New 2022 Kia Forte review // Compact cars are amazing value!

$KiaForte
#Forte
#CoupleCarReview
This is a Motormouth coupler review of the updated 2022 Kia Forte compact car. What’s new for 2022? A sharp new grille, refreshed front and rear bumpers, new wheel designs and updated exterior lighting. The base model comes with 15” wheels, available 16”, 17” and 18”. We are driving the GT-Line with 17” wheels, a red accent radiator grille and body coloured door handles. Halogen headlights are standard on the base trims, available LED headlights and LED taillights. In the US, forward collision avoidance, lane keep assist and lane follow assist are all standard on the base trim. In Canada, these features are available one up from the base model. Blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert are standard one up from the base trim in both countries. There are two engine options, a 2L 4-cylinder matched with a CVT, 147 horsepower and 132 lb-ft of torque and a 1.6L turbocharged 4-cylinder with a 7-speed dual clutch transmission, 201 horsepower and 195 lb-ft of torque. FWD only. There is a 6-speed manual transmission available on the base model in Canada but not in the US however, the US does get a manual transmission on the top GT trim with the turbocharged engine, this is not available in Canada. The turbocharged engine is only available on the top trim all other trims get the base engine.The Forte has excellent fuel economy, the 2L 4-cylinder gets 7.9L/100km, 29 MPG city and 5.9L/100km, 39 MPG highway. The turbocharged engine gets 8.7L/100km, 27 MPG city and 6.6L/100km, 35 MPG highway.Fuel-efficient, budget friendly with a modern interior design, what’s not to like about the Kia Forte. The interior gets a refresh with a new available 10.25” touchscreen, standard wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto and the centre console has been tweaked to include an available new electronic parking brake with auto hold. The top trims come with leather upholstery, all other trims have cloth. The “best value” trim is the EX+ in Canada, two up from the base model for $23,195 CAD. You get heated front seats, a leather, wrapped heated steering wheel, wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto, an 8” touchscreen, wireless charger, manual driver and passenger seats, sunroof and LED headlights and taillights plus 17” wheels. In the US, the “best value” trim is the GT-Line; it offers a lot of great features at a reasonable price point of $21,290 USD. It has similar features to Canada’s EX+ trim plus you get the larger 10.25” touchscreen, a power driver’s seat and ventilated front seats. Unfortunately, wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto are not available on the bigger touchscreen. The Forte offers great second row legroom at 35.7 inches but it’s not best in class, the Hyundai Elantra with 38” and the Honda Civic with 37.4” both offer more room. The Forte has the most second row headroom at 37.5” and wins in overall cargo capacity as well at 15.3 cubic feet, our carryon and a cooler both fit well. The Civic takes second place with 14.8 cubic feet and the Nissan Sentra in third with 14.3 cubic feet. The competitors I used to compare to the Forte are the Nissan Sentra, Hyundai Elantra, Mazda3, Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic sedans.

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[edmarkd]

I bought a 2020 Kia Forte as my first car and I love it. Affordable, good on gas, fun to drive. And no complaints or issues! Love the look of the updated one here too. Great job Kia.

[ORBEX]

We bought a 2021 Forte EX as our second car to our SUV. We love it. Smooth, comfortable and amazing fuel economy. Fabulous around town or long distance cruising. The only issue I’ve noticed is if you push it in bumpy, high speed corners, you notice the lack of independent rear suspension a little. It’s not a sports car, but a damn near perfect family sedan. We love it so much we just ordered a 2022 Forte EX Premium and will pass the EX to one of our kids.

[MicahB]

I have a 2019 Kia Forte and it’s amazing! I have around 48k miles on it from brand new and it’s never had a single issue! Love my Forte

[nickolastiguan]

The front sort of reminds me of the last gen Optima, which is still one of the best looking car in recent time - it has aged extremely well.

[Pashya]

50% I like the vehicles. 50% its you guys. You present well. Just the right amount of technical details, right amount of fun. Perfect brew.

[freshtowels]

I have a 2019 Kia Forte and I love it. Will keep it forever.

[regwilson]

it is nice to see you test a car again great review. I remember you tested the Kia K5 with awd about 9 months ago

[phuot]

After 10 years with suv, Rogue & CRV I got a Sentra SV. 2020. will never go back to suv. Fun to drive and economical. On highway i do 5.5 often at around 108 km/h. Very happy with my purchase. Imagine, I live in Quebec and no problem in snow with winter tires.

[jeanfortin]

Test driving a GT and a GT limited tonight for a daily commuter second car. I think the value is really is hard to beat. A 3 year rental before going electric... Love your show BTW, nice real life reviews which is refreshing.

[migy]

The Kia Forte (and this class of compact cars) is competent, efficient, and affordable. It’s very appealing to me and I’m glad it exists. 👌

[jazzbeau]

Notice that since Andrea joined the channel, subscriber numbers have gone up; I think people like these "couple" reviews. It is great to meet the Mrs.

[genzigzag]

There was a time when $20k was a sweet spot for compact imports... the new Honda Civic is $25k+! Did some quick research the Kia Forte5 GT MT is a value packed bargain, 1.6T, sunroof, heated seats and steering wheel, 18" wheels... the list goes on for under $26k(not including freight/pdi)

[brianboyd]

Such a great review and I really appreciate the nice narrative you both give from a driver's perspective! I love the Q&A section and especially how you took the time to give details about the drivetrain. It really helps potential buyers to consider all the ton of information you pack into the review! Kudos from CT, USA!! :)

[rbielarski]

You guys are top notch favorites of mine here in Pennsylvania, just love your channel and review style. This car is a gem. Thanks so much for reviewing! Cheers

[pj]

Another great review. You two are awesome. You covered so many great points about this car, and vehicles in general that nobody else talks about ! What a great video today. You touched on the subject of compact sedans vs SUVs. So refreshing to hear in this time of so many people being suv crazy. Then you touched on AWD not being necessary if you have good winter tires (and know how to drive in actual weather). I'm considering this car as my next vehicle, and it was great to hear your take on the IVT transmission, and driving dynamics. I'm here in the USA, and I think the GT line seems like a good value. Although I know once I go to Kia for the test drive, I will be tempted by the GT with the more powerful engine. The Mazda 3 looks great also, but it just seems like Kia is currently being more aggressive with their pricing... Thanks for another great car review.

[plannerTom]

Spot on review. Agree completely that this makes a great second car to go with our SUV. Love my GT2 and the DCT.

[tomdrummy]

Andrea’s smile is the star of this channel 😁

[mrslcom]

Such a nice car for its price. Well done. Kia keeps coming up with winners.

[cjcairns]

Am on my third Forte. Had a 2014 LX+, 2017 EX and now a 2021 GT (not the limited). The 2017 EX was a super solid car and I was a little nervous trading it in. The 2021 gt is awesome, fun to drive. Love the 1.6L turbo. The 2020 gt became the gt limited in 2021. The 2021 gt has a few less options than the limited. I dont have the full leather seats, the Harmon Kardon audio system or adaptive cruise but those are not deal breakers.

[jeffty]

I agree with your observation that you get a lot more car for your $$ in these compact sedans over small SUV's but here's why I still want a CUV/SUV . I currently drive a 2001 RAV4 with a manual transmission, 208k miles and it has been a terrific vehicle and it's still going strong. As a big & tall person "of a certain age" I find compact sedans (1) too difficult to get in and out of and (2) with the huge number of pickups and large SUV's on the road, riding higher is a real advantage over a sleek, low sedan. I suspect I'm not alone in this. So I'll keep an eye on the new Seltos, Kona, the redesigned HR-V and the CX-30 and the Crosstrek while enjoying my venerable Toyota for as long as I can. Thanks for your informative and entertaining reviews.