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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  Excellent Cost / Benefit - 2012 Kia Optima
  By seson - November 3 - 5:30 am

  Researched and compared to the Malibu, Camry, Accord, Altima, etc., and found this to be the best choice for me. Quiet and smooth ride, stunning looks, good interior materials, Bluetooth, USB, 10/10 drive train, 60/60 bumper to bumper (lifetime drive train from the dealer). With what Kia includes even on the LX AT, Ive only added a factory spoiler and window tint. All this for under 20K after rebates..Gas mileage has been 25 around the city and up to 36 on the Hwy. Best of all, its made here in the USA by American workers in Georgia.

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  kia eval - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By Leslie & Karl - October 31 - 8:06 pm

  I use it to pull a trailer to craft shows and because it has a tighter turning radius, I have not had to back up my trailer except when I park it in my drive way! I like being higher on the road and feel safer when I can see more than the rear of the car in front of me.

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  Great buy - 2006 Kia Sportage
  By D.Davis - October 31 - 2:50 am

  Best bang for the buck. Smooth, quiet ride. Dealer installed running board really adds a classy look. Compliments on the looks of the car everywhere I go. My car color is black with body-color side cladding/fender flares and Sports Package.

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  Used 2006 Kia Amanti - 2006 Kia Amanti
  By George - October 30 - 8:56 pm

  I traded my Jaguar S Type 4.0 for a used 2006 Kia Amanti. Ok, the Amanti is no Jaguar in terms of performance, but its the nicest luxury car available at a sensible price. Ive been admiring the Amanti since it came out in 2004.The Amanti is every bit as luxurious as the Jaguar and the leather interior is actually nicer. The bouncy American luxury-car ride will take some getting used to after the finely tuned suspension on the Jag, but its roomier, more comfortable and much more practical. No more $128.00 oil changes and I can burn regular gas in the Amanti.

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  Kia Optima 2002 second car - 2002 Kia Optima
  By Gilman Brown - October 29 - 10:00 am

  Very reliable and dependable car. Great warranty, and most bang for the buck. Would highly recommend purchasing.

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  Good car good mpg - 2012 Kia Optima
  By cde5151 - October 26 - 11:10 pm

  A great looking car with good mpg, lots of standard features, fairly good ride, average 31.7 mpg so far, 30% city 70% hwy driving. Nexen tires are average at best

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  Great car - 2009 Kia Borrego
  By Patricia Garland - October 26 - 10:43 am

  Great car, very reasonably priced.

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  Fun car to drive, but watch the MPG - 2010 Kia Forte
  By hmowner - October 25 - 6:46 pm

  I chose to buy SX sedan 6spd. It took me a while to get used to the soft clutch and sensitive gas pedal, but its a well worth effort. Car handles well for a non-sports car and it really accelerates! The ride is a bit bouncy. I get about 30 - 32 mpg on 75% highway/25% city driving. If you push it a little, the mpg suffers a lot. The instrument panel is not fancy, but very simple/easy to view. I love the voice recognition-enabled bluetooth. The rear trunk sits very high compared to other compacts, but the space is huge. Maybe due to visibility, but this car feels larger than other compacts. The front buffer is a magnet for bug splashes and multiple rock dents into the plastic bumper.

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  Lived thru crash - 2014 Kia Soul
  By stan morley - October 21 - 2:33 pm

  Blacked out, drove off road @ 50mph into ditch rolled over slid into elec pole .. side airbags deployed .. never got a scatch

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  I Love My KIA! - 2005 Kia Sorento
  By theatregrl - October 21 - 4:26 am

  Never thought Id buy a Kia, but I couldnt pass up the value offered by the Sorento. For a reasonable price, I was able to get a nice looking vehicle with fancy features. Ive owned it for 3 months now, and like it more and more. I bought the EX--my only regret is that I didnt buy the luxury package.