drivers in our family. The fancy stereo distracts you from the VERY plain and basic everything else.

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  So-So - 2011 Kia Soul
  By aguywhowrite - December 2 - 7:37 pm

  Pros: Styling (it grows on you). Price. That really good Kia 4 cylinder engine. Very maneuverable. Its probably pretty durable. Cons: Handling is not a Kia strong point--tippy feeling on the highway, Not much of a ride. Hard seats. Bit of a blind spot. Hard to believe this is best in its class--You buy this car on price and value. 28 mpg on highway at 75-80 mph.

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  "Good enough" car - 2005 Kia Spectra
  By ftc - December 1 - 3:10 pm

  As empty-nester, great choice for down- sizing from a minivan. I was looking for either a squarish hatchback, a wagon or a car-based SUV. Fun to drive, small on the outside with very good use of interior space. Plenty of space for my bicycle inside. Driver position is better than anything else I tried (Scion xB, Honda Element, Toyota Matrix). I have 1100 miles so far, and mileage is getting better with each tank of gas. Excellent visibility and reacts predictably during quick lane changes. No surprises. Sensible packaging without the need to go to the "top" trim level in other makes to get the safety features.

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  Worth every penny - 2001 Kia Spectra
  By ayoder - December 1 - 7:10 am

  I bought mine new in 2001 and Ive put a little over 70,000 miles on it. Its paid off and now Im really getting my money out of it. Its still running great and drives as good as 2 other new cars Ive recently test driven. I have done all the recommended maintenance and its still running like a top. I had only minor warranty repairs done and have no complaints. Ive been looking for a used higher end KIA like the optima to purchase but I think everyone knows how great these cars are they arent trading them in so there are none available in my area. Can you say watch out Honda someones coming up quickly behind you and their price is better?

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  great value!!! - 2003 Kia Spectra
  By jin1028 - December 1 - 2:53 am

  I purchased spectra as commute car which I drive more then 80miles a day. It has been great! never had a problem and very affordable then any other competitor vehicles.It is not roomy or stong performance as what I expected but I cant complain about value.I have been shopping over least 5 different vehicles but Spectra had great value overall and has best warranty... It was least $4000 cheaper then honda civic or toyota corolla...I owned for almost 2 years and never had any problems and only maintenance I do just change engine oil...I have about 59000miles already and I am gonna go for least 200k miles.

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  KRio04 - 2004 Kia Rio
  By BijouB - November 30 - 10:00 am

  I bought a new Kia Rio 4 door automatic. So far so good.

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  Cheating on GAS Mileage - 2004 Kia Spectra
  By Unhappy user - November 30 - 7:10 am

  For gas price over $2/g. Gas mileage is one of the most important factor when I buy car. Its sticker shows 25- 34 miles/gallon. But after driving 13,000 miles, I am only getting 27 miles/g_freeway. Is it only me or just like some Kia dealers say, need to break in. After 13,000 miles???

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  My Greatest Mistake - 2007 Kia Optima
  By Tom - November 30 - 12:53 am

  First I have to say that it saddens me horribly to write a poor review for this car. It was such an amazing car for the longest time. My commute is 148 miles everyday and my Optima handled the long daily drive like a champ until this last month. At 63,373 miles the engine failed. It seized just cruising down the highway and nearly caused me to crash into the center divider. After a nice little dance with Kia, they agreed to replace it. At 65,973, the transmission had to be replaced. Finally a Kia mechanic told me that the 07 models have some severe quality issues. He said that owners who do heavy driving, and have long commutes have had head gasket, engine and transmission problems.

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  Its wonderful - 2013 Kia Soul
  By kellymo719 - November 29 - 10:27 pm

  I traded in a 2005 Honda Civic for the 2013 Kia Plus, and I am in love! It is exactly what I was looking for in a car - its small, but spacious; the back seats fold down and offer a ton of room in the back. I am able to take my bike or my two yellow labs in the car with me no problem! Its got great response when I step on the gas, excellent brakes (and I love the brake assist). Also, mine came with an extra feature to turn on the car from outside, so I can warm it up in the mornings or start the AC, and it stays locked and running, and if someone tries to take it, it will automatically shut off without the keys. Its seriously WONDERFUL!