I was bored online and decided to check out www.kia.com , I saw the Sportage and took a look now tell me is it me or the Sportage rims look just like the GX 470s rims?

Link to Kia:
http://sportage.kia.com/

Lexus GX 470


Also the tailights look reminscent of the Acura MDX and the tailgate looks like the Volvo XC90.

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I don't recommend the Sportage. it is crude, uncomfortable, outdated, unreliable, and dates from the time that Kia made junk. But......ou can buy a brand-new Kia Sorento for probably half...or even less.....than what a new GX470 runs.
While Lexus, without doubt, builds some of the best and most reliable vehicles on the road, the Sorento, IMO, is a far better value dollar-for-dollar. The fit-and-finish on most new Hyundai and Kia products, while not quite in the Lexus range, is as good...... or better...... than anything else in their class. J.D. Power recently rated Hyundai (and Kia is a Hyundai division now) second in overall quality only to Toyota / Lexus. Yes, we all know Hyundai / Kia years ago used to be the butt of jokes......and rated at the bottom of the barrel. And they did in fact make junk back then....up to about 6-7 years ago. But.....trust me...those days are gone. Long gone. And look at the warranties. Hyundai and Kia both provide a 10 year-100,000 mile drivertrain and 5-year-60,000 mile bumper-to-bumper. Lexus provides a 4-year bumper-to-bumper and 6-years-70,000 mile drivetrain.
Check out the Hyundai Santa Fe before you get a Sorento, though. The Santa Fe has been out longer and has an even better track record for quality than the Sorento....which is still pretty new. Consumer Reports rates almost all of the new Hyundais average or better in reliability now.

 

mmarshall, I do see your point. The Korean auto manufacturers are really starting to get it right. However, the biggest problem for North Americans is to get over market branding. Would rather be driving a Kia? Or a Toyota, Honda, Nissan?

 

Well.....go see, inspect, and test-drive the vehicles and you can decide for yourself. Kias and Hyundais are not for everyone.......but they certainly are for people who want a lot for their dollar.

 

Well, who can blame kia for making a car/suv look like another car/suv that sells really well!!

 

Even though the Korean mfgs are improving in reliability, they will never be a contender if they can't put out their own unique designs. The day I will stop discounting Korean mfgs is when they can truly innovate. Innovation is the thing that separates the followers from the leaders.

I make a distinction between quality and reliability because one is not a direct corollary of the other. You can improve reliability by implementing statistical mfg processes pioneered by compaines such as Toyoda, but still use cheap material (i.e. what the current Korean mfgs are doing). Btw, using cheap materials does NOT necessarily mean poor reliability.

The Korean mfgs still have a long way to go imo. Carbon copy designs and using cheap materials will only take you so far...Korean mfgs have a nasty habit of overproducing products, improper pricing for the mkt, and running themselves into the ground.

Btw, I have nothing against Korean mfgs, just providing more of a engineering/detail point of view.

 

Well, you have to consider that the Koreans generally don't make vehicles for the so-called "auto enthusiast". They produce vehicles mainly for value. That's why you don't see big HP / torque ratings, big tires / wheels, high-G skidpad figures, etc... But lately their interiors have gotten MUCH better. You mention cheap materials....look at the interior of the Hyundai Accent...the seat fabric, the door solidness, the quality of the switchgear and hardware, the plastics and vinyls used and see if you don't think it's as good as any entry-level Toyota or Honda. And Accents run from 10K to 13K brand-new.
The Japanese, however, still make better engines and transmissions...but the Koreans are catching up.

 

The Kia transmission in my dad's new Optima has terrible shift logic and often gets confused.

The engine, however, is rock-solid if not a little underperforming in both output and gas consumption.

Wait for Hyundai to develop next-gen powertrains before you buy unless you need the room but can't pay the price for an American or Japanese sedan or SUV in good standing w/ consumers and J.D. Power.

M.

 

Kopycat Infringement Association (KIA)... their other SUV, whatever it's called (the one that looks like an RX300 w/ Pilot rims) looks like an RX300 w/ Pilot rims! I love the slap smiley...