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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  Love My Amanti - 2005 Kia Amanti
  By Alex - March 17 - 1:43 pm

  2 years ago, I brought a 2005 Kia Amanti. At the time, I thought no car could be better and gave it a 5 star review. Now, I have a Lexus LS 400 and that opinion has changed dramatically. The Kia Amanti is still a great car but you are wrong if you think you just got a very luxurious car thats as good as a Jag/Benz/Lexus/etc. The Amanti is a great VALUE luxury car that is very reliable, spacious, comfortable, fast/powerful, and smooth riding but compared to a bigger name luxury car like the ones that I just mentioned (particularly the LS 430 which it copied), it feels nowhere near as luxurious. The materials used on the interior are cheap and wear down easily, the handling and steering responsiveness is poor (the steering wheel literally feels numb, no exaggeration), and the side mirrors that never stay in place will drive you crazy. Repairs arent cheap. Gas mileage and resale value arent favorable.

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  Love the Amanti! - 2005 Kia Amanti
  By Herb - March 17 - 8:30 am

  We have had the car for 9 months and love everything about it at the price. Granted fuel economy could be better but we are averaging 19.5 mpg in town and 23 mpg on the highway. Dollar for dollar, it is hard to beat this car.

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  What were they thinking - 2009 Kia Spectra
  By Why - March 17 - 8:00 am

  As you approach this car it seems like a fairly handsome vehicle. It has clean lines, just a nice amount bling to it. Climb in and start going and you will quickly be disappointed. The wind noise is horrendous. Thats ok though you can get used to it after a while, and the stereo can be turned up loud enough to overcome the noise. No, the worst part about this car is that in 2009 a car still has ABS as an option? What are they thinking? You get side airbags, but Id rather avoid an accident by having ABS.

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  A Fun and Fit Vehicle - 2005 Kia Sportage
  By Jerry, Jacksonville - March 17 - 3:03 am

  This 2005 Sportage is a great small SUV with BIG car feel. It sits and rides comfortably, with a great view of the road. All controls are easy to use and within easy reach. While I cannot yet speak for reliability since my Sportage is only 3200 miles old, I feel that I have an excellent warranty should I ever need to use it. The roadside assistance program is great. I have already had occasion to use it and the response was prompt. The responder did minor damage to open the door, but after some hassles, they reimbursed me for my expenses for repairs. I I think it is best bang for your buck in the small SUV range and I plan to buy another if I ever have the need

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  Great First time car - 2008 Kia Rondo
  By cmede - March 16 - 2:48 pm

  I bought this little guy used about 2 weeks ago. I came from a giant Nissan Altima all plush and built for long drives. I got into this Rondo and fell in love instantly! The seats were spacious for my bigger size, the leg room was great and the overall feel of the car felt like quality. I never thought I would buy something that looked like this. I think its not the nicest to look at. It reminds me of a wagon. But the way it grips the corners, gets up to highway speeds and truly is a hoot to drive. I was worried the 4 Cylinders was going to be a problem on the highway. I was mistaken. For my first car that I bought. I recommend it to anyone. It really is quality with the low price.

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  Great car ...I bought 2 in a week - 2006 Kia Sorento
  By TnBulRdr - March 15 - 11:00 pm

  I like to drive the vehicle and it is smooth and fun. I think it should have better gas mileage due to its size, but oh well. I liked my wifes so much, I bought a second one a week later, so we have 2 in the garage. They are great cars and worth the price.

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  Great value for the money - 2007 Kia Sportage
  By Faststeam - March 15 - 5:10 pm

  Purchased new Sportage 2 weeks ago and love the smooth ride and handling. Ride is very quiet on smooth roads but bumps tend to transfer noise through tires and chassis. Not as roomy as my Sorento I had for four years, but gas mileage is better and maneuverability as well. Overall, cant beat the price considering the features, and the 10 year 10,000 drive train warranty.

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  Great Car - 2008 Kia Sportage
  By PMK - March 12 - 10:56 pm

  My past 4 SUVs have been Jeeps. After my last experience, I decided to look elsewhere. I was about to purchase a Honda CR-V and decided to look at the Kia first. I loved the car so much, that I purchased it that night. The Kia Sportage was $7000 less than the CR-V and the 10 year/100,000 mile bumper to bumper $0 deductible warranty sealed the deal.

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  A good car, but not a great one - 2011 Kia Forte
  By forte5 - March 11 - 6:14 pm

  I have had my Forte 5 SX with manual for about 29k miles. It has been completely reliable. I find it spacious, get 30mpg with suburban driving, its very quick, and the controls are easy to use. Negatives are a rough around town ride that smooths out on the highway, it can be noisy on rough road surfaces, the throttle it too light and aggressive - making it hard to drive smoothly.

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  Happy mom and kids - 2005 Kia Rio
  By Mom of 2 - March 11 - 1:46 pm

  When I bought this car, I was looking for something small enough for me to drive, yet big enough for me and my two kids (5 months and 8 years old). I love my car. My sons car seat fits well in the back seat and my daughter has lots of room. The trunk is large enough to hold my sons humongous stroller and I can still get a good amount of groceries in there too!