2004 KIA RIO NEW CAR BUYER'S GUIDE

What's New for the 2004 Kia Rio?
The Kia Rio sedan and Kia Rio Cinco wagon gain new standard equipment for 2004 including body-color fog light blanks in the front bumper, lumbar support for the driver, and a rubber liner for the center console storage bin. A spoiler is now optional on the sedan.

Advantages of the 2004 Kia Rio:

• Excellent powertrain warranty
• Sedan starts at less than $10,000
• Spunky engine

Objections to the 2004 Kia Rio:

• Vague steering
• Flaccid suspension
• Lousy handling
• Sloppy manual transmission shifter
• Unlikely to fare well in crashes with larger vehicles

Editor's Advice:
Really, don’t buy the 2004 Kia Rio. We know, it has a great warranty, it smells like a new car inside, and it even looks cute. But listen, there’s this thing called a certified used car. Honda, Mazda, Nissan and Toyota all have plenty of two- and three-year-old certified used cars sitting on their lots that come with extended warranties, a complete detail job and a full inspection for worn bits and pieces. Just imagine, instead of the 2004 Kia Rio, you could buy a nice Honda Civic, a sporty Mazda Protege5 or a stone-cold reliable Toyota Corolla and get a larger, higher quality and better car to drive every day. Want that new car smell? Drop by the local car wash – they sell it in a little spray bottle. Trust us, the 2004 Kia Rio is rudimentary at best, proving that you do get what you pay for.