2013 Kia Forte Coup Sx on 2040-cars

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2014 Kia Forte sedan priced from $15,900*

During our recent First Drive of the 2014 Kia Forte sedan, Kia revealed many of the sedan's specs, but left out pricing and fuel economy for its all-new compact sedan. With the new Forte set to hit dealerships soon, Kia has announced the starting prices for the sedan's two initial trim levels and released the fuel economy for the EX trim level equipped with the bigger engine. Marking a slight $500 jump in price over the current 2013 model, the 2014 Forte sedan will have a starting MSRP of $15,900 (*not including a destination charge of $800).
This price is for the base LX sedan with the 148-horsepower, 1.8-liter inline-four paired to the manual gearbox, but buyers wanting an automatic transmission will have to pony up an extra $1,500. Some of the notable features standard on the LX include Bluetooth and heated, power-folding door mirrors.
Stepping up to the EX trim level will run $19,400, but it also brings the peppier 2.0-liter direct-injected four-cylinder producing 173 horsepower and returning 24 miles per gallon in the city, 36 mpg highway and a combined rating of 28 mpg; Kia says these are EPA estimates, but the EPA's website does not yet list the 2014 Forte. Kia is still holding out on fuel economy for the base engine.

2015 Kia Sedona Review

We wish Ambrose Bierce had lived long enough to include the word "minivan" in his Devil's Dictionary, a reference work for the comprehensively disenchanted that defines "year" as "a period of 365 disappointments" and self-esteem as "an erroneous appraisal." We want to know how the Socrates of cynics would classify the method of conveyance that enthusiasts won't stop hating, but we just can't get rid of. Today, the minivan is adored for practical reasons – every single one on the market excels at its intended purpose. Dealers say minivans have great margins and they can't keep them in stock even when these vehicles sticker north of $40,000. A market consolidated to five automakers means strong sales for the segment leaders. Combined sales of the Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country lead through June of this year with 75,840 units. The Toyota Sienna is in second at 71,381 sales, the Honda Odyssey has sold 62,636, and the Nissan Quest is barely a blip at 5,400. But the three big minivan brands aren't the only game in town. The rival Kia Sedona is an incredibly compelling package, as 20,608 owners have discovered so far in 2015. It's not an old-fashioned way to haul kids, it's a way to haul kids and make a statement. The Sedona's aesthetic is a box that's outside-the-box. Taken from the three-quarter view the profile is close to an urban cargo van with windows; it's a handsome package. It's the same width as its predecessor but 2.4 inches lower, wearing Kia's strongly horizontal frontal identity. We like the tabbed grille, and the intensity of the sheetmetal in front counters the chrome accents. But our SXL tester sure has a lot of brightwork – more than other minivans. From the side, the Sedona keeps up the muscular tones with a stout body that's light on distracting details. But it's hard to miss some similarities to the Odyssey – the way the glasshouse narrows toward the rear, the kink at the C-pillar, the driver's side sliding door rail running nearly to the rear lights. Yet you'd never mistake the two because the Kia, fuller and more upright everywhere, is bolder than the slinking Odyssey. It's not an old-fashioned way to haul kids, it's a way to haul kids and make a statement. Inside the cabin, that statement ends with an exclamation point. Ward's Auto put the Sedona on its 2015 10 Best Interiors list, an accolade warranted because everything inside oozes quality.

Small 3-row crossover SUVs specifications compared on paper

There's no shortage of three-row vehicles on the market for carrying seven or more people and their stuff wherever they all need to go. Just about every car company has at least one large crossover or traditional SUV with three rows of seats, and there are still plenty of minivans to pick from. But most of these vehicles are large, pricey, and frequently thirsty. Fortunately, there are still a handful of smaller crossovers that deliver 7-passenger capability in a smaller, cheaper package. We've gathered four of the small three-row set here to compare them based on space, power, fuel economy, pricing, and more. They include the very old Dodge Journey, the slightly less old Mitsubishi Outlander and Kia Sorento, and the relatively new Volkswagen Tiguan. You can see the raw numbers in the chart below, followed by a more detailed breakdown and some notes on how we like each of these vehicles. For in-depth opinions on the vehicles, be sure to check out our full reviews, and if you want to compare these with other vehicles, try out our comparison tools. Engines, transmissions and performance Interestingly, three of the four crossovers here utilize similar engines for their four-cylinder offerings. The Dodge, Kia and Mitsubishi all feature naturally aspirated 2.4-liter four-cylinder engines. Only the Volkswagen Tiguan chooses turbocharging and a smaller 2.0-liter displacement. But because of its turbocharger, the Tiguan's four-cylinder is easily the most potent, making a healthy 221 pound-feet of torque, which is more than 40 more than the Sorento, the crossover with the next most torque. The VW is also second-most powerful, just one horse behind the Sorento. The Outlander is the least powerful in the four-cylinder class. The Journey is only barely better, but it will probably feel as slow or worse thanks to its ancient 4-speed automatic. The four-cylinder Sorento and Outlander each have 6-speed automatic transmissions, and the VW has an 8-speed. The Sorento with a V6 has an 8-speed, too. View 17 Photos Moving up to the V6 class, the Outlander is once again at the bottom. It actually makes less torque than the turbo VW Tiguan. The Journey and Sorento are almost perfectly matched. The Journey makes a bit more torque; the Sorento makes a bit more power. The Journey also gets upgraded to a 6-speed automatic. Another powertrain consideration to bare in mind is whether all-wheel-drive is necessary.