Kia Rolls Out Its Forte Compact Sedan

The Kia Motor Company has long lived in the shadow of its Korean cousin, Hyundai Motors, playing second fiddle to an automaker who has been busy reinventing its own image. Kia, which has long stood for low-priced and average quality at best vehicles, is also in the midst of a makeover, having released its Soul urban expression vehicle earlier this Spring, a Scion-like car that has been well received by critics and buyers alike.

Competition For Toyota And Honda

Last week, Kia rolled out its second important introduction of the year, its Forte compact, a five passenger sedan that will thankfully replace the uninspiring Spectra. Based on the Koup concept, the Forte’s styling will help it compete against the two segment leaders — the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic.

And, judging by its looks alone, the Forte succeeds where all other Kia models have failed. Crisp styling, a well designed and appointed interior along with a competitive price will put the Forte on many buyer’s lists, something that the Spectra achieved thanks to major discounting. Kia says that the Forte is a clean break from the Spectra meaning that it is an all new model not just an all new name.

Beauty Is More Than Skin Deep

Courtesy of Kia Motors of America, the following photos will give you a better look at the compact sedan:

Replacing the Spectra, the 2010 Kia Forte offers bold styling which is based upon the Koup concept, a model that was well received at auto shows in 2008.

The tapered C Pillar is a styling cue typically found on more expensive, European sedans. The Forte sits on a 104 inch wheelbase and is 178 inches long by 70 inches wide.

The Kia Forte dashboard is nicely designed, with driver controls embedded on the steering wheel as well as on the center stack.

Comfortable bucket seats greet front passengers with the driver getting six-way adaptable seating. Leather trimmed and heated seats are available with the EX package.

Seating for three rear passengers is available, although just like the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic, two passenger seating is optimal.

Standard engine is a 2.0L I4 paired with either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission. Optionally a 2.4L I4 engine is available, which is paired with a six-speed manual or five-speed automatic transmission. An optional Fuel Economy Package on the EX model helps the Forte achieve 27/36 mpg, the highest ratings for this model.

For more information about the Kia Forte, please visit the Kia Motors website.

The Most Fuel Efficient Cars of 2009

Although gas prices have retreated considerably since peaking above $4 per gallon over the summer, consumers who are in the market for a new vehicle are still putting a high importance on choosing cars that deliver exceptional fuel economy. The retreat from big SUVs, pickup trucks, and other large vehicles has been historic with demand for certain smaller cars outstripping supply.

Each year the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes information about every vehicle sold in the US to include city, highway, and combined driving fuel economy. Up until recently, those figures were considered to be inflated, but over the past few years the EPA has taken great strides to make certain that fuel economy numbers parallel real world driving conditions. If the EPA says that a car can get 40 mpg, you should be able to realize that number under optimum driving conditions.

The Most Fuel Efficient Cars For 2009

For the 2009 model year, the EPA has released its Top Ten list of most fuel efficient cars. The list is evenly split between hybrids and gas or electric models, with top honors going to the Toyota Prius:

1. Toyota Prius (hybrid) — 48/45

2. Honda Civic Hybrid — 40/45

3. Nissan Altima Hybrid — 35/33

4. Ford Escape Hybrid FWD; Mazda Tribute Hybrid 2WD; Mercury Mariner Hybrid FWD — 34/31

5. Smart ForTwo convertible; Smart ForTwo coupe — 33/41

6. Toyota Camry Hybrid — 33/34

7. Volkswagen Jetta (manual, diesel); Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen (manual, diesel) — 30/41

8. Volkswagen Jetta (automatic, diesel); Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen (automatic, diesel) — 29/40

9. Toyota Yaris (manual) — 29/36

10. Toyota Yaris (automatic) – 29/35

The Worst of the Lot

Now that you know the most fuel efficient vehicles available, can you guess which model finished dead last? If you said the Lamborghini Murcielago with its 6.5L V12 engine, then you guessed correctly. The Italian sportscar gulps gas to the tune of delivering just 8 mpg city and 13 mpg highway finishing just ahead of the Bentley Arnage RL which gets 9 mpg city/15 mpg highway thanks to its 6.7L V12 powerplant.

To find the fuel economy of a vehicle that interests you and to make side by side comparisons with other cars, trucks, vans, crossovers, and SUVs, visit the EPA website to plug in that information.