2011 Kia Sportage SX FWD Review The Basics Kia officially made its U.S. debut in 1993 with the Sportage. Back in 1993, the Kia brand was received as well as Yugos. The 1993-1994 Kia Sportages were somewhat primitive and crude vehicles, although a slight upgrade from the likes of Geo Trackers and Suzuki Sidekicks [...]
Remember that dunk last year in the NBA All-Star Dunk Contest? Yes, the one with Blake Griffin jumping over a Kia Optima. That one! Say what you will about the quality of the Dunk Contest in the recent years, but that was a pretty good product placement for Kia. Because the above mentioned Blake Griffin [...]
At first glance, $35,000 might seem a lot of money. But if you adjust for inflation, $35k today would be roughly $25,000 in 1996. And about 15 years ago, $25k would have scored some of the great fun cars that the kids yearn for today. Some examples would include Ford Mustang GT, Chevrolet Camaro SS, [...]
The super adorable, Kia Soul driving hamsters are back, again. And this time, they are ‘shuffing’. Kia is bringing back the hamsters to announce the arrival of the refreshed 2012 Kia Soul. This revision includes better engines (1.6-liter base engines now pump out 138HP – an increase of 16HP; 2.0-liter engines are producing a class [...]
2011 Kia Optima EX The Basics Every teen romance movie involves a drastic makeover of the main character, right at the pivotal moment in their young lives. While the audience gets to see the intrinsic beauty and complexity of the main character, the rest of the world pays little attention to the virtues. Kia, it [...]
If you’ve been keeping up with my postings on KarFarm, you know that I’m a huge Kia Hamster fan. I have stated that the TV commercial for the Kia Soul featuring the Kia Hamsters was the best marketing idea, in decades – and Nielsen’s agree! The round 2 has begun. This time, more hamsters in [...]
2010 Kia Soul sport Vital Stats Engine: 2.0 liter I4 (142HP/137TQ) Drivetrain Layout: Front engine/Front wheel drive Transmission: 4-speed automatic Seating Capacity: 5 Passengers EPA Fuel Economy: 24 city/30 highway Base MSRP $18,195 + $695 (destination charge) Recommended Options: Sunroof Package $700 The Basics Thanks to Toyota’s Scion brand, the US automotive marketplace woke up [...]
Kia first appeared in the U.S. in the early-to-mid 1990s (Portland, Oregon’s Ron Tonkin Kia was the first Kia dealer in the U.S.), and was mostly thought of as an entry-level automaker offering inexpensive, and, well, basic transportation. Hey—we all have to start somewhere. However, Kia has kept its nose to the automotive grindstone, offering [...]
When you arrive at Incheon/Seoul Airport, you will begin to see a whole new set of badges on cars that looks vaguely familiar. No doubt, by now, you’ve heard of Hyundai. Maybe even Kia. There was a short U.S. stint with Daewoo, which now is a GM subsidiary. Ok… how about Samsung? And what the [...]
Nissan has announced that the brand’s response to the need for fun, spacious yet fuel efficient vehicles, the Nissan Cube, will be released in the USA in Spring 2009. This second generation of the Cube comes stateside 10 years after the release of the original 1999 version so popular in Japan. The Cube also boasts [...]
It looks like Hyundai is positioning its Kia brand as a Scion fighter. They’ve just introduced the Kia Soul, with the best car commercial in a long time (the cute hamsters), which is a direct challenge to the Scion xB. At the 2009 New York International Auto Show (NYIAS), Kia unveiled the Forte Koup – [...]
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