Road TestCar reviews - Kia - Rio - sedanKia modelsOverviewKia's facelifted Rio offers improved looks, better dynamics and a sharp price4 Mar 2003 KIA admits that despite its bargain-basement $14,990 sticker price, the convincingly facelifted 2003 Rio will not be an easy sell. Available as either a five-door hatch or four-door sedan (tested here), the well-equipped, single-specification Rio LS undercuts its direct light car rivals by at least $1000. But it needs to because the volume-selling South Korean four/five-door must also compete with a host of Japanese three-door hatches, a bodystyle that's proved popular with young buyers and females, who represent the majority of the light car market. There is no doubt the latest Rio brings marked improvements in a number of key areas, such as styling, interior presentation, driving dynamics and refinement. But whether its larger size, greater practicality, impressive equipment level and rock-bottom price are enough to tempt more light car buyers away from the traditional Japanese three-door remains to be seen. Model release date: 1 January 2003 to 1 August 2005 All car reviewsAlfa Romeo Abarth Alpine Alpina Audi Aston Martin BMW Bentley Chevrolet Chery Citroen Chrysler Dodge Cupra Ferrari DS Ford Fiat FPV Foton GWM Great Wall Holden Haval HSV Honda Hyundai Hummer Isuzu Infiniti Jeep Jaguar Lamborghini Kia LDV Land Rover Lotus Lexus Maserati Mahindra McLaren Mazda Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-AMG Mini MG Nissan Mitsubishi Peugeot Opel Proton Porsche Renault Ram Rover Rolls-Royce Skoda Saab SsangYong Smart Suzuki Subaru Toyota Tesla Volvo Volkswagen Previous modelAUSTRALIA'S first taste of the Kia Rio light came in July 2000 when both the four-door sedan and five-door hatch versions went on sale with a sticker price of $14,990. Later available with air-conditioning as standard and then at a driveaway price, the original Rio was discontinued in Decemeber 2002 to make way for the facelifted version tested here, circa January 2003. |
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