I greatly appreciate the visuals that you and Mr. Campbell capture in every review. Please never stop with the fun (to me) facts sprinkled throughout your reviews.
Looks like a very nice car. I drive a '23 Kona with the 147 HP motor and that has all the power I need. I really like the K4 WITHOUT the engine stop start system though!
@matthewgillies6273 Buying a new car these days feels like hit or miss for any brand. Toyota and Honda are not reliable anymore since they got new powertrains. Just purchase what fits into your lifestyle
@Thebignagro yeah , i totally understand that mindset. Not sure how many Americans have enough saved to buy a reliable car in cash. Thats an ideal situation.
The base engine is a carry over from last year, and it’s been wonderful. I own a 2019 Kia Forte with that engine and i have 89k miles on it and no issues, I take care of the car and do its maintenance early than recommended. I highly recommend
I think the Civic Hybrid is the only car in the segment that I'd be tempted to get instead of this. But I'd have the turbo. WIll be interested to hear what Tom prefers between the turbo and a transmission vs. the Honda hybrid. Good review.
Hi Tom! Your reviews are really excellent, have been watching for years. Suggestion; no need to say: "I won't waste your time". I am sure everyone who watches regularly, like me, looks forward to your videos, watches from beginning to end and finds them to be always informative and engaging. So no need to be defensive about the value of your work. Just a thought.
This has just been released in Australia, and all models get rear air vents which is needed in Australia. But seems like an odd omission for the US, as you have states that are just as hot if not hotter than Aus. Australia is also more of a hatch market so looking forward to the hatch arriving, will really boost sales when that gets here
Great review as always Tom. Car just got initial specs released here in Aus, Cerato name has gone and so has the DCT in the 1.6t and replaced with the same 8AT you mentioned. I feel the sedan has some Stinger vibes in that C-pillar. Hatch looks spot on, but will have to wait to see it in the flesh.
I bought a fully loaded metallic red Cadillac ELR FWD and a fully loaded metallic ruby red Ford Escape Titanium 2.0 AWD. Both vehicles were considered for purchase after watching Driven with Tom and Martin, considering the advice shared and being in the market at the time of purchase. Both cars have been excellent and have only needed regular maintenance so far. I genuinely trust his opinion, and the quality of his video production is top-notch. Plus, Tom helps keep me informed about what's new in the market. So, I think you should subscribe too.
No heated wheel but having vented seats....that seems weird. Usually heated seats are the norm, then heated wheel, with vented seats the icing on the cake. Hatch version looks awesome, bring a GT hot hatch version with that Elantra N engine and transmissions. Great review as usual.
On paper, the K4 is an absolute steal in its segment. I'm curious about how much value one will get in the long-term, though. A Civic typically holds its value way, way better than a Forte would. The K4 might change the narrative, but Kias tend to depreciate quite a bit. Sure, you pay $3-4K less for the Kia up front, but how does it look in five years when the Kia is now worth $10K less than the Honda?
For people that keep their cars for a long time (my Soul is 12 years old) depreciation is less of an issue. It's not something I dwell on in reviews, I'm more of a product guy. But yeah, it's a thing.
My concern isn't value if I plan to keep it long enough. My concern would be would I rather interact with the service department at a Honda or Kia dealership?
I'm mostly looking forward to the K4 hatchback. Overall the K4 is a stylish vehicle and I like that it got a little bigger to accommodate rear passengers better while still being a small-ish car, but I'm really not digging the mostly black interior no matter what trim you choose, and the overwrought C-pillar, headlights, and taillights.
One thing that I have learned about car reviews is that the reviews are always short term and most people, I assume, want to BUY a car, or finance, instead of a 3 or 4 year lease. For the untrained person, a car review praising features is one of the biggest reasons to get that car. However, in terms of longevity and reliability, it's a completely different story and there is not a lot of reviewers that would do that. For example, myself. These reviews are the reason why I decided to go with the Elantra over the Corolla. Stunning looks, less stigma, and more features, for less price. And I leased it because I like changing cars. However, on the 2nd year of the lease, the car started to have issues with its A/C which took me 5 trips to the dealership to get fixed. Thank god that it was still under warranty, otherwise, I would have to pay 10 grand for the whole issue. And the issue was a manufacturing defect ! I wish more reviewers could do long term reviews of cars. It's a hassle because you never know whether the one you have will get issues, so you need to be patient. And you need to devise a standardized test for each car. Maybe the government should provide incentives for these reviewers to test cars in the long term and provide benefits. That way, manufacturers can get more insight into their products. Win-Win-Win for consumers, reviewers, and car manufacturers
There's simply no way people could do reviews the way you're asking. It would take 5 years (the car could be out of production) and then it would be just one vehicle which is a bad sample size. While I consider JD Power and CU information when profiling a vehicle, it's tough to know how a vehicle will hold up when there are so many variables. Could be extreme conditions. Maybe a car is unusual or built with a bad component. And maybe your dealership was incompetent.
@@DrivenCarReviews I have found a reviewer that kind of does what I say, but not that long term. His channel is Out of Spec Reviews and he tests cars for 6 months. I saw a video of a test he did with a previous gen Kia Sorento which he said had a whole slew of problems. 6 months is very little for a brand new car to have issues, which kind of supports my theory to have long term reviews, instead of just a few weeks. And being a single person doing that means that you don't get to post videos and generate revenue as often. But Kudos to him
It looks big for a compact. (BTW modern compact cars are basically mid sized if you're driving something 10 or 20. Years old). I heard it's replacing both the Forte and K5? Is that true?
Greetings from southern Ontario Canada the haze color is available on the kia k4 EX+ according to the Canadian website just an FYI but I'm 6'4 so any car like this or the remaining competition models usually have a power sunroof option im out no thanks I need my hair without losing head space
That 2.0NA is still port-injected! If they offered one in manual transmission, and with adaptive cruise, I would've been interested. But Hyundai/Kia never supported adaptive cruise with manual transmission. Even Subaru finally caved last year, which was too late, since they stopped offering manual in all but WRX and BRZ. I'd have loved an Impreza RS MT6 with EyeSight(TM). All this is pointless ranting because I already bought 2024 Civic Sport Hatch MT6 last year. The last NA, non-direct-injected manual transmission anything with adaptive cruise control.
Probably the best-looking car in its segment, but can it be stolen with a thumb drive? Also, that engine sounds awful; that would be annoying to hear every day.
No on the thumb drive. It was never the case with push button start and hasn't been possible in its newer cars. Also, the engine sounds fine in real life.
Kudos to Kia for eliminating the absolutely worst idea of all time in the AutoStart. Only the slow stream shower head and the two-pint toilet are worse.
I'm gonna be honest. I really wanted to like this. But overall the exterior just doesn't look good. Love the interior. Mazda, Elantra and Civic I think are the better choice. Get a Honda Civic Hybrid, better mpg, a full second quicker than the turbo. I like Kia, just not this one.
I recently had a Kia Soul (rental) with this same engine and transmission, and it was surprisingly quick off the line. I was pushing the gas pedal down half way and leaving everyone behind. Plus I was getting 35 mpg the whole time. Most folks will be quite happy with the base powertrain.
Awesome ride! ＄28,300. BUT to be super-cool to their neighbors and relatives, people who otherwise can’t afford to will have a 7.42% APR for a 7 year loan with a monthly payment of $700 for their ＄50k SUV, then complain there’s nothing affordable.
Can't wait for the hatchback!
I totally agree with you!!! The Kia K4 Hatchback looks totally awesome!!!
thank you very much driven car reviews for your new video
I greatly appreciate the visuals that you and Mr. Campbell capture in every review. Please never stop with the fun (to me) facts sprinkled throughout your reviews.
Another awesome review Tom!!! Good job as always!!!
Bring back the wagon, KIA!! ❤❤❤
Not exactly a wagon, but the K4 Hatchback should be coming this year!
Yeah, the hatch sure has a wagon vibe doesn't it?
Fun fact, the K900 is called the K9 in Korea. A loyal companion, indeed
That exhaust rev noise sounds like someone rattling a coffee can full of rocks. Woof!
It reminds you the K4 is an economy car. lol
What did you expect from a sub $30k econo car, V12 Ferrari exhaust sounds?
Wow that’s ugly.
Looks like a very nice car. I drive a '23 Kona with the 147 HP motor and that has all the power I need. I really like the K4 WITHOUT the engine stop start system though!
Any maintenance issues with Kia? I'm in the market for a new car. Looking at Toyota, Honda and Mazda...but I could be convinced
@@matthewgillies6273 My Hyundai Kona has been trouble free so far. I get the free oil changes and it's good to go.
@matthewgillies6273 Buying a new car these days feels like hit or miss for any brand. Toyota and Honda are not reliable anymore since they got new powertrains. Just purchase what fits into your lifestyle
@matthewgillies6273 dave ramsey rules if you can't buy in cash then you don't buy the vehicle, this ideology saved me tens of thousands
@Thebignagro yeah , i totally understand that mindset. Not sure how many Americans have enough saved to buy a reliable car in cash. Thats an ideal situation.
HNY Tom!! Looking forward to all your Driven Car Review videos in 2025!!
We're on our 4th Kia. The value and functionality are what keep us coming back.
I'm' about to buy my first being the K4 gt. How reliable are they when kept up? I keep seeing a lot of hate.
The base engine is a carry over from last year, and it’s been wonderful. I own a 2019 Kia Forte with that engine and i have 89k miles on it and no issues, I take care of the car and do its maintenance early than recommended. I highly recommend
I like the sneak peek of the hatchback version. I'd call it a sportwagon.
I think the Civic Hybrid is the only car in the segment that I'd be tempted to get instead of this. But I'd have the turbo. WIll be interested to hear what Tom prefers between the turbo and a transmission vs. the Honda hybrid. Good review.
Hi Tom! Your reviews are really excellent, have been watching for years. Suggestion; no need to say: "I won't waste your time". I am sure everyone who watches regularly, like me, looks forward to your videos, watches from beginning to end and finds them to be always informative and engaging. So no need to be defensive about the value of your work. Just a thought.
The lion's share of views come from people new to the channel so there's that. Not defensive, nearly stating a fact. But glad you're enjoying them!
Ever since you pointed out you avoid other cars being in the background of your footage I’ve been appreciating that more and more
I do a lot of subtle things to keep people focused on the car. Learned a lot of things from the awesome staff at KING5. Glad you noticed!
This has just been released in Australia, and all models get rear air vents which is needed in Australia. But seems like an odd omission for the US, as you have states that are just as hot if not hotter than Aus.
Australia is also more of a hatch market so looking forward to the hatch arriving, will really boost sales when that gets here
I see Tom...i click play
You and I both😂
Great review as always Tom. Car just got initial specs released here in Aus, Cerato name has gone and so has the DCT in the 1.6t and replaced with the same 8AT you mentioned.
I feel the sedan has some Stinger vibes in that C-pillar. Hatch looks spot on, but will have to wait to see it in the flesh.
I was genuinely interested in what you had to say about this car.
Great review! Needing to get the Turbo just to have phone as key, birds eye camera, or certain ADAS features is annoying.
Another good review and information!! 👍👍, Looking forward to the hatchback 🙂
Does the ass end look weird...i feel like it looks weird ..
The hatchback looks sick!
I bought a fully loaded metallic red Cadillac ELR FWD and a fully loaded metallic ruby red Ford Escape Titanium 2.0 AWD. Both vehicles were considered for purchase after watching Driven with Tom and Martin, considering the advice shared and being in the market at the time of purchase. Both cars have been excellent and have only needed regular maintenance so far. I genuinely trust his opinion, and the quality of his video production is top-notch. Plus, Tom helps keep me informed about what's new in the market. So, I think you should subscribe too.
You have an ELR?
No heated wheel but having vented seats....that seems weird. Usually heated seats are the norm, then heated wheel, with vented seats the icing on the cake. Hatch version looks awesome, bring a GT hot hatch version with that Elantra N engine and transmissions. Great review as usual.
Great job Tom and thanks for the grammar lessons!
I'm the worst one to be giving grammar lessons, I'm a photog first.
On paper, the K4 is an absolute steal in its segment. I'm curious about how much value one will get in the long-term, though. A Civic typically holds its value way, way better than a Forte would. The K4 might change the narrative, but Kias tend to depreciate quite a bit. Sure, you pay $3-4K less for the Kia up front, but how does it look in five years when the Kia is now worth $10K less than the Honda?
For people that keep their cars for a long time (my Soul is 12 years old) depreciation is less of an issue. It's not something I dwell on in reviews, I'm more of a product guy. But yeah, it's a thing.
My concern isn't value if I plan to keep it long enough. My concern would be would I rather interact with the service department at a Honda or Kia dealership?
@@DrivenCarReviews how many miles on your soul? Any issues?
Nice job, thanks.
Note sure about the white accents. I agree all black is dour just not sure if the white is a great solution. Great tech as usual from Hyundai Kia
I'm mostly looking forward to the K4 hatchback. Overall the K4 is a stylish vehicle and I like that it got a little bigger to accommodate rear passengers better while still being a small-ish car, but I'm really not digging the mostly black interior no matter what trim you choose, and the overwrought C-pillar, headlights, and taillights.
SavageGeese thought head room in the rear seats was tight. Do you think it'll be better with the hatchback?
We'll see... Like I said, there's just enough headroom.
We are so behind here in Australia that we never get K4 .
No gloss black. It's a win.
Hatchback 🔥 🤩
Wow! Great price.
One thing that I have learned about car reviews is that the reviews are always short term and most people, I assume, want to BUY a car, or finance, instead of a 3 or 4 year lease.
For the untrained person, a car review praising features is one of the biggest reasons to get that car. However, in terms of longevity and reliability, it's a completely different story and there is not a lot of reviewers that would do that.
For example, myself. These reviews are the reason why I decided to go with the Elantra over the Corolla. Stunning looks, less stigma, and more features, for less price. And I leased it because I like changing cars. However, on the 2nd year of the lease, the car started to have issues with its A/C which took me 5 trips to the dealership to get fixed. Thank god that it was still under warranty, otherwise, I would have to pay 10 grand for the whole issue. And the issue was a manufacturing defect !
I wish more reviewers could do long term reviews of cars. It's a hassle because you never know whether the one you have will get issues, so you need to be patient. And you need to devise a standardized test for each car.
Maybe the government should provide incentives for these reviewers to test cars in the long term and provide benefits. That way, manufacturers can get more insight into their products. Win-Win-Win for consumers, reviewers, and car manufacturers
There's simply no way people could do reviews the way you're asking. It would take 5 years (the car could be out of production) and then it would be just one vehicle which is a bad sample size. While I consider JD Power and CU information when profiling a vehicle, it's tough to know how a vehicle will hold up when there are so many variables. Could be extreme conditions. Maybe a car is unusual or built with a bad component. And maybe your dealership was incompetent.
@@DrivenCarReviews I have found a reviewer that kind of does what I say, but not that long term. His channel is Out of Spec Reviews and he tests cars for 6 months. I saw a video of a test he did with a previous gen Kia Sorento which he said had a whole slew of problems. 6 months is very little for a brand new car to have issues, which kind of supports my theory to have long term reviews, instead of just a few weeks. And being a single person doing that means that you don't get to post videos and generate revenue as often. But Kudos to him
It looks big for a compact. (BTW modern compact cars are basically mid sized if you're driving something 10 or 20. Years old). I heard it's replacing both the Forte and K5? Is that true?
I keep getting "we don't comment on future product..."
I believe it's only replacing the K5 in Canada
Greetings from southern Ontario Canada the haze color is available on the kia k4 EX+ according to the Canadian website just an FYI but I'm 6'4 so any car like this or the remaining competition models usually have a power sunroof option im out no thanks I need my hair without losing head space
That 2.0NA is still port-injected!
If they offered one in manual transmission, and with adaptive cruise, I would've been interested. But Hyundai/Kia never supported adaptive cruise with manual transmission.
Even Subaru finally caved last year, which was too late, since they stopped offering manual in all but WRX and BRZ. I'd have loved an Impreza RS MT6 with EyeSight(TM).
All this is pointless ranting because I already bought 2024 Civic Sport Hatch MT6 last year. The last NA, non-direct-injected manual transmission anything with adaptive cruise control.
I missed the mpg ratings??
I'm gonna go ahead and count the forthcoming hatchback as a wagon.
Probably the best-looking car in its segment, but can it be stolen with a thumb drive? Also, that engine sounds awful; that would be annoying to hear every day.
No on the thumb drive. It was never the case with push button start and hasn't been possible in its newer cars. Also, the engine sounds fine in real life.
Kudos to Kia for eliminating the absolutely worst idea of all time in the AutoStart. Only the slow stream shower head and the two-pint toilet are worse.
I'm gonna be honest. I really wanted to like this. But overall the exterior just doesn't look good. Love the interior. Mazda, Elantra and Civic I think are the better choice. Get a Honda Civic Hybrid, better mpg, a full second quicker than the turbo. I like Kia, just not this one.
Ok, great review and all, BUT how was the chili? Inquiring minds want to know. 😅
And don’t feel bad there’s tons of places near me in LA that I keep meaning to go to and haven’t yet.
I got 45 mpg on the k4 2.0 the other day
I much prefer the exterior styling of the Forte, though I hated how it drives.
All these fancy features, yet no lumbar support. Who needs fancy LCDs when your back aches? What are car manufacturers thinking?
I knew Florida was flat, but not the flattest. Another reason to avoid it 😄
So pretty
Good review. Still, just can't buy a Kia or Hyundai. Not unless you want to drive them for some time. No one want's ''em on trade in.
FWIW our Soul just tuned 12 years old. Gas, oil, batteries and a transmission sensor covered under warranty.
We are pretty great, aren’t we?!
CVT is a deal breaker
There's the turbo. Not really all that more expensive considering the extra kit.
I find it hilarious that he still doesn't care about his Instagram name.
Primer? Preamer? 😂
Hate the back and and side of this car
Needs AWD
I recently had a Kia Soul (rental) with this same engine and transmission, and it was surprisingly quick off the line. I was pushing the gas pedal down half way and leaving everyone behind. Plus I was getting 35 mpg the whole time. Most folks will be quite happy with the base powertrain.
Mikes is highly overrated
Was wondering who would reply first on that. Still need to try it, out of curiosity.
Awesome ride! ＄28,300. BUT to be super-cool to their neighbors and relatives, people who otherwise can’t afford to will have a 7.42% APR for a 7 year loan with a monthly payment of $700 for their ＄50k SUV, then complain there’s nothing affordable.