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Searching for: Kia Motors?
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Searching for: Kia Motors?
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Kia Motors
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from Kia)
| Kia Motors |
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| Korean name |
| Hangul: |
기아 |
| Hanja: |
起亞 |
| Revised Romanization: |
Gi-a |
| McCune-Reischauer: |
Ki-a |
Kia Motors Corp (KSE: 000270) is a South Korean automobile manufacturer.
History
Kia was founded in 1944, and later produced Mazda models under licence, including the Pride (based on the 121) and Avella, which were sold in North America and Australasia as the Ford Festiva and Ford Aspire. The name "Kia" (起亞) roughly translates as "Rising from Asia" in Chinese characters.
In 1993, it began operating in the United States, which first began sales in California. The dealers in 1994 sold the Sephia, then a few years later the United States sales line expanded with the addition of the Sportage. Kia automobiles are generally considerably less reliable than those of their competitors, and rely on ten-year powertrain warranties for sales. (Also see Hyundai) Kia consistently ranks last on J.D. Power and Associates durability index almost without exception.(narrowly beaten in 2004 by Land Rover, USA market)
Kia's troubles in 1997 helped to push South Korea into the Asian financial crisis, and it was acquired in 1998 by the Hyundai Motor Company.
Affiliations and subsidiaries
Kia is one of the companies of the Hyundai Motor Group and has two subsidiaries:
Models
2003 Kia Sedona in the UK
See also
External links
- Company website
- History of Kia Motors
- Kia Motors Corporation timeline
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