Report: Kia Updating or Releasing Seven Models By 2015

Don’t get to used to the Kia lineup as it presently stands, as it’s about to get shaken up in the next few years.  New reports suggest the Korean automaker will either update or introduce seven models between the second half of next 2012 and the first half of 2015.

Automotive News reports that Kia’s major models, including the Soul, Sorento, Sportage, Optima, and Forte will receive updates around 2014. The Forte sedan–which we’ve already seen as the K3/Cerato sedan–will debut in January of this year, with a Forte Koup coupe and five-door hatchback following a few months later. The Optima will be due for a mid-cycle refresh in 2014, with some as-yet-undetermined visual changes coming in the summer of 2013. The U.S. market Sorento will follow the international-market model, and receive minor visual changes as Kia places it atop the new Hyundai Santa Fe platform. The Sportage, meanwhile, will get a new grille and front fascia, and arrive in dealers late next summer as a 2014 model.

The Soul will receive some similar chassis upgrades – yes, it’s due for a full redesign, but the boxy hamstermobile will also now ride atop the new Hyundai Accent/Kia Rio. Don’t expect a serious change to the car’s look, however, as the Soul’s boxy, funky aesthetic has brought it plenty of success.

With those upgrades already in process, Kia’s focusing some of its energy on two new models, the Cadenza and Quoris. The Cadenza will be a front-wheel drive large sedan powered by a 3.5-liter V-6 engine, making it essentially a Kia version of the Hyundai Azera. The Quoris, meanwhile, will ride atop a rear-wheel-drive platform and use a 3.8-liter V-6 and an eight-speed automatic transmission–sound familiar? It’s quite similar to the Hyundai Genesis sedan. The Quoris will reportedly be Kia’s technological powerhouse, adding new technological features like blind spot information systems, lane departure warning systems, and radar-guided cruise control. The Cadenza will bow next summer as a 2014 model, and the Quoris should debut in 2014 as a 2015 model.

What is uncertain, however, is the future of the GT Concept. The car would be powered by a turbocharged 3.3-liter V-6 engine making 390 hp and 394 lb-ft of torque, sending its power to the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission. But the commercial future of the GT–and its suicide doors and four-door-coupe body–is unclear as Kia designer Peter Schreyer struggles to have the model green-lit by Kia suits.

Source: Automotive News

How To Change A Flat Tire

There’s no sound  as disheartening to a driver than the flop flop of a flat tire. They always seem to come at inconvenient times, too. But to a person who knows how to change a flat, that flopping noise is a chance to display his self-sufficiency.

Just like knowing how to jumpstart a car, knowing how to change a flat tire is a skill everyone should possess. It will save your own butt when you’re out on some lonely stretch of highway and come in handy when helping a damsel in distress or a hapless traveler on the side of the road. Follow these steps and you’ll back on the road in no time.

 

Tools needed: Spare tire, jack, lug wrench.

1. Park your car on a flat surface. If you get a flat while on the road, pull your car as far away from traffic as possible . Make sure to put on the emergency brake. It’s also recommended to put a block on the tire opposite of the flat tire. Put to use that fruitcake from Aunt Gertie you’ve been toting around in the trunk. Here’s a blocking example: if your right rear tire is flat, put the block on the front left tire.

2. Remove the hubcap. If your car has a hubcap, remove it so you can get to the lug nuts. Use the hubcap to hold the nuts, just like the dad in A Christmas Story. Just don’t let your kid hold the hubcap or he’ll lose them and drop the F-bomb.

3. Loosen the nuts. Grab your lug wrench and place it on the flat tire’s lug nuts. Loosen them up by turning them counterclockwise. The nuts are probably on there really tight, so you’ll have to use all your man strength to unscrew them. Loosen the nuts a few turns, but don’t take any of them off yet!

4. Place the jack underneath your car. Check your owner’s manual for the correct placement of the jack. Turn the hand crank at the end of the jack to raise the jack until it comes into contact with your car’s frame. Make sure it’s touching a sturdy spot.

5. Jack it up! Start cranking the jack until the wheel is high enough above the ground to remove the tire.

6. Remove the flat. Remove the lug nuts from the wheel. You should be able to do it by hand because you’ve already loosened them. Remove the flat tire and lay it flat. You don’t want the wheel to roll into traffic during rush hour and cause a thirty car pile-up.

7. Slap on your spare. Take your spare tire and line up the lugs, or bolts, with the holes in the wheel and slide the wheel on. Once the wheel is on, take your lug nuts and tighten them by hand until you meet firm resistance.

8. Lower the car. Lower the jack until the wheel is firmly on the ground.

9. Finish tightening your lug nuts. These babies must be on super tight so the wheel doesn’t come flying off while driving to the tire shop to get the flat fixed. So you need to unleash the super power of the star pattern to get those lugs tighter than a deer tick. Use this tightening pattern if you have five bolts on your wheel. Start with any lug nut and then follow this pattern:

If your car has four, use this pattern:

Kia Soul tops lists for best back-to-school cars

We're barely into August and already radio is blaring ads for back to school. Heck, who wants to think about wading back into the classroom when the surf's up, the sun is shining and the mosquitoes are still nipping?

Well, there's no holding back some, like CarMax, which just published its list of recommended cars for returning students. Kelley Blue Book also has a list that's heavy on really small cars.

What both lists have in common is the Kia Soul, a fun small car if there ever was one.

CarMax also recommends, in no particular order:

• Chevrolet Malibu.
• Chrysler 200.
• Ford Fusion.
• Honda Accord.
• Honda Civic.
• Honda Element.
• Hyundai Sonata.
• Kia Forte.
• Toyota Camry.

Our recommendation: If they need a car, give them a reliable hand-me-down. Boring midsize sedans are a safe, dependable choice.

Looking for a great car? Look no further than the 2013 Kia Optima! Check out what we're offering for the entire month of August!

Kicking Tires: Here's what the next Kia Forte will look like

For those who want the Kia Optima's looks but not its size, the wait is almost over. The redesigned 2013 Kia Forte compact is just around the corner.

Debuting in South Korea first, the new Forte -- known there as the K3 -- will arrive in the U.S. in the beginning of 2013, says the automaker.

Besides the sleek new looks, the 2013 Forte rides on a new platform and will use a revised engine lineup, according to Kia. The current Forte is based off the last-generation Hyundai Elantra platform; the new model will ride lower and be longer and wider, and it will have a longer wheelbase, according to Kia. The carmaker also expects class-leading fuel economy. We'd expect the Elantra's more fuel-efficient 1.8-liter four-cylinder to migrate to the model, which delivers 29/40 mpg city/highway in the Hyundai.

Nothing is known about features on the Kia beyond LED taillamps, LED front accent lighting and a chrome-finished beltline.

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