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 Car for the Money - 2001 Kia Optima
  By pizzu - January 19 - 10:00 am

  Just purchased the Kia Optima (2001). Would have like a Honda Accord but saved myself about 6 grand by opting for the Kia. Its a lot of car for the money. Looks and feels like a luxury car. I feel I made a great choice. I would like to rate their Service Center as excellent. They took off some minor scratches, did oil change (minor things to get me and my 2001 on the road right away). All in all a very pleasant experience.

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  Love my kia - 2002 Kia Spectra
  By Mac Daddy - January 19 - 10:00 am

  Best and only car I have ever owned

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  Big Value - 2002 Kia Spectra
  By Burton - January 19 - 10:00 am

  Koreans are trying hard to nitch their way into the Japanese market. The 2002 Spectra is a vast improvement to their initial attempts and seems to be on par with Hyundai. For the money, I couldnt find a better deal. I think Kia is doing what Honda did in the early 80s. I hope they succeed.

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  Kia Sportage - 2002 Kia Sportage
  By Mac Daddy - January 19 - 10:00 am

  I love this car

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  Great Budget Car - 2009 Kia Rio
  By good budget car - January 18 - 7:16 am

  My Kia Rio has so far been excelent as far as a purchased car. The car is a bit cheeply made. One of the few problems I experienced was when I bought my car it had a bad fuel pump but it was resolved by my dealer. The car is overall very quiet on the highway no real complaints. As far as gas with the economy the way it is Kias are the way to go. It makes about 30 to the highway however I have experienced up to 40 to the highway. I am a college student it fits my needs as far as room.

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  The Best bang for the Buck!! Period! - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By kiasorentolvr - January 17 - 10:56 am

  I bought my Sorento for my wife to take to work and drop my son off at school. It really suprised me how nice this truck is for the price!!She loves it and gets compliments on it all the time. I hesitated to buy an SUV (Ive always driven cars) but when I looked at the features: Wood grain, Leather, heated seats, Sunroof, auto Climate control and the sticker price I figured I couldent go wrong! It rides a little stiff because it is built like a truck (body on frame) but that is good because if my wife gets in an accident (heaven forbid) then I know she has a better chance of walking away. Not to mention the standard side curtain air bags that other SUVs dont even offer!

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  My happy Soul - 2012 Kia Soul
  By Debbie - January 16 - 5:20 pm

  This was by far the best choice we have ever made in a car. We looked at a Prius n other similar cars but we are a tall family n the Prius was too low in the back for my grandchildren n adult children. This car fits everyone well n is solidly built. (You can here it when you close the door.). I have a friend who has one n was hit from behind at a tremendous impact but the car took it n was able to be repaired without damage to its core frame. The body shop man was amazed n said that it took one h*ll of a hit but was ok. Really protected the riders that day. We have now owned this car almost 5 yrs and as our other vehicles "die" we will be visiting the Kia store to add more to our family.

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  Impressive.... - 2008 Kia Rondo
  By GREAT CAR!!! - January 16 - 1:23 pm

  I have never heard of the Rondo. I bought an 08 with a little more than 7,000 miles on it for $10,900.....bout 3,000.00 below book. I did a test drive....and LOVED it!! Its got lots of zip! Handles well! Lots of leg room. Very comfortable. Storage compartments are hidden in the back cargo area. Very quiet inside. I was/am VERY impressed with this car. Its got lots of compartments that are convenient in the front for the driver and passengers. I would recommend this car highly and I am so glad that I now own one.

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  Fun pickup truck - 2013 Kia Soul
  By Frank Aber - January 16 - 1:05 am

  This little car goes to Lowes and Home depot and handles everything I put in it including 2" x4"s x 8-0 long.

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  Short-Term Review (5k Miles) SX Premium Touring - 2012 Kia Optima
  By cura04 - January 15 - 3:14 pm

  Currently owned for 3 months (my last car was an Acura TSX). I researched like hell because I never thought that I would purchase a KIA in the near-future. Overall, I am in love with the vehicle. I mainly purchased the vehicle because of the appeal, features, performance/fuel efficiency, and size (in order of whats important to me). I like to point out the price point- Retail $30,395. No car in the mid-size region offers every option as the optima SX for that price. Of course, pending where you live, incentives and supply/demand will dictate the final price. I couldnt be happier with my purchase and I feel like a million bucks (as I drive down the street knowing what I actually paid for it)