Used 2016 Kia Forte Hatchback Consumer Reviews
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Bye bye '12 Forte SX 5 door & hello '16 Forte5 EX
RonB, 09/26/2016
updated 03/29/2018
2016 Kia Forte EX 4dr Hatchback (2.0L 4cyl 6A)
33 of 35 people found this review helpful
We shared the '12 for over 3 years and over 80,000 miles until I bought myself a 2015 Sonata Sport 2.0T Limited 6 months ago. Love that car and reviewed it on here also. Got a great deal. Now that we're back to two cars, mileage will accumulate a lot less. While I was getting the 12 serviced 2 weeks ago and "someone" took my car to work, I was asked "Do you think you can get me a deal on trading my car like you did buying yours ?" So I walked the lot and found a Snow White Pearl Forte5 EX 2.0 GDI - loaded with Premium/Technology package and remote start with black leather with white stitching. I texted the pictures. "I really wasn't a fan of white until you got yours (Quartz White Pearl) but I really like it. See what you can do. If it works out, I'll come sign the papers". The 12 was in excellent condition except for the 82,000 miles they beat down the trade in value on, but with the rebate and financing, it was a good deal regardless. The 12 had leather and sunroof. Great little car. No complaints other than it could have used more sound insulation. Compared to the 12: The tech options are great. Stereo is better. Bluetooth streaming is a world better. It's quieter. Much better legroom - we're both 6ft tall. Headroom was never an issue even with the 12 - sunroof in both. The 2.0GDI doesn't have the off the line punch of the 2012s 2.4 port-injected engine but feels fine overall (same 173hp rating) and better fuel mileage makes it worthwhile. Neither are pocket rockets but we're not race car drivers lol. Has plenty of zip. Warranty can't be beat. This now makes 4 Hyundai / Kia products since 2008 and don't regret any of them. I'm a semi-retired mechanic and choose my/our cars wisely. The only 2 gripes with the 16: 1 - gone with the 2014+ 5 door redesign is the split-folding rear seat bottoms which was great when we needed to haul stuff around. A minor gripe really because the 16 is still plenty roomy with the seat backs folded down. 2 - For the 2016 Forte line up, HID headlights were deleted, even with the Tech package. I remedied that with the same brand HID kit I installed in the 2012. Also installed LED plate and reverse lights - nice difference with the back-up camera at night. Experience has us anticipating the same reliability. The 2008 Sonata we traded for the 2012 Forte is still on the road with nearly 250,000 miles on it. Traded with nearly 120,000 trouble-free miles and came across it recently. UPDATE 3/27/2017 Six months and 7,500 miles now. Engine has loosened up. Feels puncher. Averaging 31-32mpg which is 7-8mog better than the 2012. Nothing other than an oil change and tire rotation. UPDATE 9/28/17 15,000 miles. Just did the 3rd oil change and replaced the cabin filter - I change them once a year. Zero issues. More of a novelty but my other half loves the heated steering wheel on cold mornings. UPDATE 3/28/18 A little over 25,000 miles now. Between work, grad school, and internship, the other half has racked up some miles. Nothing really to report. Still runs and looks great. Wiper blades replaced other than oil changes and tire rotation. The only gripe is the OE Nexen tires. While they certainly look like they will go another 15 or 20 ,000 miles, they have gotten a bit noisy. Probably just going to run them through the summer and replace them.
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toasty (almost "hot") hatchback
G. Johnson, 07/22/2017
updated 02/10/2020
2016 Kia Forte SX 4dr Hatchback (1.6L 4cyl Turbo 6M)
22 of 23 people found this review helpful
Got my 2016 Forte5 SX (6-speed, manual transmission) brand new five months ago, and I am still in love with my turbo hatchback. For my needs, it is the perfect fun-to-drive commuter. It is not as sporty/fast as a VW GTI (which is arguably the leader in affordable hot hatchbacks), but it is much less expensive, it should be much more reliable, and it has a much better warranty. Also, the Forte5 SX has the best seat and driving position I found in any compact car I test-drove (I'm a larger fellow, at 6'2 and 220 lbs). Another plus? The Forte5 SX takes regular gas (not premium like many turbos). I had already decided to buy the car before I even found that out. I'm only getting 27.8 mpg so far, but the gas mileage is slowly getting better the more miles I put on the car. No regrets at all, and I plan on keeping it for a long time. For you car guys out there, the driving dynamics may be a little bit different, but the fun-factor/value reminds me of my old 1998 Civic EX but with a comfortable seat. I'm starting to think that Kia is doing now what Honda was doing in the late 1990s--which is a very good thing indeed. Update: I remain very happy with my Forte5 SX, and I can't believe that more people don't know about this gem. I can even fit my mountain bike in the back of the hatch with the rear seats folded down (granted that the bike's front wheel needs to be taken off to fit). The ride is sporty but comfortable--perfect for real-world driving--and the car is so practical yet fun, and it is reliable. I have also found the Kia dealerships to be awesome; clearly they place a premium on excellent customer service. Update: by Feb. 2019, I will have owned it for two years. Still loving it, and not a single mechanical problem. Great car! Update: Feb. 2020--owned it for three years. Continue to love it, and it still hasn't had a single mechanical issue.
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Unexpected Winner
Jay, 03/13/2017
updated 10/05/2020
2016 Kia Forte EX 4dr Hatchback (2.0L 4cyl 6A)
9 of 9 people found this review helpful
We purchased this car, a Kia Forte 5 with the premium tech package, at Jeff Belzer Kia in Lakeville Mn. This is our second purchase from this dealership. Alex was great to work with, -no pressure, answered our questions and sent us on a test drive even though we mentioned we were going to another dealership to look at a different brand. We returned and purchased this car. Prior to purchasing, we test drove a VW Golf, a Mazda 3 Hatchback, several Hyundai Elantra GT Hatchbacks, and this Kia Forte 5 Hatchback. The VW and the Mazda were great driving cars but were somewhat cramped for passenger space by comparison. The Hyundai Elantra GT was roomier but didn't offer an upscale package we liked. Then we drove the Kia Forte 5. It was just a fun car to drive. It is a road handling car with plenty of power for everyday driving (2.0 liter, 173 h.p. and 154 ft. pounds of torque). Advertised mileage is 25 city, 33 hwy mpg. We are currently averaging about 30.5 mpg including cold starts with combined city-highway driving. My favorite feature is the heated steering wheel on these cold winter mornings. Second would be the four heated leather seats. We are getting accustomed to the smart key features with perimeter lighting at night, keyless entry, and push-button start. The technology package included navigation, a sunroof, and auto headlights, all nice features. Add to all this a 5-year basic warranty and a 10-year powertrain warranty and you have a winning package. Most enjoyable though is the way it drives. It is quick, but it is not a race car. It is firmly planted and corners nicely, perhaps due to the 215 45 R17 tires. This is a car with lots of features for the money and I would highly recommend it. Update: We have owned this car for eight months now and both my wife and I enjoy it. It is just a fun car to drive. It has a nice balance between feeling responsive and at the same time being a solid and stable road handling car. In mixed driving, we average between 33 to 35 mpg. (This includes about 20% city, 20% two lane highway, and 60% freeway driving.) EPA rating for this car is 25 city and 33 highway. We are very pleased with our purchase and would highly recommend this car. Second update; Sept. 21, 2018: We've now had this car for about one year and eight months and have 11,000 miles on it. We still feel the same about it now as we did before. Many people have commented about the sharp-looking style of the car. However, what we enjoy most is the way it drives. We've owned about 25 different cars, and this is one of our favorite cars to drive. We would still highly recommend it. Third update; Sept. 26, 2019: We're at two years and eight months of ownership, with 16,450 miles on the odometer. We still enjoy this car now as much as when we first bought it. With winter coming, we really appreciate the heated steering wheel and the four heated seats. (Very scarce features for a car in this price range.) It's too bad the heated steering wheel was dropped for the 2017 model year. It's still fun to drive and quite economical, a real plus. We'd still highly recommend it. 4th Update, April 1, 2020 We've had our Kia Forte hatchback for over three years now and still feel the same as in our previous updates. We still enjoy driving it and would highly recommend it. Fourth update, Oct 3, 2020. We've owned this car for over 4 years now and still feel the same.
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Great Daily Driver but no GTI
Pablo Danek, 11/28/2016
2016 Kia Forte SX 4dr Hatchback (1.6L 4cyl Turbo 6M)
6 of 7 people found this review helpful
I leased this car as an experiment-- I have never owned a Kia before. I know they had made huge strides in design and engineering but wanted to see how far. I love sporty hatchbacks with manual transmissions and I really found the design appealing. I shopped the Mazda 3 (clunky navigation design and wheezy engine), GTI (far more expensive, and reliability concerns) and Ford Focus (don't like the interior or rear-end styling, also huge turning radius) but ended up getting the Kia. Why? For one, it is a rare car-- I've had my car a year and still haven't seen another on the road. Second, I really like the styling. Third, you just can't beat all the content like heated and cooled seats, LED lights, dual-zone climate control, and heated steering wheel. The interior is also very, very nice-- Looks and feels way more expensive than it is. I also was confident I knew about the car's shortcomings-- Abysmal mileage for a 4-cylinder, not quite as refined ride and handling as the big dogs like Focus and GTI, and not quite as fast. But I wanted a nice, clean, fun, reliable daily driver and that's just what I got. Any things that bug me? Not really, but there are a few ways the car could be better. First, I mentioned the mileage. The engine is clearly a little small for this car-- Even when I don't drive it hard (which is rare) mileage is still in the high twenties at best. Second, the suspension along with the 18-inch tires makes for a bit of a hard ride around town. That's about all I can complain about, otherwise I really like the car.
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Pretty good bang for your buck
Katie, 10/25/2016
2016 Kia Forte LX 4dr Hatchback (2.0L 4cyl 6A)
4 of 5 people found this review helpful
I was in the market for a used car but ended up purchasing the Kia Forte new because of the rebates. I have never liked hatchbacks but this body type fits my current needs and looks better than most in my opinion. This car is comfortable to drive and even the base model is a great upgrade from what I was in. I was really impressed with the warranty offered with this vehicle.
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