IRVINE, Calif., PRNEWSWIRE — Shortly after its launch this past summer, Kia Motors America’s (KMA) all-new 2019 Forte is being lauded for its exceptional value when named a winner at the first Southwest Lifestyle Vehicle of the Year awards held recently at the Bondurant Racing School outside of Phoenix, Arizona.
Local media in attendance rated the Forte “Best Value” in the car category after real-world evaluations, while the all-new compact sedan wowed them with its Stinger-inspired design and improved driving dynamics.
“We’re honored that the Forte took the win for best value at the very first Southwest Lifestyle Vehicle Awards,” said Orth Hedrick, executive director of Car Planning and Telematics, KMA. “The previous Forte was already one of our top-sellers, and the new 2019 Forte is poised to continue being a crowd favorite thanks to its sporty design, upscale interior, available premium features, fun-to-drive attitude, and most importantly, incredible value. The Forte proves that affordable compact cars don’t have to be boring commuter cars.”
For the 2019 model year, the Forte evolves into a more refined compact sedan with head-turning style, improved efficiency in a variety of conditions, and an impressive roster of available technology. Offered in four trims – FE, LXS, S, and EX – the Forte starts at $17,690.
“The Kia Forte was really a standout in the Car of the Year field. It’s stylish, efficient, fun to drive, and comes with premium tech and safety features that you’d expect in a car costing thousands more,” said Becky Antioco, event director and founder of Southwest Lifestyle Media. “It really is a ‘Best Value’ in every sense and it exceeded our journalists’ expectations in almost every category.”
The Forte is powered by a 147-HP 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine mated to either a six-speed automatic transmission or Kia’s first in-house designed and built Intelligent Variable Transmission (IVT). A number of Kia Drive Wise technology features are standard on all Forte trims including the newly added Driver Attention Warning system (DAW), and all Fortes get an 8-inch color touchscreen with support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Premium amenities such as a Harman/Kardon audio system complete with Clari-Fi are available.
