Kia Optima SE V-6

Kia Optima SE V-6 Kia Optima SE V-6
Road Test

Look out, General Motors, the Koreans are taking a crack at this brand-management thing. The all-new range-topping Kia, which appears to be an only child, is in fact a fraternal twin of the Hyundai Sonata. These Geminis represent a first attempt to deliver on the promises of leveraged synergies and economies of scale that always attend mergers — in this case we're talking about Hyundai's March 1999 acquisition of a controlling interest in Kia Motor Corporation, which spawned the Hyundai Automotive Group — Korea's GM.

Like the parents of most merged companies, the HAG (careful not to lower-case that) vowed to foster individuality among its brands, so it has worked hard not to dress these twins alike. The Optima's skin is sharply creased and adorned with styling cues borrowed from upscale brands. The chrome-surrounded side-window profile and the whole tail end suggest BMW, while the grille and the sharply machined nine-spoke alloy wheels could easily wear a Cadillac wreath and crest. Penned in Korea, the design hangs together as a distinctive and appealing whole. And it is not easily confused with the more rounded and wide-eyed Sonata, with which it shares its doors, roof, and windshield.

Deluxe-brand trimmings abound inside, too. The ignition key, for example, integrates all the remote functions — just as a BMW or Lexus key does. The automatic transmission on our SE V-6 model includes Sportmatic manumatic shifting (not available at Hyundai). The rear map pockets are rigid panels snugged to the seatback by elastic straps, as in a 7-series BMW. The radio/cassette/CD player kicks out 120 watts' worth of full, rich, crisp sound. There's even a first-aid kit in the trunk.

But scratch a little beneath the surface dissimilarities, and the shared genetic matter comes clearly into focus. The two brands both offer a pair of twin-cam four-valve engines: a 149-hp, 2.4-liter four or a 170-hp, 2.5-liter V-6. Each is suspended by unequal-length control arms in front and multilinks in the rear. The hardware list is impressive. "All the right parts waiting for someone to tune them" is how we put it in our September 1999 review of the Sonata GLS.