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Review: 2011 Kia Sportage

Another Korean Competitor That Beats Expectations Kia likes to say it has the Power to Surprise. Back in the day (oh, five or so years ago...), the Korean automaker's customers were supposed to be pleasantly surprised that their new car, crossover or SUV was a better vehicle than expected. Perhaps you've heard the drill: "I bought it because it was cheap... and you know, it's really not that bad." These days, though, being less mediocre than expected simply isn't good enough. See not-so-(inter)stellar brands Saturn and Mercury for proof thereof. In other words, each new Kia has to ... Read More

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    Kia Sportage
    Recalls: Hyundai and Kia recalling 1.6M more models for faulty brake switch
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    In what is likely the largest recall campaign for Hyundai and Kia, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced a recall of more than 1.6 million models due to a faulty brake switch. This is in addition to almost 700,000 Hyundai and Kia models recalled for the same problem back in 2009. In more than 620,000 Kia models and 1 million ...

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    Kia Sportage
    New York: Wonder Woman Kia Sportage is anything but invisible
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    The spectacular partnering of Kia and DC Entertainment (the company we grew up loving as DC Comics) continues here at the New York Auto Show, with this Wonder Woman-inspired 2013 Kia Sportage. Ardent Autoblog readers will undoubtedly remember the fruits of earlier Kia/DC efforts: Batman Optima, Flash Forte Koup, Green Lantern Soul, Cyborg Forte, Aquaman ...

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    Kia Sportage
    KBB hands out inaugural Total Cost of Ownership awards to Kia, Audi
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    Kia has taken home the first ever Kelley Blue Book award for Total Cost of Ownership among consumer brands. As you might expect, the award goes to brands and vehicles with the lowest projected ownership costs. KBB examines depreciation, fuel costs, fees associated with finance and insurance, maintenance costs and state fees. Both the Optima sedan and ...

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    Kia Sportage
    Followup: Kia disavows sexy cartoon ads
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    Kia is putting some distance between itself and the racy ads for the company's dual-zone climate control on the Sportage. According to the automaker, the sultry print ads were penned by the Brazilian ad agency Moma. Apparently, Kia Motors America has no business relationship with the company and didn't approve the print ads in any way. The manufacturer ...

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    Kia Sportage
    Kia gets wickedly suggestive with children's fairy tales for Sportage print ads [UPDATE]
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    Advertising here in the United States is rather tame compared to what the rest of the world sees. At a recent festival in Cannes, creative works from around the globe were shown, and one of the advertisers at the awards event was Brazilian agency Moma, a company that works with Kia. The Moma team cranked their creativity up a notch by producing an ad to ...

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    Kia Sportage
    Official: 2012 Kia Sorento gets 2.4L GDI engine, UVO infotainment
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    The 2012 Kia Sorento will be available with the company's hands-free UVO infotainment system, and its brand-spanking-new GDI direct-injection four-cylinder engine. With those new features, the big Kia crossover can really dance with the big guns from the likes of Ford. Other available options include Kia's YES Essential seat treatment, which makes the ...

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    Kia Sportage
    First Drive: 2011 Kia Sportage SX
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    Turbocharging Adds Welcome Spice To This Handsome Soft-Roader There's no replacement for displacement. Ask any man or woman who dined on the muscle cars that Detroit was serving in the '50s and '60s, and they'll tell you to always order the largest engine offered if you want to have any fun. Thing is, that tired old axiom just isn't accurate in the ...

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    Kia Sportage
    2011 Kia Sportage SX Turbo packs 256 hp, priced from $25,795
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    Kia has dropped all the juicy details on its 2011 Sportage SX Turbo. The vehicle will hit the streets with a 256-horsepower, turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that's also good for 264 pound-feet of torque. That makes the Sportage the second vehicle in the Kia lineup to take advantage of the automaker's all-new direct-injection engine, the first ...

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    Kia Sportage
    Kia Sportage tops small CUVs in Consumer Reports test
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    The 2011 Kia Sportage beat out both the Nissan Juke and Mitsubishi Outlander Sport in a recent CUV shootout conducted by Consumer Reports. According to CR, Kia has managed to more effectively straddle the line between a full-on SUV and a more civil hatchback with its offering. That's thanks largely to the fact that the Sportage serves up plenty of ...

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    Kia Sportage
    Kia Sportage with turbo engine debuts in Canada
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    The 2011 International Truck of the Year has an all new available engine under the hood. Canadian Kia fans can soon head over to dealers and pick up the 2011 Kia Sportage SX, which features a direct-injected 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine. We expect the U.S. to follow suit in very short order. Paired with a six-speed automatic transmission, ...

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