I just bought mine last week, and I love it! I traded in my Fusion Sport that was a V6 twin turbo. This little car feels just as quick when it's moving. Takes a second longer to get to 60mph, but that's hardly an issue. I just wanted a fuel efficient and fun compact car. I got that plus all the features!
Test drove the Jetta GLI, Civic SI and the Forte GT all in 6 speed manual. All within 4-k of each-other. I absolutely fell in love with the Forte GT. It feels so much better off the line, than the SI or GLI. The only thing I did not like was the shifter. Not sure what they were thinking with that. I ended up with the Forte GT. The 5 k I am saving over the others I have gotten a stage 2 cold air intake, a blow off valve , and a short throw shift kit. Im guessing im putting out right at 220HP and I am still 3 grand under the what I would have spent with the other two. This is such a fun commuter/ weekend cruiser. if you are on the fence, don't be this is the one.
I’ve had mine for 4 months now and I absolutely love it! I am driving the $#*! Out of it. I just hit 14k miles. I have a 2023 Kia Forte GT 6 speed manual transmission. My tank fills up with $40-50 depending on gas prices regular gas.
200 hp and 195 lb ft or torque in a car that weighs a little under 3000 lbs equipt with a decent 6 spd manual all for under $25k is a spectacular deal. I have one with sporty blue and love it. And the bonus is premium looking interior
Exactly! The power it weight ratio evens itself out so in the end you turn out with a short based sedan that has practical space and pretty good power. That 195 torque feels much quicker too because of it being smaller so it’s perfect for the price!
Crazy how peppy and torquey they made this with a 1.6t and 201hp. I think this sold me on it. I want to stay in a fairly low budget and it checks so many boxes
Love how it’s not expensive but it’s so torquey! Makes it feel like a sleeper performance car and I love that. I’m always driving it whenever we take her car to go places haha
At 2980lbs, it has 14.8lbs per HP, which puts it in range of a lot of the hot hatches. They really went through a lot to keep this car light, and I can feel it in my 24', I don't know about anyone else, but love the super light truck and hood, and how agile it is when all assists are turned off :D Remember, don't just push traction control button off, hold it for a couple seconds, you'll see why!
It has an "active exhaust", which ports sound when in Sport mode by opening control valves in the exhaust, along with porting in the induction+exhaust notes, it doesn't generate "fake" sound.
I've had the KDM hatchback ver of Forte GT (K3 GT) for a year now. Absolutely one of the best cars I"ve owned -- fun, quick and nimble practical, safe and the adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist works perfectly. the KDM K3 GT even comes in fully digital instrument gauge.
Yes !!! I saw the KDM K3 GT in a video and I think is awesome 😎👍 I bought the 2023 Kia Forte GT Turbo and it's beautiful too but if they were selling the K3 I would get that one instead of the sedan !!! 🔥
DCTs are great if they're wet clutches, the dry ones are finicky however this one is not that bad, its only hesitant on low speeds, Still love this thing. Cant beat it on price level
Exactly right my guy! This is one pretty decent and I know what you mean I’ve driven some DCT’s that were just too jolty and had no give at any speed, but for the power this thing has it is actually pretty decent I just say
Own a GT22 for almost a year, all smiles per gallon! .. especially if you slap in a LAP3 tune and intake, not much maybe 60hp but enough to get more fun, more smiles for a decent pricetag... You'll always get better, but not as this price... love it and yes it turns heads
It’s call Kia K3 in Korea where the car originally comes from. It’s not a generational name. It’s always been called the K3 but in the United States they called it the Kia Forte. It’s possible Kia might switch from Forte to K3 name on third next generation just like they did for the Kia Optima when the transferred over to its Kia K5 name from Korea.
Oh wow I did not know that! Thank you for that info that’s actually really interesting. So essentially the k5 here is an optima just with its original name? That’s crazy how different the US distributes their cars
@@RealSpeed yeah pretty much, the optima allways been the K5 everywhere else except here in the US till 2021 & in the Dominican Republic the call it the Optima K5 (uses both names lol) went there on vacation and all the optimas old and new are called Optima K5 lol
It really depends on the loan you will get. If you work full time and have good credit you will probably get a 3-6% interest rate. But if you’re part time and decent/good Credit expect about 9-12% which will boost your monthly payment. So I would say between 475-615 per month.
@@RealSpeed ah okay. I’m full time and the credit score is 710. The guy at the dealership said 400-450 with no money down but I’m gonna put 1200 down to hopefully get it under 400.
It kinda sucks how the American models don't have a heated steering wheels. And I don't mind my 2022 kia gt. It's good on gas, has amazing features for the price, and is fun to drive. However, the dct they put in these cars absolutely blow. I only had like 5k miles on mine before I started having issues with it slipping and shifting all weird. I have 22k miles now and they're replacing it under warranty. It blows but at least it's covered under warranty. Also, on that note. Kia has by far the best warranty out of any car manufacturer right now, so that's a bonus.
Yeah I will say the DCT’s aren’t the greatest but it’s a good start for Kia though it’s good to see them putting good transmissions into their cars. So as long as they improve on them they will become even better cars to drive. That’s great that it was covered by the warranty because that probably would not have been cheap since it is a DCT. The American models make you buy the highest to get what you want and it still doesn’t have everything, unlike Europe you could buy a base line model and have almost everything
They’re somewhat reliable. The lack of power in them doesn’t help but I would say they are decent and you shouldn’t have any issues. My girlfriends has 26k miles and the DCT is perfect so I wouldn’t think about it too much
The best warranty is the one you never have to use, that's not very encouraging having a brand new trans go bad so quickly. I'd much rather have a 3-4 year warranty that expires unused than a 10 year warranty that involves 4-5 dealer visits, loaner/rental cars etc. I've know people (not necessarily Kia) that spent nearly as much time driving loaners/rentals as they did their own car the first year...that doesn't sound fun to me.
The ambient lighting came with the package. This one is the GT2 package with fully automatic seats and heated seats added. I believe the GT1 package has the lighting too but I’m not 100% sure
I believe it’s worth it because it’s everything you need for under 30k. Great power, great interior, GT package, good sounding factory exhaust, fun to drive, and practical for a daily driver.
Haha I appreciate that! I try my best that’s for sure but thank you for that feedback 🤙 I can always improve but knowing that I’m heading in the right direction is always good to know
Yeah that’s exactly what happened but it was nice knowing what the car is called in Korea haha it’s weird that it’s not called the K3 in America but forte will do I guess lol
Thank you I appreciate that! These seats are one of the most comfortable ones I’ve ever sat in. They have plush leather and the bucket feels super comfortable and it doesn’t hurt your back. Definitely could drive across country without any comfort issues. 10/10. BMW seats are less comfortable than these just to give you some perspective.
Now that you said that I should’ve had her tell the dealer to take it off. It’s ok though once it starts getting warmer I’m going to remove that and the dealership sticker tag on the back so it looks cleaner. Gives me something to do I guess lol. Definitely a great bang for the buck though she’s had it for 3 months now and she’s obsessed with it still
Hyundai/Kia arent exactly known for the most robust engines, I think putting a tune on one of these things is flirting with disaster, and not just with the engine. (Trans may not like the extra torque) Not to mention it could potentially void your 10 year warranty.
Like most young drivers it seems only speed is a talked about. Handling is perhaps more or at least as important. What good is speed if the car doesn't handle well. A trip to the hospital or the morgue will certainly take place.
Handling is extremely important! My last car had great power but terrible handling and it was risky at times. The GTI definitely has decent handling for being a fwd car but still have to be cautious because it’s not a GT3RS at the end of the day
I was going to get one, but after seeing 👀 all the comments on different reviews concerning the dct, I changed my mind. Don't want to take that chance‼️
Just realized I didn’t add that haha that’s my bad I don’t usually do car reviews but it’s something I’m getting into. But this car is rated at around 6.5-6.7 seconds and it’s a 7 speed dual-clutch automatic trans.
Oh absolutely and that never happens haha that’s why they rate it higher than it really would be. They said my older v6 passat was 6.1 seconds and I proved it’s around 5.5-5.7 with perfect conditions. Regular conditions it’s like a 6.3-6.5 so it’s all just a number these manufacturers throw out there.
@@RealSpeed yeah, I have a dragy and a 2021 GT2. Out of the 15 maybe 0-60 runs , ive only managed 6.27 -6.34 sec about 3 times, all other runs fall in the range of 6.45-6.68 (i never launch the car to keep my dct in good shape , btw) , still respectable for the price and being “just” a Kia Forte that i bought for 24.5k at the time lol love the car im at 31k miles now with some grippier summer tires.
Oh absolutely! Under 30k with good power, great tech, sharp looks, great sounding stock exhaust, perfect daily driver size, and great fuel economy. Can’t go wrong with that!
I have the 2020 model and I like it but I will be selling it. It's not enough car for me. I think the next generation should have a bigger engine and all wheel drive. That would get me to come back to Kia.
I would have bought one but the taillights is so ugly I got the Mazda 3 instead has 191 horsepower with a natural aspirated 2.5 engine and interior looks like a Mercedes
I actually like the taillights! What I don’t like is the blinker being on the bottom of the rear bumper that is ugly in my opinion. My girlfriend test drove the Mazda 3 and this GT in the same day and she ended up liking the GT better but I will say Mazda has gotten so much better over the years I give them credit! My mom has a 21’ CX9 and the interior is super similar to a bmw it’s so nice plus it drives incredible! 🤙
Mazda3 has a Torsion-Beam Rear suspension, Forte GT has independent rear suspension. I owned both and in no way dose the Mazda corner like the Forte. The car is also much slower.@@panglingaow
@panglingaow you should get a magnaflow exhaust for the mazda 3! I have both the kia and mazda and even though I gave the mazda 3 to my wife I still call it my baby because it's such a good car and she loves it. It's the perfect car. My forte gt is quicker but that doesn't matter in the end. What really separate the two is the transmission, the dual clutch feels so good compared to a 6 speed, little jerky at low speeds but man it's fun. And the turbo sound is nice
I'm surprised she didn't just buy it new. Especially in this market. My gripes 1. Needs the seltos gauge cluster 2. Needs a better looking infotainment screen 3. Needs white illuminated buttons 4. Needs the turn signals and reverse lights in the taillights where they belong. 5. Better ambient lighting 6. Maybe illuminated door sills light up door handles 7. Throw all of the hyundai n performance shit in it the seats power and drive train suspension shit 10/10 would pay 32k for a performance model all day long Especially because the elantra n is ugly as sin Also the new mk8 gti interior is ugly as sin
100% agree with you I think there are a few things Kia can do better to make this car nicer. Especially if they add in some Hyundai stuff like the n performance which will give this car a boost on the road and the market. She didn’t buy it new because there weren’t any available and the only ones that were available was the gt1 package with no heated seats and she wasn’t going to buy one without that. So the best she could find was a used one but it worked out in her benefit because she loves the car to death so that’s a plus haha
Haha the what’s up boys just kinda comes out and 99% of people that watch my channel are all guys! I want more girls to watch so it’s more diverse but that hasn’t happened yet. Hopefully at some point it does! But I try to include both sides the best I can. Thanks for watching though!
