Founded in 1944, Kia Motors is South Korea's oldest car company. It is also one of the few automakers from Asia that you may not have heard of. That is because it took decades for Kia to introduce its cars in foreign markets. In fact, Kia did not start selling in North America until 1992. A year later, they started shipping cars to Europe.
Because they were fuel-efficient, economical vehicles, the first Kias were a big hit in Europe. Their inaugural offering was the Kia Pride, which was an affordable mini-car. It quite sold well for almost a decade before it was discontinued in 2001. By the mid-90s, Kia had defined its European sales strategy. They would offer fuel-efficient minis and sedans that competed directly with models from Ford and Vauxhall. Since they could not match the brands in advertising, they had to compete on the basis of price. On average, their cars were two thousand pounds cheaper than the top models from Ford and Vauxhall. How about a used Kia? The Kia Pride and Mentor became top sellers in the secondhand market. They were extremely popular as a first car for new drivers or as an economical choice for cash-strapped commuters. The company also offered a full line of hatchbacks that are a common sight on roads in the UK. The best place to look for a secondhand Kia is on the internet. There are several free resources where shoppers can review used car listings from dealerships and private sellers in their area. Probably the most popular free site is called a car supermarket. These databases let users search for car listing anywhere in the UK.
|
