The All New and Restyled Kia Optima

The recently introduced second-generation Kia Optima follows much the same playbook. The Kia Optima's cabin is spacious, and the interior materials as a whole give an impression of quality. Because of their mechanical similarity, the Kia Optima has comparable reliability to Hyundai Sonatas of the same model year. The Kia Optima's cabin is spacious, and the interior materials as a whole give an impression of quality.

In its third model year (2003), the Optima's front end was restyled, which gave it a more upscale European look. In addition, Kia began to offer Sportmatic manual-shift capability on four-cylinder automatic Kia Optimas. The biggest improvement of the new Kia Optima is its exterior look. Unlike the previous generation of Optima's, this vehicle is actually based on the Hyundai Elantra HD (2007-) platform. Like the Sonata, the Optima is also longer and taller than the previous model and has a longer wheelbase. The differences between the Optima and Sonata are mostly in styling details, though the Kia is priced at $500 less.

Kia has emphasized the safety features on the Optima, claiming that it comes standard with many safety features and received a crash test rating of 5-stars from the NHTSA[1] and 4-stars from Euro NCAP[2]. Surprisingly, while other cars are adding power with model-changeovers, Optima's optional V6 only makes 185 hp (138 kW), which is seriously lacking compared to a lot of other models. Though not known to be a competitor in any road racing events, the Optima has proven to be an acceptable rally racing machine.

The Kia Optima (Magentis) raced in several amateur rally events (2003-2004) and, although it never claimed a victory, proved to be a close competitor to the rally machines in its class. From its sparing use of chrome to its plain Jane wheels, the Optima is deeply, wildly inoffensive. Measured against the '07 Accord EX V6, the Optima LX comes up short in acceleration, mileage and toys. But the Kia Optima is a nice car for the price. The Kia Optima is priced below competing models and typically represent a good value when taking into consideration their high feature content. Four years down the road a used Optima will be a steal compared to a used Camry or Accord. With that said, your eyes will have no problem telling the difference between the LX and higher-priced merchandise. The vehicle's "Expected" cost of ownership is based on statistical models that correlate the price of a vehicle with cost of ownership within each of the 34 segments that comprise all vehicles.

By Jim E. Harris

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Kia Amanti: Worth Every Cent

A carryover from 2004, the most recent Kia Amanti is a family sedan made available in one trim level which is the Base. It can take up a maximum capacity of five passengers along with an easier entry and exit with its four doors. It can up 17 mpg during city driving and a 25 mpg while on the highway.

Although the Kia Amanti bears quite a resemblance to a Mercedes, it is quite different overall. This vehicle invokes luxury from its overall appearance. The interior has seat adjustment buttons mounted on its doors so as to help facilitate a Mercedes illusion. This vehicle is the most expensive among Kia’s model line up, however this vehicle is worth every cent for it provides an enormous interior, excellent performance with its quiet yet strong V6 engine, and its comfortable and quiet ride due to the Kia Amanti’s good sound isolation techniques. Something that the Kia Amanti is proud of is its seemingly endless allocation for space.

When Kia has designed the Kia Amanti, the automobile manufacturer has certainly made sure that the safety of the driver and the vehicle’s passengers would not looked over and missed out on. And for sure, even the previous generations of this vehicle holds safety intact. The Kia Amanti offers more standard airbags than any other car in its class. It also holds airbags that provides the utmost protection during inevitable accidents along with the vehicle’s front active headrests. Each and every Kia Amanti has front and rear crumple zones, side-impact door beams and also has reinforced pillars. Even if it has children for passengers, the little ones are carefully protected by the vehicle’s rear child safety door locks, the internal emergency trunk release, and the specially designed anchorage system that excels in providing an extra secure hold on the child safety seats.

The Kia Amanti owns up to an excellent performance which is all due to its 3.5 liter DOHC V6 engine. This family sedan has a wheelbase of 110.2 inches, a length of 196 inches, a total width of 72.8 inches, and an overall height of 58.5 inches. The Kia Amanti has features and additional options like a multi-port fuel injection, electronic power steering, a double wishbone front suspension, gas shock absorbers, alloy wheels, clear-lens halogen headlights, side markup lamp, in-glass antenna, dual body color power heated mirrors, a windshield de-icer, a solar glass windshield, one-touch auto up/down power windows, power door locks, a remote keyless entry system along with an alarm with panic button, an AM/FM/cassette/CD audio system, four door mounted tweeter speakers and dual front airbags.

By Jenny McLane