Kia Rio Review & Road Test
July 4, 2007 by Alborz Fallah
The Look
- Intro
- A bit of history
- How it goes
- How it handles
- Behind the wheel
- Interior comfort
- Safety Features
- Cost of ownership
This is where it starts to get a little… opinionated. Korean cars have always been at the receiving end of car jokes. The Kia Rio is definitely an improvement over the past models, not only in safety and performance but also in design.
You might be thinking, it must be somewhat embarrassing for a grown man to drive around in a Kia Rio, and I’ll be honest, the Rio is a little more feminine than I would have liked. Given the choice, I would pick the sedan variant.
Taking the Rio out on our second date, I picked up a few of my friends for coffee, initially their reaction was, “Dear God, what are you doing in a Rio? What happened to the Lambo?” – ten minutes passed and after everything in the car was turned on and off, opened and closed, the general consensus turned from “Oh no .. not a Kia” to “So how come it’s so cheap?”
The old saying goes, you get what you pay for, but in today’s car market, that couldn’t be further from the truth. While Mercedes and BMW continue to sell low end models on reputation alone, other manufacturers such as Kia, have to fight hard to win over customers, and when they fight, they fight well.
So how come it’s so cheap? My friends kept asking. I didn’t really have an answer to that question, the cabin doesn’t feel cheap, it doesn’t drive like a cheep car and most importantly, it doesn’t look like a cheap car.
Like with most small cars, the target audience is essentially young drivers (although I would imagine females being the main target). The Rio is definitely one of the better looking cars in its class. I would not hesitate to put it above the Yaris and the Mazda2.
- Intro
- A bit of history
- How it goes
- How it handles
- Behind the wheel
- Interior comfort
- Safety Features
- Cost of ownership
I have owned a Kia Rio now for 12 months and I was at first hesitant to buy a Kia or a Korean car for that matter! But after doing 19 000kms and 12 months behind the wheel of my Rio I can honestly say I would buy another one!! The Rio is well built and yes I have had the same impression of this car when driving around twisting corners, I have to go back to see if I’m dreaming too as it does actually handle and fairly competantly at that I might add. I have owned mainly Holdens before this Rio and wasn’t expecting to buy a Korean car after them, now I recommend the Rio to people as it is a much better car than the price suggests, mine is an automatic sedan that is very, very good on fuel. I haven’t been able to cram more than 32Litres into the tank and that usually runs me around Brisbane for 2 weeks! Amazingly economical is all I can say after a V6! As for the auto not being worth the money I’d have to dispute that when you are sitting on the Gateway carpark or Riverside freeway it is definately worth the extra and the added cost of the ABS is certainly worth spending too. All I can say is that this car has really impressed me so much that I would buy another Rio and definately another Kia. It’s well built, nothing has fallen apart or gone wrong, something I can’t say for more expensive cars I’ve owned before and it is every bit as well built if not better than some of it’s more expensive Japanese competiton! It doesn’t have any of the cheap looking plastic that has been a trait of Toyotas of the past few years and it is a better car to drive than the Toyota Yaris which is anything but pretty to look at and struggles with it’s smaller motor in traffic than the Rios more powerful 1.6L! Of course this is all only my opinion but then I am the one driving it and it has been a great car to date, like I said nothing has gone wrong with it nor has anything fallen apart as they seem to have their build quality up to Japanese standards now. For the price of this car I don’t know how they can make it actually handle as well as they have because I am inpressed by it’s abilities through the twisty stuff. If this is what they are building now the next generation will be a real worry for the Japanese companies too. Especially if it goes like the Magentis I drove recently when my Rio went in for it’s first service, that was one damn brilliant car to drive. If you have any worries about buying a Kia my advice is go to a showroom and drive one of their cars, you’ll be surprised by their build quality and drivability of their product. Would I buy another, the answer is yes without a doubt. Would I buy another japanese car after this, probably not that is how good this car has been to me and On the open road the Rio is actually very competant on the highway as well. All up I would rate the Rio a 4.5 out of 5 after my 12 months behind the wheel…no doubt some smart arse will write something derogatory about what I’ve written but then there is always someone who will deride what you say, but I can’t fault the car especially for the price, the economy, the build quality and the drivability of Kias little car. I would buy another one and probably will replace it with the next generation when it comes along and it’s time to trade it in on a new car. The only gripe I have with this car is the suspension feels just a little underdamped, though nothing that would be a cause not to buy another Rio.
I’m writing from N.Z. After reading this review i must admit im surprised at how basic the spec level is on this car in Australia. We appear to have a better offering in the N.Z market. I recently purchased a Kia Rio Sports model for my wife and the following is all factory standard :
1.6 litre cvvt engine @ 82 kw. 17″ alloy wheels with 205 45 17 Dunlop Direzza tires.
rear spoiler, sport suspension and badging, front driving/fog lights,ABS,EBD,traction control,Active headrests, 6x airbags incl curtain,giving it the euro 4 star crash rating. a 6 speaker sound system with amp. Leather steering wheel and
gear lever , aluminium sports pedals and the red stitch finish on the interior, similar to the VW Golf GT.
Infact many people mistake it for a Euro hot hatch. With all this kit it drives and handles like a car worth twice as much. Before buying i test drove the mazda 2 and suzuki swift etc and the kia was superior
by an embarasing margin on all counts except price
$18000 AUD! This also includes a 5 year,100,000 kms warranty with roadside assist, the first service for the car and $300 petrol vouchers, with its economy it lasted me nearly 4 months!!Oh and a free set of car mats. In N.Z its cost less than $400 to insure for a year and registration is also included free for the first year in the purchase price worth $180.
On another note I am staggered at how much Australians pay for their cars. Im glad our government dosn’t have an
uncompetitive local car manufactoring industry to protect, and prevent it from collaspe.Do you guys Know how high the artificially inflated costs of imported vehicles are in australia. Don’t get me wrong i love the Aussie made cars, but as they are not a protected species in N.Z, and they have to compete on a level playing field, they represent poor value compared to what we pay for other imported vehicles.
I’m now looking to update my car and have found a 2005 Mazda 6 MPS with 14000km’s on the clock selling for $30995, which im sure i could get for around $29000 ($24,500AUD) with some hard bargining.
Looking on the Australian version of the autotrader i have found the same car, same year and mileage at Penrith Mazda in Sydney for $44990 AUD!!! thats $53,000 NZD. I can buy an ex demo brand new 2007 for that in N.Z So for the same vehicle you guys are forced to pay a $20,000 AUD premium. Then you have to insure it and register it at some rediculous cost. May i suggest you do your car shopping in N.Z. You will get a better spec
vehicle , better choice at a far better price.You could
ship it back to Aussie , have a holiday In N.Z and still have a wod of cash in your back pockets.
And even better because your not kiwis you will get a GST refund on your purchase price. Yes a 12.5% discount
on your purchase price. You would get my Mazda MPS for
$21,500 AUD. Has to be better than paying $44990 at Penrith Mazda don’t you agree.
Cheers , will see you all at the world cup final,
wish us luck i think we’ll need it. We don’t do finals
Right!
p.s if anyone thinks im having them on the Mazda mps
is on the following website if i haven’t bought it before you read this; http://kiwicars.thecaryard.net.nz
I just purchased a 2007 Kia Rio LX last week (Nov. 3,2007). After owning 4 Hondas over the last 15 years, I was very apprehensive to go to a Korean car as I had always heard discouraging words about them. I found those reports to be unfounded after reading all the reviews (after purchasing). I am so reassured now after reading about the history and safety standards etc. The most important thing I found was the information given by owners of Rios who thought that they too would never own one! Thank you.
When my husband and I recently went car shopping to downsize from a 3L Turbo Diesel Jackaroo to something small to midsize 4 cyl the first thing I drove was a 1.5L Honda Jazz (having previously been the very happy owner of a Honda CRV). It was after driving the Jazz that I made up my mind that 2L or 1.8L would be the smallest thing I would even look at as the little 1.5L engine just had no get up and go. We were actually looking at Holden Astra/Viva/Barina and doing some comparisons when the sales person said about the Kia Rio. When I said I was not interested in it becuase it was only a 1.6L engine he said I might be surprised. We thought “what the hell” all you can do is take the thing for a drive. Loved it. That is really all I could say, and whilst it still didn’t have the oomph of a 3L Turbo Diesel it had a surprising amount of power for a small car. Kia’s servicing requirements were also appealing at every 15000km. The interior whilst fairly basic is easy to live with and it is a surprisingly smooth & quiet ride. I do a lot of travel on the highway in my job and that was one of my concerns, but this car cruises terrific at 100km (and sometimes just a little bit more!). I will say that I am telling you all of this after only owning the car for a week, but what can I say – I’m in love!!
I must admit to also being hesitant at buying a Korean car, but we bought our Rio manual sedan used with only 14000km on the clock. The original owner must have ticked every option box there was, as we got spoiler, alloys, tint etc. A quick call found out this was the case, and the car set him back $20k new. We picked it up for the bargain price of $13.5k with the 15000k service thrown in! We have driven it now for 4000km, and also been surprised by how grunty it actually is for a 1.6L. It’s also quiet and refined, although it can occasionally unsettled by mid corner bumps- I guess the payoff for the generally smooth ride. Overall, we’re more than happy with the purchase and wouldn’t hesitate to buy another one.
Somewhat reluctantly we test drove but then bought a 1.4 model Rio at a great drive away price. We have found it be be excellent value, well put together with a good (quiet/economical)engine – not super quick but this car actually performs far better than the 1.6 (Daewoo) Barina we couldn’t wait to trade in.
Having not owned a Kia before we have been very impressed with the overall quality of the car. We were put off the Rio by it’s earlier shape but the current model has changed all that.
Being the cheapest 5 door hatch in Australia that is a pretty good thing and it know costs $13,990 and thats the same price as a 3 door Hyundai Getz!But the quality is average and so is the ride but it is at a great price!
Hi. We just bought a new 07 model RIO with 40 kms on the clock with every option and some on it $20,000 . Stepping up to this car from a 30 year old piece of crap , so far we are very happy ( only done 34 kms ). We drove cars priced from $12,000 up to cars $24,000 and found the RIO to be the best for us. I will have to report back in 1 year and let you all know if i am still happy …!
Whats wrong with Korean Cars? I have a Ford Festiva 98 mod
it is in fact a KIA badged by Ford. It has done 514.000K
same engine usual cam belts at 100k ,outer cvs at 350k usual maintenance disc pads etc . Believe me when i say this little car has had a hard life!Would,nt hesitate buying any KIA product. In fact at least 5 people I know now drive KIA.s on the run my flivver is giving me.
This little car cost $12500 drive away.
Having owned my latter day Mini Cooper S cunningly disguised as an 07 Kia Rio 1.6 manual since October, I understand why the motoring press ignore Kias. The car is simply better than anything in its class and an embarrassment to the so called class leaders & I tried them all before secumbing to the $14,990 drive away with metallic paint! I commute weekly up the F3 and every work day in Sydney and am amazed at how well it conquers the long hills – Hawkesbury and Ourimbah, wot hill?. Have to use the Tomtom to tell me that, oops we are doing 118 real KPH again. Mighty Mouse literally flies on United’s 95 RON ethanol. This lead foot driving with aircon still gives low 7 l/100k…lovely little mouse, and it loves the corners too.
OK, so it’s a wee underdamped and undertyred – the money I saved in October will be well spent on dampers and wheel & tyre package, but the low noise levels, comfort and fun factor are marvellous.
Nope, I now simply recommend the Rio to all and sundry, and MM simply goes. In a word, brilliant.
Thank you Kia
I just thought I would give an update on my 2006 Rio 1.6L auto sedan. The Rio has just done 30 000kms and also had its 30 000 km service last week. When I got the Rio back from the Kia dealer, the service had taken under three hours and there was something about the car that seemed to have made it go even better than it ever has gone. After 30 000kms and nearly two years I can honestly say this little Kia has just been fantastic and nothing has fallen apart on it either. This car just seems to have improved with more KMs on the clock as it seems to have more power but more smoothly than before. Am I happy I bought a Kia Rio, the answer is a resounding yes! I have driven and owned much more expensive and more powerful cars than the Rio but none of them have been as well built as this car and none of them have had the total reliability of the Kia. It’s a crying shame this country doesn’t make ANYTHING that is as well built as this car, I wouldn’t buy another large car ever again. I have had people laugh because I drive a Kia, well I was laughing when my brother-in-laws brand new Toyota Camry has had to go back to the dealership 3 times now for problems. Now my sister is going to buy a Rio as well, she was going to buy a Corolla but has been put off buy her husbands experiences with his car!
Thank you Kia for such a great little car.
after a dissapointing hyundai 91 model we purchased a ford festiva (kia) a bit small but good value and very reliable,
then a 1999 kia sportage auto still have itat 120,000km & once again great value for money and very reliable,then a 2003 kia Rio hatch excellent car as big inside as a station waggon cheap to run and very reliable we presently have a kia Rio sedan as it is larger than the hatch excellent vehicle cheap and fun to drive excellent value.At work we have 5 auto Kia carnivals which we have been using since they first came on to the market we upgrade at about 40,000km They are excellent value and have proven to be a spacious and reliable people mover.
We will definately buy kia again.
After having having one of these now for over 40,000 i can honestly say save your money and spend it on a better car, The engine is noisy as buggery , the power windows don’t shut properly my radio/cd has been changed 3 times , the gearbox change is extremely notchy, i could make the list longer but i don’t want to rant. This will be the last kia i buy!, All is good when the car has under 20-40 k but no.
Buy honda or VW better quality.
Well after reading this road test and all the reports from all the other very happy owners,(except the last person)it’s convinced me to go for a test drive tomorrow morning. I drove past the local Kia dealer today (Sunday)and checked out a beautiful dark blue (Mica Sapphire) auto sedan and it looked a treat. I love the colour and it was offset by the dark bumper trim and the door protector strips.
The only thing I’ll miss is no cruise control, which I’ve had with most of my recent cars, but I guess at the current low price, you can’t have everything.
The car I want to trade-in is our old 1990 TP Magna, which hasn’t got cruisy anyway, so apples for apples there, but I would get expect half the fuel economy. From about 12.5Lt/100Kms around town, to 7Lts/100kms, I hope.
Hey,today a freind and i went to our local kia dealer and test drove a Rio 1.4,and came away very impressed at the power and low level of noise for a 1.4 litre car!It was nice and supple in the suspension and also very smooth for a small car.Have not brought one yet,but i am thinking very seriously of buying one,just want to try the 1.6 before i make a decision!!Hey for 14K drive away with a 5 year warranty how can you go wrong? Hey can anyone tell me how much better the 1.6 is over the 1.4? thanks in advance!
Hey after driving to Sydney looking for second hand car (2005 or better Nissan Pulsar)had no luck with finding a good one came back thought Maitland had no luck. I had just sold my 2002 Nissan Pulsar which I have always been totally happy with. We stop at a car dealer in Maitland they told us to take the Kia Rio for a test drive and I was sold. Ordered it on the spot can’t wait for it to arrive.
I purchased a Demo Kia Rio last year in Grafton along with a 2004 model Mazda3 Maxx. I was under the impression that the Mazda would by far out run the Kia but, after a few weeks of driving I convinced her to swap keys with me. Over the Kia the Mazda only has an extra 5 airbags, slightly bigger boot, glovebox, & centre console storage, fatser accelration, 6disc CD, steering wheel radio controls & alloys. However, it still didn’t feel as comfortable or finished as teh Kia which had over the Mazda, Fog Lights, power socket, more comfortable seats, more leg room, more head room, better sound system, better air-conditioning & used 4.5L less feuol around town. Apart from not having steering wheel controls, everything is easier to reach, it has an almost silent ride, wind-screen wipers work quicker & more effectively, Hadlights are brighter, easier to read interior controls at a glance. Surprisingly it is even easier to see out of. I have the 1.6L variant & although it has 26KW less than mazda it seems just as fast. The Kia is a 4speed Auto & teh Mazda a 4speed tiptronic. The Mazda revvs at 3000rpm at 100km/h, teh kia revvs at 2300 at 100km/h. My Mazda has constant battery failiers, my Kia hasn’t had any problems in 13months (since i bought it). The only thing I dislike about the Kia is it has no floor mats & it totally bashed up from teh hail storm last year in Grafton. I give my Kia 4.5 stars & my Mazda 4.
Guys, have had my kia rio since the beginning of 2006. Its a 2006 CVVT and I have done just on 76000km’s. I must say that I am very impressed with this car and am now thinking about trading it in on the 1.4 version. From what i’ve experienced, i’d recommend buying one without any hesitation whatsoever. In fact, my wife also has the same one! We bought two rios for the price of what one corolla-type car would have. We are very very impressed and would recommend anyone looking at these cars to buy one.
Dean.
My ‘2006 1.6 has just done 45,000km. It replaced a big Volvo, which was a great car, but doing a lot of km, fuel was getting expensive – what’s more, I just wanted a new car.
The Rio is an amazing car for the money. Better ride and far more get-up-and-go than Jazz, better layout and steering than Colt, it’s got a real boot (unlike Yaris), the clutch is 500% better than Yaris as well. Good seat folding to make a big area to shift stuff. And it’s got a real spare (had to use it twice). Baby seat mounts are convenient, and don’t eat into boot space. It’s got a proper 60/40 seat split which includes the base, so you can carry either 1 or 2 people plus long stuff. Can’t do that in a Colt.
Nothing has fallen off, though the mount for the washer bottle filler had a crack where the bolt goes through, and I notice the paint on the small plastic centres of the hubcaps is crazed – they’ll replace them under warranty.
I get 6.9l/100 in a mix of suburb/motorway running – using Premium98. I found it’s marginally cheaper to use 98 (dearer to buy, but more economical)and gives a little more flexibility on hills etc.
Handling is safe rather than sporty. The original tyres are poor, but I replaced them with Goodyears at 15,000km, and that improved it, particularly in the wet. Gearshift is “ordinary”, but the engine is so torquey, that you use it ½ as much as you do in a Yaris or (particularly) a Jazz.
My lease is up in 6 months, and I’ll seriously consider another Rio (unless I go bigger again to a Magentis if they’ve brought in the diesel by then).
Refering to my previous post a few minutes ago:
I opted for ABS Brakes – and was pleasantly surprised that they came with Rear Disk Brakes. Seem much more positive than the standard brakes. I also bought it with aftermarket Cruise – first time I’ve had it, but wouldn’t be without it now.
My mate has a 1.4 Lx manual.
I have driven it alot around melbourne.
We went for a cruise down the great ocean road and i must say it had enough power but the handling was great.
a few time we have had boys in their 1.4 vw polo’s and the like pull up beside us at the lights and the little rio smoked them. Its kinda really happy to light up the front wheels in the wet and you gotta be really careful cause she will just spin both front wheels without trying. Also took her out past
KIA AUS have DELETED the rear fog light >2009 models, you get a plain rear bumper now. Now looks like a Getz – each just that more dangerous in heavy rain on the freeway, particularly in daylight.
A sign of our ‘weak, dumb’ ADR on the matter (ADR13 Part 8.5.1) which see’s AUS opt-out of the ‘mandatory’ global technical regulation on ther matter UNECE38 which allows cheapskate importers to skimp on safety gear.
This car is now off G/F’s shopping list in principle.
I have read all the good comments about the kia rio they are just a wonderful little car. I own a 2001 rio never had a problem my daughter has a 2008 lx white manuel goes like a charm fantastic value, great warranty you won,t get me buying any other brand. All the others are overpriced the sooner the rest of australia knows it the better.
just brought a brand new rio 09 and very happy with it until i happened to lay down and look under the car and to my horror discovered the paint peeling from the sills on both sides!i returned the car to the dealer who informed me that it was normal!NOT GOOD ENOUGH!it turns out that many rio’s are peeling from this area and kia will do nothing for me.Beware potential buyers that the kia rio you are considering is probably peeling on the forcourt,just check it out if you dont believe me!!!i have been to otherdealers forcourts and true enough un registered new cars are also peeling.how many other cars in their range are also peeling?