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 Little SUV - 2005 Kia Sportage
  By Elise - April 27 - 2:06 pm

  I love driving my new Sportage! My daughter had bought one and when I had the chance to drive it I fell in love and went and bought one, too! Its fun to drive and turns on a dime! Great warranty, and KIA is quick to recall any problems and fix them pronto! Mileage could improve as I havent yet gotten over 17.6 MPG and was "promised" at least 19. Overall, though, a great value!

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  Warranty alone overcomes short-falls - 2005 Kia Sedona
  By Dave - April 26 - 7:36 am

  Weve only owned our 05 Sedona for 4 months. 9000 miles on it now. I was surprised at the "normal" noisiness of the van. A/C compressor is extra noisy when it turns on. A clunking noise comes from the front end at any small bump in the road. Sounds like tie rod end bushings, but dealer mechanic says, "drive any 05 Sedona and youll hear the same thing." Same said about the A/C compressor. The seats are not particularly comfortable, but have a nice covering. I just had the rotors replaced from warping (8000 miles). My dealer said, "rotors not covered under warranty," a dealer in Illinois disagreed and changed them while I was on vacation.

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  nice car, but wish it got better mpg - 2011 Kia Soul
  By seiri - April 25 - 3:50 pm

  Ive had the + for almost a year now and have around 12,000 miles on it. In the CITY I average 23.5mpg and near 27mpg HWY...it is a small tank and usually only costs around $30 to fill up and it lasts around a week and a half. HOWEVER, the cup holders are the worst design ever. There are bottle holders on each door, but for something with a lid and straw there is only one usable spot. The inside is nice, but scuffs up easily and the seats stain easily. There is a HUGE blind spot when backing out of a parking spot. I would not buy again over some of the new choices out there and would strongly consider spending 3-4k more on a slightly better designed car.

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  basic transportation - 2002 Kia Spectra
  By beauty - April 25 - 10:00 am

  basic car to get from point a to b. Dont expect much and you wont be disappointed.

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  KIA Sephia LS - 2000 Kia Sephia
  By LeAnna Hendrix - April 25 - 2:16 am

  Very reliable and dependable automobile, vehicle is very easy to clean, maintain, drive and gas mileage is outstanding. Vehicle is comfortable, and is very acceptable on long trips. Trunk space is acceptable. The only negative comment is there is no place to set a coffee cup, or soda, without the gear shift or emergency brake being in the way. CD player exceptional, rear defroster really works well. Price of vehicle acceptable for what you get. Tires that came original on the vehicle OK, could be a better tire, original ones seem to dry rot after a couple of years. No noticeable blind spots.

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  110K miles and two kids. - 2010 Kia Forte
  By Milo - April 24 - 10:08 pm

  Bought cheap with 40K miles in 2012, its hauled two kids through high school and has the scars to show for it. Overall its been the perfect car for what we needed. I do my own maintenance and find it well designed for the DIY wrench. 25MPG on our regular commutes and low 30s on the highway...Ive never actually tried to get good MPG, Im sure 35 is attainable but Im in a hurry. Absolutely zero issues, gas, tires, oil and brake pads. Looking forward to getting 250K out of it, so far so good.

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  Very nice car - 2007 Kia Rio
  By Brad - April 22 - 5:03 pm

  This car gets great mileage and lots of room for the price. Much more stylish than the Yaris or Aveo and much lower sticker price. Not much power, but I was looking for mileage, not power. 6 advanced airbags make me feel safer in such a small car. Brake rotors shimmy but could have been from rough braking in the past. Otherwise, love the car. For the price it seems like the best deal out there.

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  Problems - A/C, Engine Light, Defroster - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By Sue - April 22 - 11:46 am

  We are extremely disappointed with our Kia Sedona. The AC broke in 2005 - the dealer tried to repair it at least 6 times - unsuccessfully!!. They kept our van for a total of 6 weeks (29 days in a row for one repair). They replaced the condensor, along with almost every other part. In 2007, the AC did not work again. The van is slightly out of warranty and the dealer expected us to pay for another condensor after only 2 years !! The check engine light has been on constantly for 2 years - the service dept at the dealer could not fix it. The defroster is not working properly. The van has been stalling. We definitely would not recommend the Kia Sedona!!

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  love it - 2001 Kia Rio
  By doser426 - April 21 - 2:00 am

  for the money its a great little car,have put 75,000+ miles on it since I bought it new in 2001. Ive been from Wi. to S.C. three times and no problems with it. Ive drove it with a foot on snow on road and never got stuck. only problems ive had is a burnt plug wire and visor broke .

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  It gets the job done - 2002 Kia Optima
  By Convinced - April 19 - 3:40 pm

  I bought this car in 2008 from a private party. It had 120,000 miles on it. I have put about 60,000 miles on it in 2 and a half years. In that time, I have had to replace the power steering pressure hose (upper) and power steering return hose (lower). I have had to replace the starter. I am not complaining as the car has over 180,000 miles on it now. It is still solid. The engine does not smoke. The AC still blows cold air. The biggest problem I forsee is that the transmission shifts erratically. It seems to slip a little in between gears. I am a backyard mechanic. If you work on your own KIA, go to kiatechinfo_dot_com, put in your car VIN and you can view repair manuals online.