The 2025 Kia K4 Looks Like a Step Up from the Forte

Chris Teague
by Chris Teague

Kia is revamping its entry-level car. The 2025 Kia K4 will be revealed later this month at the New York auto show as a replacement for the long-running Forte. We won’t have full specs on the car until next week, but its styling and design mark a significant step forward for what will likely still be Kia’s most affordable model.


Like the larger K5, the K4 features sleek styling and unique lines with a futuristic look. Kia retained its signature “tiger nose” grille and gave the car vertical headlight units with large LED daytime running lights. The rear features vertical taillights and an integrated diffuser in the lower bumper.

Kia said it designed the interior with two themes in mind. The driver’s space is focused, with displays and controls oriented toward the seat, while the rest of the passenger cabin focuses on comfort and space. The car is available with a range of interior lighting options, and Kia retained physical controls for often-used functions like maps and the climate system. Kia also offers new interior colors, including green, gray, brown, and black.


We don’t have powertrain specs for the new car yet, but Kia’s expected to offer similar configurations to what was seen in the Forte. That would mean a standard four-cylinder engine with an available turbo. The automaker is also expected to develop a hybrid model and a small electric sedan called the EV4.

The 2025 Kia K4 will officially debut on Mach 27 in New York, so we don’t have long to wait for more information. Pricing details will likely wait until closer to the car’s release date later in 2024.


[Images: Kia]


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Chris Teague
Chris Teague

Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.

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  • Danddd Danddd on Mar 22, 2024

    That rear quarter panel is just lazy design trying to interpret futuristic 60s. Who would approve this?

  • Lorenzo Lorenzo on Mar 24, 2024

    The 1986 Accord hatchback coupe has returned!

  • Oberkanone Nope. No interest.
  • SilverCoupe Tim, you don't always watch F1 as you don't want to lose sleep? But these races are great for putting one to sleep!I kid (sort of). I DVR them, I watch them, I fast forward a lot. It was great to see Lando win one, I've been a fan of McLaren since their heyday in CanAm in the late '60's.
  • Cprescott The problem with this fable by the FTC is:(1) shipping of all kinds was hindered at ports because of COVID related issues;(2) The President shafted the Saudis by insulting them with a fist bump that torqued them off to no end;(3) Saudis announced unilateral production cuts repeatedly during this President's tenure even as he begged to get them to produce more;(4) We were told that we had record domestic production so that would have lowered prices due to increased supply(5) The President emptied the strategic petroleum reserve to the lowest point since the 1980's due to number 3 and then sold much of that to China.We have repeatedly been told that documents and emails are Russian disinformation so why now are we to believe this?
  • Ollicat Another Biden attempt to say, "Look over there!"
  • Kjhkjlhkjhkljh kljhjkhjklhkjh Who cares. Price of gas is not the issue. spending an extra 100$ a month over 4 tanks of gas is not the issue.this a political scam to distract really dumb people from the real issue. if rent and house payments were not up by 50% to as high as 150% higher in a ton of locations, then paying an extra 100$ in gas would be annoying but not really an issue. But the real-estate market with hedge fund investors, power-relator groups bought a ton of houses and flipped them into rentals and jacked up the rates uplifting the costs on everything else. and ironically no-one seems to be in any hurry to build more houses to bring those costs down because supply and demand means keeping less houses available to charge as much as you want. It is also not the issue as a secondary issue is child care costs and medical... again 100$ extra per month in gas is *nothing* compared to 800$ a month in ''child care'' and 300$ per visit to the doctor office, 300$ for a procedure less dentist trip..
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