The 2020 Kia Forte GT - A Grand Touring Sport Compact Sedan
You Are What You Drive — A Bottom Line Review
The Bottom Line: If you are in the market for a compact car your choices have dwindled. The Big three, GM, Ford and the Chrysler Group, have all stopped building and selling everyday cars. Muscle cars and large sedans are still available, but the small and compact mid sized American cars are all gone now. They have been replaced with SUV’S, crossovers and pickup trucks. If you want a small or compact car you need to look to Japan, Korea or Germany for your next ride.
Why did the American Big three car makers abandon the small and compact car market? Profits. As the USA sales of trucks, SUV’S and crossovers went over 50% in total units, they realized that the car market was shrinking, and the truck market was expanding.
To put this in a simple prospective, in the USA there are only two types of vehicles. Passenger cars, and trucks. Any vehicle with a flat load floor is classified as a truck.
And trucks have lower MPG miles per gallon standards then cars, plus they tend to raise the CAFE corporate average fuel economy rate for the entire car company. Now they look better as a manufacturer in fuel economy, with a lower carbon footprint, have vehicles for sale that their customers will actually buy, and make lots of profit, as these vehicles sell for much higher prices than cars. And that’s what you call a win, win, win situation for the American Big 3.
But what about the rest of the world? Cars are the main transportation type vehicle for everyone, but us. Cars are built and sold worldwide by every other car company. Everybody builds trucks for commerce, but only America builds trucks as everyday drivers. In Japan, Korea, and in all of Europe, cars are still the main form of transportation. So if you looking to buy a car, going to a Kia dealership is a good place to start.
And that leads us to my test car for this week. The 2020 Kia Forte GT Grand Touring.
And what is a Grand Touring GT? A sports car designed to go long distances at high speeds, blending performance, comfort, and style. This Forte GT packs in everything you want from a sport compact sedan: advanced technology, sleek style, state-of-the-art connectivity, and space for everyone. And the GT trim level brings responsive acceleration, quick, crisp shifting, and even more fun behind the wheel.
Kia sells around 100,000 Forte’s every year, just in America. And the base car starts with a MSRP manufacturer suggested retail price at only $17,890. This is one of the lowest priced cars you can buy today. Of course, you can add in a host of trim levels, safety, interior, comfort and convenience options to the list. My Gravity Grey Kia Forte GT Turbo came loaded with every option, and has a window sticker list price of only $26,445. As that is way over the base price, it is way under the average transaction new car purchase price of around $39,000. This is a lot of car for the money.
My 2020 Kia Forte GT Turbo sport sedan starts with a base price of $22,290. The options on the test car are: the Automatic Climate Control Package for $200, the GT 2 package for $2,200, GT 18” Michelin Pilot Sport Summer Tires for $200, the rear cargo mat for $95, carpeted floor mats for $135, a trunk cargo net for $50 and the Automatic Dimming Rear View Mirror with Homelink and compass for $350. The total MSRP price, including the $925 destination charge, came to: $26,445.
The heart of the new Forte GT is the 201 HP horse power turbocharged engine, which provides 195 lb-ft of torque and features a customtuned high-flow active exhaust system. The standard 7 speed Dual-clutch Automatic Transmission allows the turbocharged engine’s power band to be controlled via the steering wheel mounted paddle shifters. The EPA Environmental Protection Agency / DOT Department of Transportation lists the fuel economy ratings as 27 city, 35 highway, and 30 MPG miles per gallon combined.
The GT exterior package makes your presence known with red grille inserts, rear diffuser accents, glossy black mirror caps, side sills, and rear lip spoiler. The wheel center caps on the two tone, black alloy 18” wheels are also painted red to let everyone know that this car is special.
Interior details include a flatbottomed steering wheel, combination cloth and SOFINO leather black interior with red stitching, and ambient lighting with illuminated “GT” logo on the dash. The entire GT interior has the red thread contrast stitching on the steering wheel, seats, door panels, center stack and console. Plus the car has every electronic safety, collision avoidance and warning system available.
Add in the power moon roof, the Harman / Kardon Premium Audio system and the heated and ventilated front seats, and you have a great looking, great running and great driving compact sport sedan for less than $30,000 out the door. And that price includes the California state sales tax, local DMV Department of Motor Vehicles fees, and the dealer prep and delivery charges.
Now you’re Ten Grand under the average sales price of all new cars sold in the USA. That’s called a very good deal when you see it. Save a lot of money, have a lot of fun, and you get to own a brand new 2020 Kia Forte GT Sport Compact Sedan for less than $30K!
Remember “You Are What You Drive ©”
And maybe, just for those reasons alone, you should “Drive one, Buy one, Today ©”.
This Bottom Line Review is provided by: Tony Leopardo © Autowire.net. “Tony the Car Guy” is an automotive writer, editor and publisher in the San Francisco Bay Area. If you have a question, or comment for Tony, send it to tonyleo@pacbell.net or visit Autowire.net at www.autowire.net