2016 Kia Optima Earns IIHS Top Safety Pick+ Award

The redesigned 2016 Kia Optima joins the ranks of midsize cars that have earned the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s Top Safety Pick+ award. The new Optima benefits from sharing a platform with the Hyundai Sonata, which also earned top marks from the IIHS.

To earn the Top Safety Pick+ award, a vehicle not only has to earn “good” ratings in all tests, including the small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength, and head restraint tests, it needs to have an available front crash protection system and earn an advanced or superior rating.

The 2015 Kia Optima didn’t offer front crash prevention, which took it out of consideration for the top award. However, the new model offers it and was able to avoid collisions at both 12 mph and 25 mph. Last year, the Optima also only earned an “acceptable” rating on the small overlap test, which further hindered its performance.

Along with the 2016 Hyundai Sonata, the 2016 Kia Optima joins a number of other midsize sedans that have earned an IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award for 2016, including the Chrysler 200, Honda Accord, Mazda6, Nissan Altima and Maxima, Subaru Legacy, Toyota Camry, and the Volkswagen Passat.

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Kia to Adopt Android Auto in Q3; All EU Models by 2018

Android Auto was first introduced during Google I/O 2014, and made its debut on a commercially available vehicle in May 2015 with the launch of the Hyundai Sonata. Since then, numerous car manufacturers have teamed up with Google to bring Android Auto to drivers around the world, and the platform is expected to gain a lot more grip in 2016 – 2017. Earlier this year, Kia was among the car manufacturers to announce their use of Android Auto in future models, specifically the 2017 Kia Forte5 unveiled in Detroit. More recently during the Geneva International Motor Show, Kia revealed that by the end of 2017, Android Auto will be offered for its entire range of cars destined for the European market.

According to Kia, Android Auto will be introduced along with the Kia Niro hybrid crossover which was announced in January 2016. The Kia Niro has been developed in isolation from existing models and has been built as a hybrid car from the ground up. Expected to debut in the third quarter of the year, the Kia Niro will become the company’s first Android Auto-enabled car, and will be followed by models such as the Kia Optima Sportwagon and the Kia Plug-In Hybrid. Kia’s entire range of cars for Europe will apparently offer Android Auto before the end of 2017. Kia Europe COO, Michael Cole, adds that “In-car connectivity is increasingly important to our buyers, who are young-at-heart and often seek the latest technologies on offer.”

As for the Android Auto platform itself, it’s likely that Google will discuss its future during their I/O 2016 keynote (May 18th), especially since last year there was no mention of Android Auto during the event, and given the fact that the platform is becoming increasingly popular. Although there’s not much official information to go by, some of the additions that might help the platform could include compatibility with a broader range of Android applications, as well as the ability to connect a smartphone to the vehicle’s infotainment system wirelessly, as opposed to having to maintain a connection through the USB port.

It’s worth noting that Android Auto will be accompanied by Kia Connected Services on the aforementioned vehicles, so if you’re not a fan of Google Maps then there will always be an alternative method to gain live traffic updates, weather forecasts and so on.

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Kia Optima GT v Hyundai Sonata Premium Comparison Review

There’s something to be said for sibling rivalry. Brothers and sisters often grow up trying to outdo one another, and to an extent the same can be said of car companies.

Okay, so there probably aren’t awkward family photos of a Hyundai peering out of the corner of its headlight at a Kia. But that’s essentially what’s happening between the two Korean brands, as each tries to make the best of their genes.

And there’s some serious competition between the makers – not just locally, where Hyundai easily outsells Kia by a margin of three to one – but globally, where the brands compete in the same market spaces: small cars, SUVs and vehicles like the two tested against one another in this comparison, the Hyundai Sonata Premium and the Kia Optima GT.

These two mid-sized sedans are priced within $2000 of one another, with the Kia – surprisingly – the dearer of the two. But as has been the case with the rivalry between the two makers over recent years, one has a few different tricks up its sleeve over the other, despite essentially being twins under the skin.

Let’s see which sibling deserves more praise…

Pricing and equipment

As mentioned, the Kia Optima GT – at $43,990 plus on-road costs – is a couple of grand more than the $41,990 Hyundai Sonata Premium.

Both cars come well equipped for the outlay, with niceties such as leather trim on the seats, front seats with electric adjustment and memory settings for the driver’s seat, heating and ventilation for the front seats, dual-zone climate control and auto headlights and wipers.

Each has satellite navigation on an 8.0-inch touchscreen display, Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, a reverse-view camera, front and rear parking sensors, electronic park brake, 18-inch alloy wheels with a full-size spare, bi-xenon headlights, LED daytime running lights, and they both have a sunroof, too.
Seems pretty even stevens. Well, to a point.

Unlike the Kia, the Hyundai has rear map-reading lights, illuminated mirrors in the sun-visors, and a six-speaker stereo system.

The Kia hits back with a 10-speaker stereo system with subwoofer, GT embossing on the seats, a heated flat-bottom steering wheel with paddleshifters, and sports pedals that align more with its sporty character.

On the outside it gets a lower-sill and bumper body kit, and while – like a parent with twins – we wouldn’t dare tell one that it was better looking than the other, we all know that one is a better looker…
But it’s on the safety front that the Kia really shames its sister model.

The Optima GT has radar cruise control, pre-collision warning with autonomous emergency braking (up to 65km/h with full auto braking; up to 180km/h maximum), automated high-beam headlights, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and lane departure warning.

Hyundai has advised CarAdvice that is has no plan to introduce that tech to the Sonata at this point, but it’s something that could draw in buyers with families or fleets to Kia showrooms.
Both cars have six airbags, including dual front, front side and full-length curtain protection. The new-generation Optima has not yet been crash tested, but the Sonata achieved the highest-possible five-star rating earlier this year.

That’s an emphatic win to the Kia in round one, then.

Interior

Parents tell their kids all the time that “it’s what’s on the inside that counts”, and that’s a fair way to judge these cars, too.

As we’ve already made clear, the two have reasonably similar equipment lists, and the fact the Kia has a sportier interior and the Hyundai is more grown-up in its appearance works well as a metaphor for the positioning and intent of each of the brands at their current standing.
Where the Optima is more athletic and youthful – with black tones, red stitching and polished metal on the dashboard and centre console – while the Sonata looks a bit like it’s trying to be cool, with its faux-carbonfibre trim on the dash and doors, black centre console plastic and plainer black upholstery and steering wheel fall short by comparison.

CA colleague Trent was with me on this test, and he put it fairly succinctly: “The Optima has it all over the Sonata for premium feel – the stitching, materials and headlining are all a lot nicer to look at, and feel.”

The screens – though very similar – offer a different experience, graphics and ease of use. The Sonata’s satellite navigation system is simpler to use, easier to look at and gives the driver a better at-a-glance view of their location. The Kia, on the other hand, is a little tricky to use – the maps are a higher quality, sure, but the navigation input controls and switching between screens is fiddlier.
However, the Kia gets a few points back by not appearing quite as washed out when hit by direct sunlight, and it also has reverse line guidance that moves to show you the path you’ll take based on your steering, where Sonata has static boxed markings.

Below the screen the Sonata has digital dual-zone climate control displays below the screen, which are quite upmarket when compared with the Kia’s plastic dials that have the simpler blue-to-red scale (though the temperature shows up in the top of the screen). Where the Kia’s seat warming/cooling controls are located between the chairs, the Hyundai sees its seat comfort system fitted – more logically – near the rest of the climate controls.

The Kia has a better looking and nicer feeling gear selector to pair with that flat-bottom steering wheel, and those aforementioned paddleshifters mean you can take matters literally into your own hands if you wish. And in another assertion of youthfulness, the Kia has a Qi wireless charging pad for smartphones fitted with those cases.
You can’t pick a difference for interior space, though, with both of these cars offering excellent rear-seat head, leg and toe room for adults. There are two ISOFIX child seat anchor points in both cars, and the seatbacks fold down 60:40 to expand their respective boot spaces for long – just not overly wide – loads.

The boot of each car is virtually identical, too, with a negligible five-litre advantage to the Hyundai, with 510 litres (Kia: 505L).

Both cars have ‘smart boot’ opening systems that sees the trunk lid open when you stand behind it with the key within close proximity. After a few seconds (three beeps worth), the lid lifts up – a pretty handy littler helper when you’ve got your hands full.

The Optima GT’s bigger sound system is clearly a better one, too, with the Harman Kardon speakers and sub-woofer offering brilliant clarity and bass. The Kia also has a rear USB port – great for your homies. Er, sorry, that youngster lingo just seems to fit for the Optima.

Engine and transmission

In a similar way to how parents share their redhead, freckle-face genes with their kids, these to share some more identical bits under their bonnets.

The powertrain of choice is a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, which is paired to a six-speed automatic transmission. Power is rated at 180kW (at 6000rpm) for both engines, and each pumps out 350Nm (from 1400-4000rpm).

Both cars are front-wheel drive, and both have identical gear ratios. But they weigh different amounts – the Kia is just five kilograms heavier, at 1650kg (heaviest kerb weight) – and despite them being so close by every other engine measure, the Kia is about eight per cent more efficient on paper. Claimed fuel use is rated at 8.5 litres per 100 kilometres for Optima GT, while the Sonata Premium is claimed at 9.2L/100km.

We saw negligible difference on test: the Kia was ahead, but only by 0.3L/100km – 9.9L/100km versus 10.2L for the Sonata – across a mix of country, urban and highway driving.

The engines in both cars are strong, willing, and punchy things, with good mid-range pulling power that is best discovered in third and fourth gears. These two make for great country road cruisers, and they both settle nicely on the highway, too.

Around town there is a surprising amount of difference between the two, given the identical setups of each of their innards.

On our test over identical roads with identical loads the Optima’s gearbox proved less eager to shift back a gear up hills, and the amount of engine noise intrusion in the Kia was markedly less than in the Sonata.

The Hyundai’s engine was buzzy – noisy, even – at low speeds, more noticeably when the engine was cold, but it was a constant accompaniment at city speeds. On test it proved eager to shift down a cog, too, both around town up hills and on the open road climbing more serious slopes.

Both gearboxes, however, proved entirely liveable on test, with smooth shifts and quick responses to changing stimuli.

When you consider that both brands have less advanced 2.4-litre engines in their entry-level versions of these cars, it is a bit of a shame, because these are two of the better drivetrains on offer in the segment.

On the road

The drive experience – you may expect – should be similar with these two. Not so…

Each has been tuned specifically by its respective Australian product and engineering team to deliver a drive experience in line with customer preferences, and with the Australian environment in mind. That is to say, they are supposed to be engaging to drive but safe feeling on the road, and able to cope with some pretty cruddy surfaces.

And both the Kia and Hyundai engineering teams have done a brilliant job of making these two cars drive with a level of involvement, comfort, control and competence that other importers can’t match.

The Optima, for example, is sporty, yet very comfortable. Despite having a slightly firmer ride than the Sonata it deals with high frequency bumps brilliantly, and if you hit larger rolling lumps on the road surface they don’t transmit to the cabin – it floats, without being floaty. That is, unless you hit a sharp-edged pothole or road join, which can upset the front axle a little.

It is involving to drive, too, with steering that offers good weighting and response when you’re pushing through corners. It has a good amount of heft, and is direct and rapid to react. That’s the GT bit of the name justified, then.

However, the Kia’s steering lacks the lightness on centre of the Sonata, which – while possessing slightly slower steering turn-in response – is actually nicer to drive on the highway due to the fact it isn’t as fidgety on centre as the Optima.

At speed both cars feel well gelled to the road, though the Sonata is perhaps a touch more lively and likely to shift on its tyres. The Hyundai rolls on lesser Kumho Solus rubber, where the Kia has stickier Michelin Pilot Sport tread.

The Sonata feels more of the small bumps than the Kia but is still very comfortable in most situations, and it doesn’t get as frazzled by sharp bumps either. The suspension settles quickly, and never crashes.

Both cars can suffer a touch of wheel-spin during sudden acceleration, and torque steer – where the steering wheel tugs to the side under throttle – can be noticed at times in both vehicles, too.

The Kia again benefits from better on-road refinement in terms of noise intrusion, with less coarse-chip road roar. Maybe the extra 5kg was sound deadening…?

Ownership

These two have strong ownership programs by class standards.

Kia’s triple-seven program – a seven-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and roadside assistance, and seven years of capped-price servicing – is a particularly attractive proposition on paper.

But servicing for the Kia costs an average of $698 per year over that seven-year period, and maintenance is due every six months or 7500km.

Hyundai has a shorter (but still very strong) five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and roadside assistance, and hits back against the Kia with lifetime capped-price servicing.

Maintenance for the Sonata is cheaper, averaging out at $505 per year over a the same seven-year ownership period, with visits also due every six months or 7500km.

Resale is another plus for the Sonata – remember, resale counts for all new car purchases, as resale is the biggest cost of ownership for a new vehicle.

So, what will each of these be worth in three years time, once there’s about 40,000km on the clock? According to Glass’s Guide, one fares a tad better than the other…

The Hyundai is predicted to retain between $16,700 and $20,000 of its initial purchase price – or between 40 and 47.5 per cent. The Kia, according to Glass’s, should be sellable between $18,400 and $21,900 (42 to 50 per cent) after the same mileage and time.

Whether you think it’s worth spending the extra cash on servicing the Kia over the ownership period, however, will be something to keep in mind…

Verdict

So, which child should the parent company be more proud of?

It’s a close one, but based on our testing the Kia is more of a star student than the Hyundai.
The Sonata Premium is a brilliant mid-sized sedan. It has space that betters some cars a class larger, a long standard equipment list, a sharper price point, and a longer service campaign than the Kia – and you’d be well served to choose this car over any number of competitors in the class.

But the Optima GT is just better in a lot of little ways – yes, it’s dearer, but it has better safety equipment, it is quieter, it looks and feels more upmarket inside, and that class-leading warranty is hard to look past.

Sporty. Good looking. Charming. The Kia Optima GT kind of has it all.

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New Kia Optima Arrives, Sleek and Stylish

BEFORE the Nike Air Jordan, there was the Converse Chuck Taylor — a classic design that stood the test of time. But even the classics evolve. Chucks were recently tweaked to be more cushioned and comfortable.

The Kia Optima may not be a classic, but, like Chuck Taylors, it’s among the most stylish cars, regardless of price. Now, the designers of the sleek new-generation Optima have been careful not to mess with a good thing.

Still, cars must be more than just good-looking. Affordability, comfort, safety, fuel economy and reliability are all important. The departing third-generation Kia was a solid effort, with road noise and the lack of steering feel being its biggest foibles.

A few miles in, the new Kia Optima proves those shortcomings have been addressed. The more mature driving dynamics have risen closer to the expectations set by the svelte exterior lines. Think Air Jordans, not Chuck Taylors. And the Optima is more hushed now.

A cleaner — I’ll argue less emotional — cabin replaces the cockpit vibe of the previous generation. Eyes and fingers will appreciate the materials in the SX model tested, save for the fake molded-in stitching on the instrument panel. Real thread can be had on the highest SX Limited trim level.

Room and comfort are not an issue. In back, three average adults will be fine. Outboard passengers get rump roasters with 12-volt and USB ports for charging phones. There are even side sunshades.

Starting at $22,665, Kia has abandoned the bargain-basement pricing for a bang-for-the-buck approach. As tested, the SX at $33,215 is stuffed with a panoramic glass roof, heated steering wheel, heated and vented front seats and an iPad-like interface. Many of these features are not offered on the Altima, Accord, Camry, Fusion and Mazda 6. Spend more and the Optima can be had with auto emergency braking, adaptive cruise control and a surround-view camera system.

There are several 4-cylinder engine choices. SX gets the most powerful — a 2-liter turbo making 245 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque with regular-grade gas. This engine and the 2.4-liter nonturbo motor are bolted to a 6-speed automatic that turns the front wheels. Optima’s 1.6-liter turbo engine gets a 7-speed dual clutch. Drive modes adjust throttle response and steering weight.

It takes about seven seconds to nail 60 miles an hour from a standstill. Turbo lag and torque steer (that tugging of the steering wheel under hard acceleration) are all but eliminated. Optima closes the handling gap on the Accord and Mazda 6. Know that the SX uses a different steering rack setup than lower models.

The SX scores 24 miles a gallon in the city and 35 on the highway, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Go with the 1.6-liter turbo engine and that rises to 28 and 39. I saw 24 in heavy city driving.

Some will grumble that Kia played it too safe with the new Optima’s design. On the other hand, its sister car, the Hyundai Sonata, took a strikingly conservative turn and was criticized for it. Kia kept Optima’s strengths and eliminated the weaknesses. That’s a good-looking strategy for taking on the competition.

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2016 Kia Optima First Drive

The 2016 Kia Optima has a tough act to follow.

Forget the two generations of the Optima that preceded the outgoing model; it was the 2011 Optima that was Kia’s big break in the U.S.—the model with which the brand really blew past an era of forgettable, derivative mainstream attempts and found its own style.

One year it was barely competitive on anything but price, then the next year it was right in the heart of the mid-size sedan market, with engine technology a notch ahead of many rivals, an awesome feature set, and voluptuous styling that made this model a head-turner.

As we report in our full review of the 2016 Optima, Kia has made its mid-size sedan better in every way. It’s better-driving, more refined, and fuller-featured, all while keeping its status, at least in its more affordable trims, as one of the best value-for-money picks on the market—but maybe not quite the radically different head-turner its predecessor was.

As we’ve found now over several first-drive opportunities, the new Optima is simply a much better drive than before, either in its base 2.4-liter or high-performance 2.0T versions. In LX and EX models, powered by the 2.4-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine. Kia’s done a great job in tuning this engine to feel more confident with the six-speed automatic transmission; it’s plenty quick for most needs.

Above that, in SX and SXL models, the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine has a different turbocharger than before, and it spools up far quicker, offering almost no lag now and producing its peak torque of 260 pound-feet at just 1,350 rpm. Horsepower is down to 245, but we’re willing to forgive that for a far less peaky, more responsive engine—and the automatic also works really well here, with steering-wheel shift paddles provided.

While we wouldn’t call the Optima one of the sportiest entries in its class, it rides and handles better than the previous version; thanks to a new suspension geometry that moves mounting points outboard, with new bushings, and revamps spring-and-damper settings, the Optima feels simply better composed; it’s more compliant over minor bumps yet less bouncy over harsh impacts, and in SX guise we think it has one of the sweetest ride-versus-handling compromises in its class.

More pleasant in every way

The 2016 Optima is simply a very pleasant car to spend time in. Front seats have improved, with more thigh support, and the driving position’s definitely better than before. The passenger no longer has to be less comfortable, either, as throughout the model line the front passenger seat is height-adjustable. All models have split-folding rear seatbacks—a feature Honda doesn’t think mid-size shoppers want—and by the way, to tear down another affordable-car compromise, there are no steel wheels and hubcaps in the lineup.

Once underway, the most surprising part of your Optima driving impression might just be how quiet this model is. Kia has finally properly addressed—to an extreme—the former Optima’s cabin road noise issues with loads more padding and everything from special acoustic laminated front-door windows and new engine mounts to more dash and under-body.

It certainly feels far quieter and a bit more forgiving over pockmarked roads, yet we think the Optima handles better, too. There’s more give, and definitely plenty of lean built in, but also seemingly more grip, and the Optima loads and unloads confidently in tight esses. Steering weighting is worlds better than it was when the last-generation Optima was new; it now builds weighting in a mostly even, predictable way and tracks well on center, across the wide range of models we drove. Keep in mind, by the way, that the SX and SXL models include rack-mounted electric power steering system that Kia considers superior for enthusiastic driving over the column-mounted EPS unit in other models.

Luxury-car ambience, frugally

Considering all this comfort and fluency with the road, the Optima manages find a luxury-car ambiance that was mostly foreign to this nameplate before—and in top-trim SXL models, with their Nappa leather upholstery, ventilated front seats, heated back seat, heated steering wheel, and 14-speaker sound system (essentially lots of great hand-me-downs from the premium Cadenza sedan), it’s either an over-the-top $37k Optima or an interesting counter to luxury-brand models.

For most buyers’ needs, we’d probably recommend the EX 2.4-liter model, for its upgraded look, with blacked out pillars, LED tail lamps and positioning lamps, and projector headlamps, plus things like automatic climate control, rear vents, rapid-charge USB ports, a heated steering wheel, heated front seats, and seat memory settings. And the Optima now gets both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility, which lets you run a wide range of apps from your smartphone, using the Optima's UVO touch screen and other voice and toggle shortcuts.

Next year there’s a new Optima Hybrid on the way, and based on what we’ve seen (and experienced) of the 2015 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, we have some great expectations of this revamped high-mileage model. But now there’s another more mileage-minded pick in the lineup—the Optima LX 1.6T, with a 178-horsepower, 1.6-liter turbocharged direct-injection four-cylinder engine and seven-speed dual-clutch transmission (DCT).

1.6T drivability is the only fumble

The 1.6T, which feels surprisingly strong and makes its peak 195 lb-ft at just 1,500 rpm, has a lot of potential, but the tuning of the DCT makes it feel like an ordinary automatic most of the time, with slurred, rather delayed shifts on acceleration—even in Sport mode, nothing as vivid and crisp as what you’ll find in Volkswagen’s cars with DSG, or Acura’s TLX and ILX with their dual-clutch ‘box. As you approach a tight bend in a two-lane country road and ease off the gas, you’ll need to remember to pull the shift lever over to the manual gate and downshift ahead of time, lest the setup will upshift by itself and offer up a confused delay when you get back on the gas.

Likewise, the DCT seems to be off a beat in low-speed city use—especially on slight hills—with crude, difficult-to-modulate creep when you need to gingerly shimmy into a parallel-parking spot.

On the upside, the mileage we saw from the 1.6T looked impressive; and with EPA ratings of 28 mpg city, 39 highway, the potential is there (with a light right foot) of getting compact-car mileage from a spacious mid-size sedan.

Although we think Hyundai’s tuning of the 1.6T/DCT combination leaves more to be desired (Kia’s version is definitely sportier, just still not crisp enough), we think that the closely related Sonata Eco, and the way it’s packaged as an efficiency-focused model, might better align with expectations.

More nuanced and elegant, though hardly bolder

And that leads to an important point. The Hyundai Sonata and Kia Optima are closely related. And they appear to be a even more closely aligned in their recently revamped versions, for 2015 and 2016, respectively. The 2016 Kia Optima, especially from the outside, feels better looking—far more nuanced, and a bit more elegant, for sure—but not striking out into any new design territory.

Kia and Hyundai officials will go to great lengths to outline how their respective models are different—and in all fairness, they are assembled in different locations, with some key differences in their supply chains; yet they share core architectures, engines, and even looking at these two models, the essential walk-up of models in the lineup. The entire field of mid-size sedans has entered a period in which it’s becoming increasingly difficult to discern the differences in design, features, and even handling between models; so we hope these two models preserve their core differences.

Identities aside, Kia has nothing to worry about here. It’s taken the model that’s pushed the brand’s sales to new heights, outselling nameplates like the Volkswagen Passat and Chrysler 200 on a model basis, and made both the 2.4-liter and 2.0T versions better than their predecessors in every possible way. They might not be game-changers in the same way, but they’re on top of their game.

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Kia, Hyundai Both Named Most Economical Cars Of 2012 By Forbes, Kelly Blue Book

Initial cost is not the only thing that makes a car an economical purchase.  It's actually the long-term investment aspect that plays the biggest role.  A cheaper vehicle up-front may, in actuality, cost more to maintain over its lifespan.

“Car shoppers should take the time to compare vehicles on their consideration lists to fully understand the financial implications involved with cost of ownership,” says Juan Flores, director of vehicle valuation for Kelley Blue Book.  “While a vehicle might be less expensive up front, the cost of fuel for that model, insurance and other expenditures could make it the less appealing choice for their wallet in the long run.”

Forbes recommends doing thorough research before making a purchase.  They consulted Kelley Blue Book, which recently announced its inaugural Total Cost of Ownership Awards.  The kbb.com website focuses on these variables of cost, among others:

1) Depreciation Value: How will the car hold up over time?  kbb.com bases its predictions on historical data (how the model has performed in the past) and economic factors.
2) Fuel Economy: Gas is expected to rise going into the summer months.  Significant amounts of money can be saved by buying a more fuel efficient vehicle; estimates put savings due to fuel costs at close to $900/year.  That's close to $4500 of savings over the standard 5-yr span.
3) Auto Insurance: Insurance is mostly based on the driver's past experience, age, credit rating, address, etc., but it is also based on the model of the car.  Luxury brands and sports cars tend to have higher insurance costs to start, while family minivans and SUVs will have a lower starting insurance cost.

According to kbb.com, the Best Brand for 2012 in their Total Cost of Ownership Awards is none other than Kia.  Kia is sweeping the Unites States car scene off its feet with its stellar fuel economy and resale value.  The Kia Soul heads KBB's Compact Car category because "its lowest-in-category fair purchase price matched with outstanding fuel and insurance cost figures combined to give it nearly a $1,300 advantage over the Hyundai Elantra."

In the Mid-Sized car category Kia and its sister company Hyundai switched places; the Hyundai Sonata beat out Kia's Optima to win the top spot.  Similarly, the Hyundai Santa Fe outpaced the Kia Sorento in the Crossover category "based on its combination of lowest fair purchase price and lowest long-term depreciation coupled with lower maintenance and insurance costs."