By Justin Berkowitz
July 14, 2008 -
Kia sent out some press shots of its new Forte compact sedan last week. But real world pictures of cars are always a step up. Those candid photos, along with scans of the Korean brochure, are here for you to peruse, thanks to the fans at Kia-World.net. IMHO, the Forte looks quite good in the metal. The biggest improvement over the Spectra: the interior. It appears to be made from something other/better than cardboard this time (no word on whether the traditional Hyundai-Kia interior crayon smell will remain). Americans probably will not get the 1.6-liter with 124 horses; the 2.0-liter engine with some 150 horses is a lock. And we're all holding out to see if Kia decides it wants to put its money where its auto show mouth is and give us a version of that 2.0-liter with a turbocharger. Not surprisingly, the Korean brochure shows all sort of high-end kit, from keyless go to Bluetooth to navigation. How many of these doo-hickeys will make it to North America is your guess. Looks like it might be the best Kia yet, though. And that's saying something. I think.
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POWERED
July 14th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
That’s mighty-T sharp. I wish my Sonata looked this good. But until they put in that 2.0 litre turbo, my V6 will do just fine.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
It looks like the best Civic Korea ever built.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:43 pm
TriShield,
To me it looks quite a lot Lancer (Lancer-a-lot?) in the back. But overall, I have to give Kia credit — not original, but not bad either. In fact, quite respectable for a compact. Hope they keep the rims and Nav screen in the US version.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:52 pm
It looks like quite a leap from today’s Spectra. If anything I think some people will be disappointed in the loss of the Spectra5 since no wagon seems to be planned for this model.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
+1 on TriShield…
The front end is a Civic’s ripoff. The rearend comes straight from and Audi A4/VW Jetta, the body shape is very nice… but they can show some originality, or not. Te interior looks nice
Well, the japanese will now “suffer” the same they did (and continue to do) to everyone all this time… have their designs copied.
LOL
July 14th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
This is what the 2.8 are competing against, and it does not bode well for them. they can’t make fun of these “funny looking imports” anymore because they are looking better, lasting longer and fun to drive. Plus, they back them with longer warranties, they get good mileage, and the interiors are not nearly as craptastic as most domestics. They better hope Hyundai and Kia don’t bring out a hybrid, because people would probably buy a PHEV from those guys than from detroit.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
I see more Elantra and A5 in the rear than Lancer. Front is definitely Civic-inspired, with a touch of TSX. Interior could drop straight into a Honda. I don’t see how any of these things are bad, though. Could be a hit.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
All this talk about derivative styling gets a big fat “meh” from me. I saw an argument posted somewhere, maybe on Autoblog, about how people don’t crap on Monet because his stuff looks kind of like Renoir’s (both impressionists). This is a good looking car, and it looks to have been designed using cues also seen elsewhere in the automotive industry. That said, allow me to point out that it has four wheels and four doors - TOTAL LEXUS COPYCAT!
p.s. if they drop Sync in this thing and it gets good mileage (at least Focus numbers, maybe Corolla) there’s a good chance I’ll have one in my garage by this time next year.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
I agree with GS650G.
This car will be available stateside before the refreshed Cobalt/Cruze**/Focus. At a point where the domstics’ futures are all pretty clouded (though I hold out hope for Ford having a pretty well sorted lineup) I would have more peace of mind in buying a Kia.
**Is the Cruze intended to replace the Cobalt? Is this just another example of GM abandoning a name and creating a whole new one instead of just releasing an improved version of an existing nameplate or am I mistaken?
July 14th, 2008 at 2:27 pm
Looks similar to a Lexus IS, which definitely isn’t a bad thing.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Yes, Bancho, the Cruze replaces the Cobalt which replaced the Cavalier, which replaced the Monza and Chevette which replaced the Vega.
I am too young to remember what the Vega replaced, but I imagine that if GM had gotten it right just once in the last 30 years, the car’s name would have memorable enough not to need replacement.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
SherbornSean :
Thanks for clarifying that. I was beginning to think they had two different cars coming out.
I guess it’s a stupid nit to pick seeing as I’m posting in a thread where Kia has abandoned the Spectra name for Forte. I guess I can rationalize it due to the extent of the changes. The Forte looks like a lot more than just a refresh of the Spectra.
July 14th, 2008 at 3:36 pm
Accord knock off.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:19 pm
I’m more interested in the mpg and power numbers. Kia doesn’t have the greatest track record on that account IMO. A 124 hp engine should be offered in the US IF it has mpg numbers commensurate with that low of a power output. Otherwise, why bother? I’ll be interested to see how this develops.
July 15th, 2008 at 6:17 am
Hmm, very Civic minded (pun intended). I had a KIA rental a few months ago. Their product has improved two fold over the past decade. They can easily beat out any current Chrysler product. Is that really saying anything?
July 15th, 2008 at 7:31 am
Well, if this design is “derivative”, and the Ford Focus is “original”, I’ll take the Kia, thank you.
July 15th, 2008 at 8:54 am
It’s actually quite unclear if the Cruze replaces the Cobalt or if they actually plan on selling both vehicles at once. Both are horrible ideas. Chevy doesn’t need two cars that are the exact same size, so selling both is stupid. However, GM needs to pick a name and stick with it. Part of Honda’s and Toyota’s success is that they get a fair amount of automatic sales from people who merely buy a new Civic/Accord/Corolla/Camry every five years without shopping around. GM keeps changing the freaking names, so these automatic sales become “maybes”.
July 15th, 2008 at 10:41 am
I am too young to remember what the Vega replaced,…
Corvair?? My wife had one when we first met back in ‘75. Nice little car, auotmatic and A/C, until I changed the oil for her and screwed up the gasket on the filter cup and it leaked all the oil out and the engine siezed up! Oops, my bad!