KIA Motors is a global brand that continues to impress its consumers worldwide. In the United States the parenting magazine Parents and motoring website Edmunds.com named KIA’s SUV Sorento and mid-sized sedan Optima among the ‘Best Family Cars 2012’. The praise for these cars is based on factors like reliability, safety and affordability, which are the top priorities for the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).  Other important family-friendly qualities were performance, technology, and interior/exterior features and design.

KIA Motors America’s Vice President of Marketing and Communications, Michael Sprague said, “This recognition from leading family and automotive resources Parents magazine and Edmunds.com reinforces why these two KIA vehicles are among our top-selling products and why more families are considering KIA for the first time.”

It is the fifth year that the two publications have collaborated on the ‘Best Family Cars’ list.  The cars are judged by motoring experts and from feedback from consumers.Parentsis the number one selling parenting magazine in the United States. Parents’Editor -in -ChiefDana Points said, “Buying a new car is a big family decision and our guide makes the process easier. The Optima and the Sorento made our list because they are safe and affordable, plus they have smart, family-friendly features to make kids and parents happy.”

Edmunds.com is the leading automotive online resource in the United States. Edmunds.com’sEditor-in-Chief Scott Oldham said of the Optima, “KIA has reinvented itself over the last few years, and the beautiful Optima sedan is a big part of that revolution. Both inside and out, the affordable Optima looks like it costs more than twice its price.  Add its roomy interior, fuel efficient powertrains and 100,000 mile [unlimited km for private buyers and 130,000km for fleet/government buyers in Australia] warranty to the mix, and it’s easy to recommend the Optima to America’s families.”

The SUV Sorento has been the bestselling KIA car in the United States for the past two years, and will be released with a new facelift in all global markets later in 2012.

The award-winning Optima, which won the Australian 2011ECOCar of the Year and a 2011 RedDot Design award, has made buying a mid-size luxury sedan any easy consumer choice.  Families looking for financial savings can be confident that the Optima will deliver. The Australian model with its inbuilt fuel monitoring ECO system and 2.4L GDi Theta II petrol engine,has low fuel consumption at an average 7.9/100kms and carbon emissions at an equally low average of 189g/km. This means savings at the fuel tank and savings in the environment.

It’s not just American families that can benefit from the safety, reliability and affordability of the Sorento and Optima.  Both cars have continued to sell well in the Australian market, which is a reflectionof the growth of the KIA brand worldwide.