First Drive: 2010 Kia Forte

The Forte is technically the successor to the Spectra, but it is really so much more than that. This time, Kia decided to leave the help of the rocked-out Soul hamsters behind and instead concentrate on product, not marketing – though we do like the hamsters. The main competitors in the segment include the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla and Mazda Mazda3 and when you add in the secondary targets of the Ford Focus and Chevrolet Cobalt, it shows why anyone would need to strike hard when attempting to show up as a seriously dominant player that sells on more than just low prices.

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On the Road
During our seat time in and around Seattle, we test drove an EX with the Fuel Economy Package and an SX version. We found the EX's 5-speed automatic a bit annoying in its rush to get into fifth ...

Cruise control system
The cruise control system allows you to program the vehicle to maintain a constant speed without resting your foot on the accelerator pedal. With cruise control, you can set and automatically mai ...

Engine compartment
Gasoline Engine (2.4L) 1. Engine coolant reservoir 2. Engine oil filler cap 3. Brake fluid reservoir 4. Air cleaner 5. Fuse box 6. Negative battery terminal 7. Positive battery terminal 8. A ...