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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  Just keeps running without problems - 2007 Kia Rondo
  By Harry - April 4 - 4:00 am

  We bought this for the stated mileage. Our 1999 Suburban averages 11-12 mpg. The Rondo was supposed to get 29 mpg. Weve never come close. We use it primarily for getting around town (avg = 20 mpg) and an occasional trip (avg = 24 mpg). For a 4 cylinder automatic and Id hope for higher gas mileage because its such a LITTLE car compared to our Suburban. Were in our sixties and drive conservatively. Thats our only disappointment. No squeaks or rattles in 11,000 miles. We change the oil regularly. It is a VERY dependable car. Cant compare the ride with a Suburban (even ours with 200K miles). Trip distances over 100 miles are uncomfortable.

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  Not Quite Ready for PrimeTime - 2004 Kia Sorento
  By Sgt Wright - March 29 - 10:00 am

  Looks good. Noisy but peppy engine. Hardest leather seats I have ever encountered. At this time this is a "buyers mistake". When KIA quiets the engine, improves the seats, and makes other "gadge" upgrades it will be ok.

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  new Kia owner - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By kia - March 8 - 1:10 am

  I have a 2005 Kia SUV. After the first service I had a flat tire after leaving the garage and had to pay almost $200 for a new tire. Then immediately the electronic key kept turning on the emergency horn and required more than 24 hours in the garage. Im not too happy with this car to date. I had a Honda for more then 10 years and never experienced this.

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  Meh...just a basic car - 2004 Kia Optima
  By shannonm1 - March 1 - 4:01 am

  This car is very reliable, but no fun. The style is very bland inside and out, there is no power behind acceleration, the V6 guzzles gas like an SUV or truck would. I owned a little 4 cylinder Hyundai Elantra before this car, and I really miss it. I went from filling the gas tank every 2 weeks to filling it every week now. This car is like a tank, heavy, safe, reliable, I would take it anywhere, but have no fun getting there. I just dont like the way it handles. I got this car with 75,000 miles on it, so Im probably stuck with it for awhile. It hasnt broken down on me yet.

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  Kia Rio - 2001 Kia Rio
  By Taylor - February 27 - 8:26 am

  I have had terrible luck with this car. It is a very uncomfortable car, with not a lot of room. I have had to get so many things done to it in a matter of a year. Including speed sensors that corroded, It breaks down every now and then while driving it, The gear shifts get stuck at times and are too hard to move, The wire harness linking to the transmission had to be replaced as well. This car is not recommended by me.

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  Bad engine- Gas HOG! :( - 2012 Kia Optima
  By lynnedoe - February 25 - 5:46 am

  I bought my Optima in the fall of 2012. It has had engine work done 3 times. Kia refused to take the car back. Full engine was replaced on third trip in... Great looking car- but gas mileage is WAYYY lower then advertised. I got rid of my SUV to save money on gas. Im now getting the same if not less mpg with this car. If I do not keep "ECO" option on I actually have gotten as low as just over 11 mpg. HORRIBLE. Not even a turbo... Cant say Id recommend a Kia to anyone I know.

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  You get what you pay for... - 2002 Kia Sedona
  By Michelle - February 23 - 3:40 am

  I mainly purchased the Kia Sedona because of price -- it had the most features in its price range. But 3 years later, I am so unhappy with it that I am rolling over the balance due on it in order to buy another van. There are a few things I REALLY dont like about the van, but it boils down to this; its cheap. Cheaply made and cheaply designed. The visibility out the rear and sides of the van is SO bad. Its a miracle I havent run over a child. The CD player broke after the first year. The seats are heavy and hard to remove. The belts wore out quickly, the alternator is going out at only 80k miles. The exterior is poor -- it dents if you look at it funny. Spend a little more and get a REAL van.

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  Kia Rondo - 2009 Kia Rondo
  By Boyde Wheeler - February 19 - 7:30 pm

  When driving there is cold air coming through the door handles-buttons- speakers or any place like that. Also the doors are cold to the touch.

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  Almost - but not quite - 2015 Kia Optima
  By chefshellie - February 1 - 2:13 pm

  I bought the 2015 Optima EX, fully loaded. It had every feature my Lexus IS 250 had and was in my new (lower) price range. Unfortunately, just because it has those features doesnt mean they work well, or as they should. My biggest annoyance is that the passenger seat is WAY too low. It does not have an up/down feature (why only 4 way power?) and at 56", I can barely see over the dashboard like a 10 year old, and at 42, I am not about to sit on a pillow. This is a real drag.

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  KIA Optima needs improvement on transmissions - 2009 Kia Optima
  By csaylors - January 25 - 6:43 am

  I have owned my 2009 KIA Optima for three years now and had to replace the transmission once already and it is in the shop again (not even a year later) with the same problem. I dont know if this is a problem everyone has or if I bought a lemon. The built in Bluetooth had some problems as well. I just had to quit using it. The headrest is not comfortable at all. But it handles well and it is fun to drive. It gets good gas mileage and thats what we needed at the time.