2003 Kia Optima Review and Specs

Summary

What Edmunds.com says

The Optima may trail Japanese competitors when it comes to overall polish, but those seeking a well-equipped sedan will find this Kia appealing.

Pros

Excellent warranty, pleasant highway ride, lots of bang for your family sedan buck.

Cons

Noisy four-cylinder engine, some cheap interior bits, ABS isn't available on four-cylinder models.

What's New for 2003

The Optima gets several revisions for its third year on the market. Most obvious is its new front-end styling, which replaces the Optima's reserved countenance with a more upscale European look -- double light clusters call to mind the Mercedes-Benz E-Class. Other changes include new wheel designs, and inside, a new center stack, new door panels and fresh seat fabric. A manual transmission will no longer be available on the four-cylinder SE model; all automatic four-cylinder models will offer Sportmatic manual-shift capability. The LX model now comes with cruise control and a CD player (at the expense of the cassette deck). The SE will include automatic climate control, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, Homelink and Infinity speakers; a wood- and leather-trimmed steering wheel is now part of the Leather Package. Lastly, engine horsepower ratings have been lowered following parent-company Hyundai's announcement that it had misstated outputs (the Optima is a corporate twin of the Sonata), but the engines themselves are unchanged.

Consumer Ratings & Reviews

Great Ride

Written by: bozpop on 05/30/2009

Detailed Ratings

Overall Rating


Performance:	9	Fun-to-Drive:	8	Build Quality:	9
Comfort:	8	Interior Design:	7	Reliability:	9
Fuel Economy:	9	Exterior Design:	9

Vehicle

2003 Kia Optima LX V6 4dr Sedan (2.7L 6cyl 4A)

Review

At 190000 miles has been a great reliable car. Standard maintenance and very regular oil changes. Today will buy 4th set of tires. Get 25-26 MPG mainly freeway driving.

Favorite Features

Sportmatic

Suggested Improvements

I'm tall front console need to be repositioned

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Great Used 2003 Optima

Written by: Ace Shot on 05/08/2009


Performance:	8	Fun-to-Drive:	8	Build Quality:	9
Comfort:	9	Interior Design:	9	Reliability:	9
Fuel Economy:	4	Exterior Design:	10

Bought this car with 26,000 miles and 11 months left on the factory 5 year/60,000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty! It had only minor issues (power window switch and power locks) and the dealer made the repairs for free, under warranty. Fun to drive it with its "sportmatic" transmission. I like putting it in manual shift mode from time to time to pass slower cars, or to perform better on hills. I used to think it was a gas guzzler, until I changed my driving habits: If I don't stomp on the gas in the city, and on the highway I speed up slowly and drive 80 mph or less, I get very good gas mileage. Performs very well and looks very nice. I got a lot of bang for my buck with this car.

5 year/60,000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty. Sportmatic transmission. Lock-out RESISTANT ignition. (Can't lock doors from driver's side with key in the ignition.) Split/fold-down rear seat. Front grill's upscale cascade look.

Install Daytime Running Lights. Offer optional full-size spare.

You Get What You Pay For

Written by: James on 07/19/2008


Performance:	7	Fun-to-Drive:	5	Build Quality:	2
Comfort:	9	Interior Design:	8	Reliability:	5
Fuel Economy:	4	Exterior Design:	9

2003 Kia Optima SE V6 4dr Sedan (2.7L 6cyl 4A)

We purchased this car used and we know why the original owner sold it. Although the car drives great, the car has had many electrical problems and the transmission started slipping just after we bought it. Each time we put it in the shop it takes two days to get it back. Electrical problems include headlights, remote entry, radio, and battery draining down if not driven daily. Also, we have had the emissions worked on several times. The steering growls like it is out of fluid but it isn't and the dealer can't find the problem. We like the way it drives but with all the electrical problems, would like to get rid of it. We paid way too much for it, no resale!

Drives great. Radio sounds great when it works. Feels good to sit in. Handles good on dirt roads.

Better quality electrical system needed. Better transmission needed. Install a telescoping steering wheel. Better gas mileage needed.

Buy american

Written by: thomas frye on 06/28/2008


Performance:	5	Fun-to-Drive:	5	Build Quality:	4
Comfort:	6	Interior Design:	7	Reliability:	5
Fuel Economy:	4	Exterior Design:	6

2003 Kia Optima SE 4dr Sedan (2.4L 4cyl 4A)

Had problems with ac, tried to have door locks fixedseveral times never could find problem. In my opion Kia not much help, seems all work should be done at Kia dealers only. Will only buy American only, have owned VW, Toyota

Efficient, Zippy with a few Quirks

Written by: Cathy on 10/27/2007


Performance:	8	Fun-to-Drive:	8	Build Quality:	8
Comfort:	8	Interior Design:	8	Reliability:	8
Fuel Economy:	8	Exterior Design:	8

Overall a great car. Fuel efficient, outstanding pickup, comfortable, love the Speedtronic shift to manual on steep roads, nice sound system. Downside: paint around exterior mirrors vanished after 3 years, had to get them repainted. There are also a few electrical quirks. Radio sometimes goes on/off over bumps, The radio antenna wouldn't retract when shutting off car, instead it would go up/down in a confused fashion until I started the car and turned off radio first. Mysteriously resolved itself. Had problem with passenger interior door lock misaligning and trapping passenger inside-got it fixed 3 times, but was warranteed No mechanical problems in 4 yrs, just new battery & tires.

2003 Kia Optima Consumer Ratings & Reviews