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2023 Kia Rio consumer reviews

$16,750 starting MSRP
side view of 2023 Rio Kia
(5 reviews)
100% of drivers recommend this car
Rating breakdown (out of 5):
  • Comfort 5.0
  • Interior 4.8
  • Performance 4.6
  • Value 5.0
  • Exterior 5.0
  • Reliability 4.8
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2023 Kia Rio, get one while you can!

Bought the 2023 Kia Rio in April 2023 new, so have been driving it about 10 months now. Overall I like it a lot, it drives smoothly, has nice features (rear view camera, push button start, alloy wheels, LED lights, forward collision warning tech., etc.) and great gas mileage for an all gas car. I've taken one road trip in this and gas mileage on the freeways was over 50mpg! On a day to day basis, I average over 40mpg in the city. Only thing I can complain about is Kia has decided to discontinue the Rio for 2024 and beyond. I'm lucky to have gotten one of the last ones! Too bad most Americans continue to be programmed by marketing and media to drive big, fat gas guzzling trucks and SUVs. Ridiculous. I will continue to drive my small, fuel efficient, hatchback and shake my head at all the people in their gas guzzlers around me.

Rating breakdown (out of 5):
  • Comfort 5.0
  • Interior 5.0
  • Performance 5.0
  • Value 5.0
  • Exterior 5.0
  • Reliability 5.0
  • Purchased a New car
  • Used for Commuting
  • Does recommend this car
7 people out of 7 found this review helpful. Did you?
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After one year, we are loving our Rio!

We have been driving our Rio for just over one year. It's not a luxury car, but we didn't want to spend a larger amount. Our most pleasant surprise is the gas mileage: it has consistently been between 42 and 45 MPG. We do live in the country, so we drive about 15 miles each way to town on a country highway that has a speed limit of 55. We did have an intermittent, annoying electrical problem, but our dealership was able to resolve the problem by the next morning. All-in-all we are very pleased with the performance and comfort, and the acceleration is quite satisfactory.

Rating breakdown (out of 5):
  • Comfort 5.0
  • Interior 5.0
  • Performance 5.0
  • Value 5.0
  • Exterior 5.0
  • Reliability 4.0
  • Purchased a New car
  • Used for Transporting family
  • Does recommend this car
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Great, Comfy Daily Driver

Sadly, this review won't be worth a hill of beans, as Kia has decided to no longer offer/make it in the USA. I wanted to replace an older (electric!) subcompact car with a new, full-warranty automobile that cost less than US$20k. The Rio checked all those boxes. Surprisingly, it's got some very nice features, like Apple CarPlay. My "S" model has 60/40 fold-down rear seats, keyless entry and a center console. For a small, 4-cylinder engine, the 1.6L, 120hp gets the job done. I use it for town driving, but I feel it would be comfortable on the road as well. And with 38mpg average, a 400 mile trip on one tank isn't out of the question. The back seat is large enough for my two grandchildren, and the front seats give me ample legroom and comfort. If this is what a "plain" daily driver goes for these days, I'd buy it again!

Rating breakdown (out of 5):
  • Comfort 5.0
  • Interior 5.0
  • Performance 4.0
  • Value 5.0
  • Exterior 5.0
  • Reliability 5.0
  • Purchased a New car
  • Used for Having fun
  • Does recommend this car
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Great seller

It was great and exceptional, the seller was attentive and super helpful, thanks for every minute it was dedicated. The car was clean and ready, it overpassed my expectative

Rating breakdown (out of 5):
  • Comfort 5.0
  • Interior 5.0
  • Performance 5.0
  • Value 5.0
  • Exterior 5.0
  • Reliability 5.0
  • Purchased a New car
  • Used for Commuting
  • Does recommend this car
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Great value, features. Lousy back eat space.

I bought the S trim without the tech package. Upsides This car is a terrific value. Lots of car and features for the money. Nice styling, good cabin layout, nice looking and comfortable seats. Trunk pass-through to the rear seats is nice. For me, it offers confidence, because of very high safety rating, great handling, sufficient excelleration (peppy on the takeoff, good passing dynamics, although you arent't going to win any drag races), great breaking, tight turn ratio, and a smooth, comfortable, and quiet ride for such a small car. As it is for my wife, I have no worries when she is on the road. Also great gas mileage. We're getting above the rated number -- 38 mpg in just city driving. She doesn't drive on the freeway if she can help it, so we won't know that number until we take a trip.. Downsides: Lousy back seat space. Although we rarely have passengers, it is a bit tight back there. (I guess I'm spoile by our Versa, which has gobs of back seat room). I haven't driven it with a load of people in there, and I suspect the pep and ride will be adversely affected. I mean, it's only a 1.6 litre 4-banger with 120 horses. What can you expect? dash and door material kinda plasticky, but it's an entry level car, so that's to be exppected. Also, the tech features have a bit of a learning curve -- we're boomers, so we have the usual boomer problems, although we're not totally tech-stupid. All in all, a great buy.

Rating breakdown (out of 5):
  • Comfort 5.0
  • Interior 4.0
  • Performance 4.0
  • Value 5.0
  • Exterior 5.0
  • Reliability 5.0
  • Purchased a New car
  • Used for Transporting family
  • Does recommend this car
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