Topic: Test Drive: 2012 Kia Forte Koup

[Autos_Editor]

This car appeals to Mike Schlee's inner 20-year-old, but not so much to today's 32-year-old version.

Read More...

[carcrazed]

Man.. those Kia guys must've got REALLY bored one day.

Does the 'R' stand for 'Ridiculous'?

[tortoise]

I can't for the life of me figure out why someone would buy this over a Civic Si.

[Shnak]

I can't for the life of me figure out why someone would buy this over a Civic Si.

Can you get a Civic Si for $28k out the door? (*before taxes)

Plus, you're likely to get a much bigger discount on the Forte than you would on the Civic.

[Threader]

Kia so badly needs a sports halo car. Hookey dealer glue ons, stickers and new rims and tires ain't cutting it.

Slip in the 1.6 or 2.0 L turbo motors from Hyundai, revise suspension, brakes and rims/tires and free flowing exhaust.

[dirtyjeffer]

I can't for the life of me figure out why someone would buy this over a Civic Si.

Can you get a Civic Si for $28k out the door? (*before taxes)

Plus, you're likely to get a much bigger discount on the Forte than you would on the Civic.

a Civic Si is $27,485 before taxes (including freight)...while i don't mind the Kia Forte Coupe, i would take the Honda over it in a second...while i'm sure the Forte will be good quality, worst case scenario, if i were to sell the vehicle in 10 years, i'd likely still get $5-$10k for the Civic (like a couple grand tops for the Kia).

[mixmanmash]

"What Kia has created with the addition of the ‘R’ package is a Forte Koup to compete with the likes of the Scion tC Release Series and Honda Civic Si HFP in the world of manufacturer-backed tuner specials. This car is clearly marketed towards younger drivers, and 20-year old Mike would gladly rock this car (this is the same 20-year old Mike who had a manual, four-cylinder Alero Coupe lowered and tuned)."

Ok.  I do have problems with this statement.  Just because someone slaps on a body kit, lowers their ride and puts in a big stereo doesn't mean it's a tuner or tuned.

If you put performance mods (turbo, supercharger, engine internals, cams, etc.), have someone "custom tune" the ECU for the mods, then I would consider it a tuner or tuned car.

[Mike]

None of the cars listed above are more than tires and handling really.

[Ace]

Ah yes, I remember back in the day, "souping up" my Datsun 510 with a stebro (fart can) muffler, aftermarket rims , tach, wood rim steering wheel. Only to be out-run by an old lady in a Oldsmobile Vista Wagon, who didn't even know I was racing her ! Yep, those were the days.

[jamesautos]

Yeah thats why the lease payment on kia is so high, last time i priced one out at the dealer, the payment is higher than a civic so my brother ended up with a civic

Their residual value is very low...

I can't for the life of me figure out why someone would buy this over a Civic Si.

Can you get a Civic Si for $28k out the door? (*before taxes)

Plus, you're likely to get a much bigger discount on the Forte than you would on the Civic.

a Civic Si is $27,485 before taxes (including freight)...while i don't mind the Kia Forte Coupe, i would take the Honda over it in a second...while i'm sure the Forte will be good quality, worst case scenario, if i were to sell the vehicle in 10 years, i'd likely still get $5-$10k for the Civic (like a couple grand tops for the Kia).

[Ace]

I wonder why some car companies come up with odd, meaningless names like Forte, Elantra, Veloster, Camry, Corolla, to name a few. 

[dirtyjeffer]

I wonder why some car companies come up with odd, meaningless names like Forte, Elantra, Veloster, Camry, Corolla, to name a few. 

there are many reasons...some names might already be trademarked and not available...other names may have negative meanings in other languages...marketing people may think that certain names will be easier to advertise/market.

[Spec5]

I think Hyundai/Kia's problem is that they need to go racing to understand how to get some decent steering/suspension architecture down. Almost every review you read about them targets numb steering or other whacky handling issues. (poor performance over bumps mid corner, etc) I think they could actually gain a lot of that knowledge through a racing program. Would also love to see more production based racing series - kind of like ALMS but with more production based sports cars like Mustangs, Camaros, Genesis, 370Z, etc. Would be a ton of fun to watch!

[Mike]

I think Hyundai/Kia's problem is that they need to go racing to understand how to get some decent steering/suspension architecture down. Almost every review you read about them targets numb steering or other whacky handling issues. (poor performance over bumps mid corner, etc) I think they could actually gain a lot of that knowledge through a racing program. Would also love to see more production based racing series - kind of like ALMS but with more production based sports cars like Mustangs, Camaros, Genesis, 370Z, etc. Would be a ton of fun to watch!

Well, Kia did make an all-out assault on Grand Am this year, so let's hope it trickles down.

[Fobroader]

One other thing is the aftermarket hasnt accepted Hyundai and Kia like Honda, Toyota.......So the young guy looking for the 3 foot high aluminum wing, fart can and fake carbon fiber hood has no options. I think this is an issue, the cars have no aftermarket support so the young guys arent into them.

[dirtyjeffer]

One other thing is the aftermarket hasnt accepted Hyundai and Kia like Honda, Toyota.......So the young guy looking for the 3 foot high aluminum wing, fart can and fake carbon fiber hood has no options. I think this is an issue, the cars have no aftermarket support so the young guys arent into them.

it's coming...unfortunately.

[dirtyjeffer]

I think Hyundai/Kia's problem is that they need to go racing to understand how to get some decent steering/suspension architecture down. Almost every review you read about them targets numb steering or other whacky handling issues. (poor performance over bumps mid corner, etc) I think they could actually gain a lot of that knowledge through a racing program. Would also love to see more production based racing series - kind of like ALMS but with more production based sports cars like Mustangs, Camaros, Genesis, 370Z, etc. Would be a ton of fun to watch!

Well, Kia did make an all-out assault on Grand Am this year, so let's hope it trickles down.

i agree...however, i'm curious why they don't send Lotus some money and recruit them to help them with chassis/suspension design...it would likely be worth its weight in gold...i know my car isn't perfect, but i find it more than adequate for what i do (which is likely what they are looking for), but for their sporty models, a "Handling by Lotus" would likely help it substantially.

[Spec5]

I think Hyundai/Kia's problem is that they need to go racing to understand how to get some decent steering/suspension architecture down. Almost every review you read about them targets numb steering or other whacky handling issues. (poor performance over bumps mid corner, etc) I think they could actually gain a lot of that knowledge through a racing program. Would also love to see more production based racing series - kind of like ALMS but with more production based sports cars like Mustangs, Camaros, Genesis, 370Z, etc. Would be a ton of fun to watch!

Well, Kia did make an all-out assault on Grand Am this year, so let's hope it trickles down.

i agree...however, i'm curious why they don't send Lotus some money and recruit them to help them with chassis/suspension design...it would likely be worth its weight in gold...i know my car isn't perfect, but i find it more than adequate for what i do (which is likely what they are looking for), but for their sporty models, a "Handling by Lotus" would likely help it substantially.

Very true, but really, its not like Hyundai/Kia are hurting for customers. I mean definately a name like "Lotus" on the side or back of the car would look impressive. But I think they have a real opportunity here to do it themselves and build their own "street cred" by developing their own race team. What better opportunity than the merger of ALMS and Grand-Am?! Take 2 or 3 years - they've already got the regular public convinced that they're worth a legitimate look but now if they do this right and they develop a TRUE sportscar they can get even more of the enthusiast market too.

[Cord]

"Handling by Lotus" worked great for Isuzu back in the day.

[Spec5]

"Handling by Lotus" worked great for Isuzu back in the day.

Haha true, but I would hardly compare Hyundai/Kia's current position anywhere near what Isuzu's was back when they tried that.