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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  Almost 40 K on the Sorento - 2011 Kia Sorento
  By herrhec - September 28 - 2:18 pm

  I have the car three years already, on some trips no problem the machine is reliable. Some minor issues: the transmission ( manual) was changed because of a small "click" sound. the mechanic got lazy and after complaining several times (since he said: " the sound is normal") they put a new transmission and when they finished the sound was still there. Took it to another place it was a minor issue ( 30$ for repairing).Just changed the rear pads. hope to keep the car a few years more.

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  True Review of the Kia Optima - 2005 Kia Optima
  By Jay - September 28 - 1:06 am

  First 3 years and nearly 60,000 miles the car was flawless. At 59,700 the check engine light came on needed spark plugs, wires, and sensor covered by warranty then all of a sudden the headlights started to blow-out every other month, the chk eng light came on with several major codes not covered by warranty, the exterior held up but the wheel covers peeled and wiper arms started to rust. Drivers door speaker started to make horrible noise. The belts would squeak in cold/damp weather at start-up

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  Read and Research Before you Purchase - 2016 Kia Sportage
  By Sharon - September 26 - 5:32 am

  This was our first Kia and all is not what is said about this little car. We have the SX with a turbo engine. The gas mileage is terrible. Our Hummer H3 did better than this Kia. The front and rear seats are the most uncomfortable seats I have ever sat in. Very hard and uncomfortable. The navigational buttons are all over the place. Some on the left, some on the right but no rhyme or rhythm on any of them. The turbo will automatically kick in at a high speed and the car takes out from under you. The turbo engine is very very fast and takes off out from under you. The biggest problem is that i am 53" and I hit my head on the door entry every time I get in the car. The door/head clearance is deplorable. The sunroof position because i have to have the seat forward is behind me so it does me no good to have the sunroof open because it is behind me so to see out I have to look up and behind me. When they [pn they positioned the sunroof they set it back way too far. We tried to call the dealer after the first week to tell them this car would not work but after six weeks and 51 calls the dealer would never call me back. I even tried to call the owner of the dealership to tell him this car was not working out for us but he also refused to call. The very worst thing about this car is the back sunroof is cosmetic only. It will not open but there is a sunshade that you have to open with your hand which means you literally have to pull the car off the road and climb into the back seat and open the sunshade to see out the back sunroof and the same with closing it. This I find to be cheap and "cheesy" for such an expensive car of this class. From the outside this car is a beauty and very sporty and and eye catcher but that is where this car stops. I find it to be unsatisfactory in all fields except it is a joy to drive. You have to try to ignore the blind spots, which are there, the extremely small back storage with zero to no light. The only thing good about this car is driving it. Other than that just go out and buy a Hyundai Santa Fe because for the price that is a better car but not as sporty and as flashy as the Kia SX. Other than that if you want to drive fast this is the car to have because this is a car that goes fast in a few short seconds. We made a mistake in purchasing this car and the trade in value of this car is zero to nothing. For the best Kia in this class the products used are how it was made was cheap and cheesy. Then make sure you deal with a dealer who will let you return the car for another if you decide to buy. Our Kia dealer would not even return one out of 51 calls over a period of six weeks. We are now paying for a car we hate and a dealer who refuses to make good on what they promised which was if you do not like it we will get you into something that suits you. A better choice would have been a Kia Sorento.

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  Wish it was stronger but a overall good - 2006 Kia Rio
  By OLDSCHOOLDEVIL - September 23 - 7:50 pm

  Ill tell you Im hard and neglectful on cars and this Rio has kept up. I didnt give it a oil change for 15000 miles and it started and drove like a champ. I have had small problems (eats through tires and brakes wear.) Not to confy. I drove from California to Texas and Ill say Im young and those seats i cant stand to sit in them for more than a hour. Decent on gas. Id recommend this car to young kids that are neglectful and need a good car to get them by. Nothing fancy. I do like the strong speaker system.

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  Rods KIA - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By RAY RUBY - September 23 - 10:16 am

  Overall vey satisfied. Fuel economy much better than expected. It is consistently 18.5 to 20 mpg with AC running and in and out of traffic. Road noise a little high and steering radius a bit short but neither problem comes close to off-setting the value of the purchase price. Seats are a bit heavy and bulky to remove but 7 adults can ride quite comfortably. Dual AC unit is outstanding and here in south Florida that counts for a lot of comfort. Tires are nosiy and I look forward to replacing them. havent had chance to check out dealer support as Ive had no problems . Im very satisfied especially "for the money." I wish I had gotten the optional "back-up warning system."

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  2011 Forte EX - 2011 Kia Forte
  By skinsfanjack - September 23 - 8:11 am

  I have now owned my new Forte for one month. Have driven it just over 1,000 miles in mostly city driving and have achieved an average of 30MPG. I am a BIG guy, 63" and 260#. I find more leg, head, shoulder and hip room in this Kia than others in its class. It is comfortable to drive - but maybe not so much on a long trip. Has many creature comforts not found without extra cost on the competition. If I have a complaint it is that it feels a little light and "squirelly" in Interstate driving, so one must pay attention. I was used to a big Oldsmobile before checking on most cars in this class, all of whom came up short except for the Hyundai Elantra. The Kia won the coin toss.

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  False MPG, but lovely car - 2013 Kia Optima
  By optimahybrid - September 20 - 6:21 am

  The 2013 Kia Optima Hybrid is pretty to look at! It is also comfortable to drive and has good pick up. BUT...the fuel economy under real world driving conditions is substantially lower than the estimated 36/38/40. We drive 85-90% hwy miles and our mpg is a pathetic 33 mpg. Weve driven 10,000 + miles and have calculated the mpg each time. Worse, the fuel gauge onboard display overstates the mpg by 4-5 mpg. It is easy to be lulled into thinking the mpg is decent, but when calculated...it isnt.

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  Long Term Review - 2006 Kia Spectra
  By Kentucky Ranger - September 19 - 12:06 pm

  After driving this Car for 2.5 Years and 40k Mi I can say it was well worth the Money. Pros: Still very quiet and runs very smooth. No rattles or squeaks. Very roomy and comfortable on long trips. Flawless operation of the Drivetrain with no abnormal Fluid usage. Still very tight handling with no sign of any wear in Suspension or slop in the Steering linkage. Exhaust system still very quiet and resisting Rust. Cons: Not even close to the advertised Fuel economy. As of now 23/29 Cheap Carpet and Seat material already showing signs of wear. Windshield Weather Stripping had to be glued to keep from coming lose. Horn was not hooked up at Factory. Clock intermittently shuts off.

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  Dont regret the purchase but would not buy another one - 2007 Kia Sedona
  By apennysaved1 - September 17 - 11:50 am

  I own a 2007 KIA Sedona LX. I purchased the car used in late 2009. It had 37,000 miles at time of purchase and was a good value for the money. The good points about this car: it drives smoothly, has a lot of power, is very roomy and comfortable, incredibly safe with electronic stability control, 8 airbags, ABS, and I like the look of it. The gas mileage isnt bad for city driving. I get about 20 mpg in the city. However, Ive had some big issues with this car that would really make me think twice about getting another one. The transmission needed to be replaced at 88000 miles. I was stunned that the transmission died so quickly.

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  04 5 speed LX Sorento - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By SAABRento - September 16 - 9:00 am

  Great SUV. The SE (RARE) 5 speed LX model has been nothing but a pleasure. The 3.5 Hyundai V-6 is powerful and has plenty of torque. The SUV is very quiet and has a solid ride. The controls are easy to find and the radio has the power of an aftermarket. The brushed ally interior is a $200 option and is stock on my model along with nerfbars and fog lights. The model I have has a limited slip differential rearend that in 4x4 is nothing but unstoppable.