Is Kia a reliable car brand?
Kia recently rebadged their logo, and whether you like it or not, you can’t argue that they make some pretty compelling vehicles. For those who don’t know, Kia is a South Korean car manufacturer that was founded way back in 1944. Although it is under their bigger parent company, Hyundai, Kia’s vehicles are often compared to Hyundai’s and sometimes, they come out on top. Kia sold around 2.8 million vehicles in 2019 alone, and they are an ever-growing company with more and more customers and cars being sold every year.
However, they did not just shoot to glory overnight. When Kia was first introduced in the US market, they really had a bad reputation for making vehicles that were cheap, in every sense of the word. The choice of materials and the fit and finish were all very poor, and as a result, did not last very long. Fast forward to this day, and Kia is among one of the top reliable manufacturers in the entire world. Be it the Kia Sorento, Kia Telluride, Kia Stinger, or the Kia Carnival; all of these vehicles are very reliable and often score massive points in ratings and tests.
Is Kia a reliable car brand?
So, what are the annual repair costs, and what hassles does a Kia owner have to go through per year? Let’s take a look at that in this article.
So, let’s start with the elephant in the room and the question you all might be asking. Is a Kia car reliable? Well, yes. Kia’s are very reliable. However, that was not always the case. In the early 2000s, they were known for making very cheap vehicles that were very unreliable and only were bought by those who weren’t left with many options, and those with an extremely tight budget.
Fast forward to this day, and Kia makes some of the most reliable vehicles in the entire industry. In fact, they have more reliable cars than their parent company, Hyundai. Pretty impressive, right?
In the 2021 US Vehicle Dependability Study conducted by J.D. Power, Kia was at the third spot out of all the 32 brands tested. The only ones above Kia were Lexus and Porsche. The study that was conducted measured the brand’s ranking based on the problems per 100 vehicles.
Is Kia a reliable car brand?
Lexus was inevitably at the top with 81 problems per 100 vehicles. Next up, Porsche had 86 and Kia was at third with 97 problems per 100 vehicles. Any score below 100 is considered excellent and to offer Toyota-level of reliability is actually very, very impressive. The industry average was about 121. So, to top that so brilliantly really is a testament to how far Kia has come over the last few years.
The US Initial Quality Study conducted in 2020, also by J.D. Power, which also measured the brand rankings based on problems per 100 vehicles, placed Kia at second, albeit it was actually tied at first with Dodge. Both Kia and Dodge had 136 problems per 100 vehicles. The industry average was 166, and comparing that to the score of Kia, really shows us how impressive the company has become.
RepairPal, as you might know, is well-known for rating vehicles and automakers with a reliability rating out of 5. They also provide an average annual cost that an owner needs to spend on his particular car. They take into account the driver-reported data and their satisfaction related to the brands’ average annual repair costs. RepairPal gave Kia a reliability rating of an excellent 4 out of 5. That means all of the cars offered by Kia, on average, have a reliability rating of 4 out of 5. If you check their rankings, Kia ranks third out of all the 32 car brands that they test.
Is Kia a reliable car brand?
If you look at the reliability of Kia going by each specific car, then some of their cars have really low average annual repair and maintenance costs. The industry average that you need to spend behind a car for repairs annually is around $652. However, looking at some of the most reliable vehicles by Kia, the average repair cost for the Kia Rio is only around $434. The Soul costs $437. The Forte is around $451. The Sportage costs a little more at $462. The Sorento costs slightly more at $533 and the K900 sits at $697.
So, out of all the cars mentioned, we can clearly see that most Kias have a lesser than average annual repair costs. Each and every model, except the K900 has a repair cost below the average repair cost. That is an extremely impressive result if you ask us.
Kia did not only impress RepairPal, but they also have impressed J.D. Power. Though they are already placed around the top in the quality and reliability assessments made by J.D. Power, some Kias have also received an award. The 2020 Soul, 2020 Forte, 2020 Sorento, and 2020 Sedona actually won the “Highest Quality” award from J.D. Power. The 2016 Soul also won a J.D. Power Dependability Award. As you can see, Kia has a penchant for winning awards for reliability.
Is Kia a reliable car brand?
Another factor that hugely influences and uplifts the reliability factor of Kia is the extended warranty coverage that they provide. Kia and Hyundai are actually two of the best carmakers who offer a high warranty scheme, right off the factory. While the industry average is around 3 years, all Kia’s come with a massive warranty of 5 years/60,000 miles (whichever comes first) bumper-to-bumper warranty.
The powertrain warranty is unmatched at 10 years/100,000 miles. Even the anti-perforation and rust-through warranty sits at 5 years/100,000 miles. Finally, 24-hour roadside assistance is also made available and it can be availed for a time period of 5 years/60,000 miles.
So, in conclusion, yes, Kia’s is a very reliable brand. In fact, they are one of the most reliable brands in the entire car industry and they are at their prime right now. To be able to offer Toyota-levels of reliability is some praise, as you know it, and they have achieved it.
However, not all models share the same reliability factors. Some model years might be poorer than the others. So, before you decide on purchasing a Kia, thinking it’s a Kia’s, be sure to do your research and also listen to what other owners have to say about the reliability of the car. Most of the newer Kias, however, are very reliable.
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Is Kia a reliable car brand?
