Kia Forte vs Kia Forte Koup: which is more reliable?
The Kia Forte and the Kia Forte Koup are level on the federal record — 76/100 against 79/100 across the years we score. Which one to buy is decided by the model year, not the badge.
The record, side by side
Kia Forte
- 14 model years scored
- 2,183 owner complaints on record
- about 18 complaints per year on the road
- 31 recall campaigns, 17 safety-critical
- best year 2016 (93/100) · worst 2014 (43/100)
Kia Forte Koup
- 7 model years scored
- 1,512 owner complaints on record
- about 18 complaints per year on the road
- 14 recall campaigns, 10 safety-critical
- best year 2016 (91/100) · worst 2014 (56/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Forte against Forte Koup
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Kia Forte
- Engine — 984 complaints
- Electrical System — 280 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 242 complaints
Kia Forte Koup
- Engine — 779 complaints
- Air Bags — 189 complaints
- Electrical System — 183 complaints
Both nameplates have Engine as their largest complaint group, so the choice between them is about how often, not about what.
Years to avoid on each
Kia Forte — avoid: 2014.
Kia Forte Koup: no model year scores below 45; the strongest are 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Kia Forte prices at about $22,100 and a Kia Forte Koup at about $11,900 — the Kia Forte Koup is roughly $10,200 less, and they return 30.0 against 27.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Kia Forte or the Kia Forte Koup more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Kia Forte Koup scores 79/100 against the Kia Forte's 76/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Kia Forte and Kia Forte Koup years should I avoid?
Kia Forte: 2014. Kia Forte Koup: no year scores below 45. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Kia Forte and the Kia Forte Koup?
The largest complaint group on the Kia Forte is Engine (984 complaints); on the Kia Forte Koup it is Engine (779).
Is the Kia Forte or the Kia Forte Koup cheaper to own?
A recent used Kia Forte prices at about $22,100 and a Kia Forte Koup at about $11,900, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.