Kia released an official teaser image of its all-new Forte last week and now the automaker has released the first official photos of the Spectra replacement.
The new Forte shows off Kia's new design language. It was designed by Peter Schreyer, the guy responsible for the first-generation Audi TT and VW New Beetle. The overall design draws many cues from the KOUP Concept that was unveiled earlier this year in New York. When it is released later this year in Korea the Forte will be powered by a 1.6L engine, with a 2.0L coming later. When the car eventually makes it to the US in 2009, we will most likely only receive the 2.0L. A two door variant will follow the sedan's launch by a few months.
Full Story: The Car Blogger
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Next-Generation 2009 Kia Spectra Teaser Image Released...Looks Like a Civic
Kia KOUP Concept Unveiled with 290 Horsepower and Very Honda-Like Styling
Comments (31)
It's all about build quality so if Kia is 90 percent as good as the Japanese companies then that beats the U.S. companies which are at 80 percent and improving.
C'mon U.S. companies..... time is running out.
I LOVE WHINING !
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Posted by CKV | July 2, 2008 10:01 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 10:01
Who cares what it looks like. It's a kia, you know its going to be a POS
Posted by kia sucks | July 2, 2008 10:12 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 10:12
Looks extremely similar to the TSX.
@kia sucks:
Kias have improved dramatically over the years, and to simply write off all Kias as "POS" would be awfully naive. Just ask the big 3 about Honda or Toyota.
Posted by JayZ28 | July 2, 2008 10:19 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 10:19
"It's all about build quality so if Kia is 90 percent as good as the Japanese companies then that beats the U.S. companies which are at 80 percent and improving. "
You are kidding, right? More like Nissan and Toyota are at 80%, with GM and Ford at 90%. Kia....lucky if it's at 50%.
Nice try.
Posted by Beau Tie | July 2, 2008 10:31 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 10:31
Looks like they hired the designer of Honda's Civic. Not bad, but looks very similar.
Posted by Tom | July 2, 2008 10:51 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 10:51
The front looks like the new Acura TSX. Hate the Acura, but this one looks cool and some how elegant!!!
Posted by saheed | July 2, 2008 10:58 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 10:58
It looks like a TSX. I don't give them any credit for copying others. Thumbs down, it's crap, Kia grow a brain.
Posted by Jason | July 2, 2008 10:59 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 10:59
Hate the name of the car, but the front looks like a sexier Acura TSX.
Posted by saheed | July 2, 2008 11:00 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 11:00
@Beau Tie
Toyota/Lexus make the most reliable cars on the road (based on every objective measurement I've seen). There are some signifigant issues with parts of their truck line, which is why...
...Honda/Accura is the most reliable car line in the world.
Ford has an excellent reputation for quality in Europe, and a very good record with their truck line in the US, but numerous mechanical issues amongst their car lines (their cars seem hit-or-miss). Their trend seems to be improving.
Hyundai and Kia have made huge strides in improving their quality and now rank well.
GM. GM? Did you seriously put "GM" and "quality" in a sentance without the word "bad"?
Posted by JerryL | July 2, 2008 11:22 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 11:22
"You are kidding, right? More like Nissan and Toyota are at 80%, with GM and Ford at 90%. Kia....lucky if it's at 50%."
WOW! Is that's why GM and Ford are losing money?
Back to point, if its 10k and does 27mpg+ I'll take one! The average customer could care less about who designed it, if it was copied yadda yadda. At the end of the day it's price, quality, warrently, and least of all looks. Wasn't there a report that most women buy cars based on cup holders?
Anyhoo Kia's quality isn't much of an issue anymore, keep up with the times - they have warrenties with the likes of 100,000 miles.
Posted by ninesunz | July 2, 2008 11:24 AM
Posted on July 2, 2008 11:24
is beau tie stupid or just very misinformed?
Posted by jettto | July 2, 2008 12:02 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 12:02
Ninesunz,
i can't go with ya 100% on that comment. I drive a 300C I bought for the looks.If it breaks -fix it. I average 25mpg and no problems( for all the American Crap Car bashers). My big Guzzler Hemi pickup gets 18 on the highway with 20 depending how I drive.80,000 plus and not one problem.Seems quality is not an issue. Most people I know bought their car for looks as a main factor. To each his own
Posted by Bob Tschopp | July 2, 2008 12:24 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 12:24
Ninesunz,
i can't go with ya 100% on that comment. I drive a 300C I bought for the looks.If it breaks -fix it. I average 25mpg and no problems( for all the American Crap Car bashers). My big Guzzler Hemi pickup gets 18 on the highway with 20 depending how I drive.80,000 plus and not one problem.Seems quality is not an issue. Most people I know bought their car for looks as a main factor. To each his own
Posted by Bob Tschopp | July 2, 2008 12:25 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 12:25
I disagree with the opinion that looks don't matter and people only care about fuel efficiency, price, and reliability. At least for me, looks and performance are also heavily weighed. It it's copied, so what. As long as they don't copy an ugly car. That is one fault I have with the big 3. Their trucks usually look good such that it comes down to brand loyalty, in most cases. They also have similar performance. Since the "end" of muscle cars in the 70s American cars have looked hideous compared to the Japanese and Europeans. That goes for interior as well as exterior. If I'm deciding between a good-looking car with decent performance that costs a little more, and an ugly car with a few better miles per gallon I'll pay a little extra for the car I like more and will have to drive for years to come. In most cases that isn't the American car (at least the American company cars sold here...they give the good stuff to the rest of the world market). As for the Kia...it looks a lot better than any GM, Ford, or Chrysler small car I've seen lately. And that's only on the outside...It won't take much to beat the quality of American interiors.
Posted by Mike M | July 2, 2008 12:34 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 12:34
I care about in this order currently.
Fuel Economy.
Performance.
Reliability.
Interior Room.
Interior Build Quality.
Exterior Looks.
A few years ago Fuel Economy was not on the list. Now that I finally have a jobs where I could actually afford an Evo for my next car, gas is insanely expensive and I am put off by it's lousy MPG, come on Mitsu put a 6 speed into the thing and tune the top gear for low RPM highway cruising!
Posted by Travis | July 2, 2008 1:22 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 13:22
hmm, personally, its all about looks to me, then performance, then costs and such, which is why I own BMW's. ($0 maintence for 4 years)
But for a KIA, not bad, it'll be a sad little car though. Probably last 70,000 mi. before dying, and it's performance is probably horrible, at least the 1.6, which i doubt is sport tuned. It'll probably drag the car down and get around 20mpg.
my older 740i has over 150,000 miles and still drives like it was new back in 99, and the new X6 has incredible performance, and iffy gas mileage, but looks and maintence costs are nothing! BMW = life.
Posted by LRSBMW | July 2, 2008 1:37 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 13:37
Whoa! A Honda Civic front clip with a 1st gen TSX body. Is Kia now owned by the Chinese?
Posted by Noya | July 2, 2008 1:40 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 13:40
TSX meets the euro Focus....
that's what you get for waiting Ford....
Posted by SVT | July 2, 2008 1:54 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 13:54
Looks great. If its cheap and Kia continues their quality improvements, this could be an excellent option for the segment.
Posted by gm0n3y | July 2, 2008 2:41 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 14:41
@ SVT
the euro focus will probably beat this here... its going to be released in 2010. regardless... this is a very good car... what most people dont take into account is that all of these cars are VERY similar...
the corolla, civic, focus, spectra, etc have very similar reliability, warranty, and gas milage figures. the differences in quality are statistically insignificant.
Posted by Destinova403 | July 2, 2008 2:51 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 14:51
by far....
Indeed, it looks decent when viewed from the moon.
Posted by waldorf and statler | July 2, 2008 6:19 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 18:19
I agree that this is the best-looking Kia ever!
Posted by optimummind | July 2, 2008 6:25 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 18:25
Wow, its a KIA ......................?
good job, it looks like a hybrid btw civic and current mustang(very masculine lines).
Posted by Andy | July 2, 2008 8:12 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 20:12
Looks like a good replacement for the current Optima since they're increasing it's size. I wonder if they'll ever offer the Turbo 4 in this to go head to head with the Civic SI Sedan and Cobalt SS Sedan... If they do they will probably have a winner on their hands.
Kia and Hyundai reliability is up there with the rest of them now, so that wouldn't be a concern of mine. The only complaint I have about current Hyundai/Kia cars is too much body roll and/or too soft of suspension.
Posted by Gary | July 2, 2008 9:37 PM
Posted on July 2, 2008 21:37
Nice lines. I'll never understand how American automakers allowed the Koreans to leapfrog over them. Why can't they design a single attractive sedan?
Posted by Kenny | July 3, 2008 2:35 AM
Posted on July 3, 2008 02:35
C'mon KIA, where is originality?
Posted by Matt | July 3, 2008 7:36 AM
Posted on July 3, 2008 07:36
for those of you that thaught the koreans didnt have spys lok what they just did to honda/acura....
if this was a huyundai i would have thaught that would be a descent car but i think KIA's base models are poop.
In my days as a shady car salesman i sold the putrid buicks the over sporty but slow mazdas and also theses Kia's. not this model but at the time the kia rio just hit the streets of chicago and there was lines of slack jawed bargan hunting customers looking for a new car for less than 10K so i had my fair sahre of test drives in the rio and the rio wagon. In my experience i felt as though i was still cheating the poor and i mean financially poor people that baught that car. The doors in some cars didnt line up properly and the engine dies out without any warning. i did sell a few that managed not to act up on there test drives. but it goes to show you always get what you pay for. and if you look in a newspaper and see a low price for a car expect to get one with a 5spd manual gear box , no a/c , not even center arm rest- your just buying a tin box with a lawnmower engine period
Posted by dennisil | July 3, 2008 8:30 AM
Posted on July 3, 2008 08:30
wow! nice work kia... reminds me of a miniature civic/tsx lol
Posted by GT Fan | July 4, 2008 5:06 AM
Posted on July 4, 2008 05:06
another craps from Korea's manufacturer
Posted by herou | July 7, 2008 2:23 AM
Posted on July 7, 2008 02:23
This car is a rip off.... as is all of the Kia's I see on the road. Why can't their designers come up with fresh looks that are unique to Kia... The Euro Focus looks TONS better than this.
Posted by chet | July 8, 2008 9:24 AM
Posted on July 8, 2008 09:24
Oh yeah..... I almost forgot to mention the gay @$$ name. It sounds like a fags way of saying he farted.. hahahaha
Posted by chet | July 8, 2008 9:27 AM
Posted on July 8, 2008 09:27