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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  6 Months and Counting - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By tomahawk95 - September 23 - 3:37 am

  I have had the Sorento for 6 months and about 9000 miles and most all is well. The DVD player and back-up camera sometimes has given us issues and the Navigation System is complex, but I still grade the vehicle out very high. I am 62"/275 and I am very comfortable when driving. The Sorento has great gas mileage (hwy 24+/city 18+). We have 4 kids (11,9,5,3) and they have plenty of room. When buying it came down to the Sorento and the Traverse and though the Traverse has a larger cargo area when the third row is in use the Traverses fuel economy was lower and price was higher. I will post more results in the future.

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  Buyer Beware - 2013 Kia Optima
  By funkster01 - September 22 - 12:36 pm

  The KIA optima is pretty on the outside, but the quality will leave you stranded on the side of the road. I had a brake warning light issue since I bought the car and KIA tried 7 times to fix it. They finally replaced the entire front wiring harness. Two weeks later the car wont start sometimes (it may or may not start). KIA has been unable to repair the problem ( 2 and 1/2 weeks of diagnosing). They are giving me my broken car back to drive until they get an expert flown in (time unknown) to look at the car. They are also trying to blame the problem on an auto accident that was sheet metal only damage and to the trunk. Avoiding their warranty claims (In My Opinion). Run Away from this car.

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  kia works great - 2004 Kia Optima
  By jjfromatlanta - September 22 - 2:00 am

  i bought this car because i commute 250 miles a day and wanted something with a warranty that would last the longest. the car is very comfortable and and good highway cruiser. its got the necessary power when i need it. i just wish it got a little better gas mileage. other than that i think its a very nice car. ive had the car for 6 months and have put over 26k miles so far with no problems!

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  This SUV is AWESOME!! - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Mac - September 22 - 2:00 am

  I was in the market for a car when a friend of mine suggested that I try the Sorento. I was so glad I did!! This SUV is as awesome as the title says. This venicle has been off-road and on the city streets of Chicago. If any of you know about the highways in Chicago, you know theyre almost as bad as going off-road. However, Ive hit potholes, roadkill, branches, DEEP standing water (thats really cool), curbs, etc. and theres absolutely no rattling in the car. NONE!! Ive got close to 23,000 miles on my EX and except for the gas mileage, Ive found nothing wrong with it!

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  Kia Sorrento - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By mahan228 - September 22 - 2:00 am

  I love my Sorrento! I have not had one ounce of problems since purchase. This is my second Kia to own. I loved my Optima and hated to part with it when I did. But, I love the space and the ride in my Sorrento!

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  Sedona - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By Lee Hughes - September 21 - 10:00 am

  Definitely the best buy for the features offered! Comfortable ride, spacious, versatile!

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  The 2002 Kia Sedona - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By akwilliams - September 20 - 6:16 pm

  This minivan offers more value than any other on the market. Fully loaded, the Sedona does not exceed $24,000. Yet, it has a 5 star crash test rating, leather seats, abs, sunroof and more. The build quality is very impressive. And, the warranty is the best on the market. If you can do without the power doors and fold down seats, you should give it a test drive. Do, and you will buy it.

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  Good while under warranty but doesnt hold up - 2006 Kia Optima
  By steve may - September 20 - 2:14 pm

  We bought one of these new and it turned out to be a shop car. After 8 yrs, I had a phone book thick folder of invoices. True, while the bumper to bumper warranty was in place, most things were covered. Afterwards, this quickly became an expensive car so we got rid of it. Sorry, Kia simply is not up there with the Japanese yet. The V6 is quiet but relatively gutless and at 2.7L and 185 hp a waste of gas and money. Unfortunately our trim did not come in a 4 cyl.

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  Excellent - 2003 Kia Sorento
  By Irvin - September 20 - 12:16 pm

  We own a EX 2x2 purchased in July of 2003. I was initially afraid to buy a Kia. I took a test drive, studied the long list of standard equipment (even a full sized alloy mag spare), then purchased our first Kia. A comparably equipped Nissan/Toyota is $8,000 more. I was impressed with the engine smoothness & quietness at highway speeds. I believe the engine horsepower is under rated by at least 30HP. This SUV weighs over 4100lbs and stills merges with California freeway traffic (70-75 mph) with ease. Ive only had one problem, a small rattle in a door, that was fixed in the first month. The styling, reliability and long list of outstanding features make this SUV the best buy on the planet.

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  2011 Kia Sportage SX just purchased - 2011 Kia Sportage
  By jbeach2 - September 20 - 6:17 am

  Took a long time to review models and a month ago selected the turbo Kia Sportage at $30K out the door-it has all the options including these neat little floor lights. Heres what I think so far: 1-great drive- turbo moves and comes with a better suspension 2-price-its $6k less than a equally equipped luxury badge. If you dont care about "prestige" save a bundle buying the Kia 3- 31 mpg on open road and 25 in town-this is comparable to the RAV and the CRV-but with the turbo thrust 4-leather-excellent quality 6-driving comfort great 7-roomy but doesnt look like a behemoth on the road