2020 Kia Forte

The volume LXS uses the 147-hp 2.0L four, which is adequate for an economy compact but sits at the bottom of the sedan band. The 1.6L turbo GT, new for 2020, is the only stronger option at 201 hp.

The engine makes 132 lb-ft, and only high in the rev range, which puts it near the floor of the sedan band. The GT turbo's 195 lb-ft is available from 1,500 rpm, but the GT is not the volume configuration.

Instrumented runs of the 2.0L/IVT Forte, which carries over unchanged from 2019 to 2021, cluster between 8.1 and 8.7 seconds, so 8.3 s is the midpoint. That is typical of a non-turbo compact and slow against the sedan band.

The 2.0L MPI is smooth and quiet at a cruise. It feels flat at low revs, though, and turns coarse and loud when pushed toward its 4,500-rpm torque peak for passing or merging, which reviewers often name as the Forte's weak spot.

Kia's IVT uses a chain belt and simulated shift points, so it avoids most of the rubber-band drone in normal driving and is one of the better CVTs in the class. It still flares and drones at full throttle, and the GT's 7-speed DCT can be hesitant from a stop.

Every 2020 Forte is front-wheel drive and no trim offers AWD, so it scores at the bottom of the band.

There are two gas engines: the 147-hp 2.0L, with an IVT or a 6-speed manual, and the 201-hp 1.6L turbo, with a 7-speed DCT or a 6-speed manual on the GT. That adds a real performance option for 2020, but the Forte has no hybrid or electrified choice to answer the Corolla Hybrid.

The volume LXS pairs the 147-hp 2.0L four with Kia's IVT and returns 33 mpg combined. That is solid for a non-hybrid compact sedan, but no electrified Forte exists to rival the Corolla Hybrid.

29 mpg in town is respectable for a gas compact, but it is the Forte's weakest efficiency figure, because stop-start driving is where rival hybrids pull ahead.

Highway cruising is the Forte's strength: the 2.0L and the IVT's tall top ratio return 40 mpg, at the front of the non-hybrid compact sedan class.

A 14.0-gallon tank at 33 mpg combined gives about 462 miles between fills. That is adequate for a gas compact but well short of the class hybrids.

On EPA standard assumptions the 2.0L/IVT Forte costs about $2,050 a year to fuel. That is cheap next to any SUV, but a few hundred dollars more than a compact hybrid.

Every 2020 Forte trim, including the turbo GT, is specified for 87-octane regular, so there is no premium penalty or other fuel complication.

NHTSA rated the 2020 Forte 4 stars overall. The frontal result is 4 stars, with only 3 stars for the front passenger, while side barrier and side pole are a clean 5 stars.

Under the tests in force for 2020 the Forte earned Good in every crashworthiness test and a Top Safety Pick (not TSP+). The award applies only with the GT's LED headlights and optional pedestrian-detecting AEB, so the volume LXS does not qualify. The later updated side test, which IIHS applies to 2019–24 models, came back Poor.

Every 2020 Forte has camera-based forward collision-avoidance (vehicle-only unless optioned), lane keeping assist, lane departure warning and driver attention warning. Blind-spot and rear cross-traffic warning start at GT-Line, so the volume LXS has neither, and adaptive cruise is a package option on the EX and GT only.

The standard camera-based system earns IIHS's top Superior rating vehicle-to-vehicle. Pedestrian detection comes only with optional equipment, where it rates Advanced in daytime. There is no nighttime pedestrian result.

Blind-spot collision warning and rear cross-traffic collision warning only warn the driver; they cannot brake or steer. They are standard on GT-Line, EX and GT but unavailable on the FE and the volume LXS, so most Fortes sold have no blind-spot coverage at all.

Lane Keeping Assist and Lane Departure Warning are standard on all trims, but the pre-facelift Forte nudges the car back from the line rather than centering it. Lane Following Assist arrived only with the 2022 refresh.

The FE, LXS and GT-Line trims, including the volume LXS, get conventional cruise control only. Smart Cruise Control with Stop & Go is a package option on the EX and GT, and it isn't paired with a highway lane-centering assist.

No 2020 Forte trim offers hands-free highway driving, and the car lacks even hands-on lane centering.

Only the LED projector headlights with high-beam assist rate Good. The halogen-projector lights on the volume trims, including the LXS, rate Poor.

Forward and side sightlines are reasonable for a compact sedan. The fastback-style roofline and thick C-pillars restrict the over-the-shoulder view, and only a rear-view camera helps; no surround-view camera is offered.

IIHS rates LATCH ease of use Acceptable. Both outboard rear seats have a full set of lower anchors plus top tethers, but the anchors sit deep in the seat bight. Rear knee room is adequate but tight for a rear-facing seat behind a tall driver.

Like the rest of the compact-sedan class, the third-generation (BD) Forte sedan seats five on every 2020 trim.

Front headroom is above the compact-sedan midpoint. The volume LXS has no sunroof, so it gets the full figure.

Front legroom is about class-average and is the same on every trim.

Rear headroom is better than the fastback roofline suggests. The back seat's real shortfall is legroom.

At 35.7 in, rear legroom is the Forte's clearest space deficit. It trails roomier class leaders such as the Civic and the Jetta.

A 15.3 cu ft trunk is among the largest in the mainstream compact-sedan class, and the LXS adds a 60/40 split-folding rear seat that extends it.

Everyday storage is conventional: a console bin, door pockets, cupholders and a front tray. The volume LXS has one USB port. The extra charge-only USB ports arrive on the EX, and wireless charging is an upper-trim option. Nothing here stands out as innovative.

On the volume trims the front seats are basic manual units that are short on lower-back support. The power driver's seat with lumbar is reserved for the EX, with power lumbar optional on the GT-Line and GT.

Ride is the weakest comfort trait. The firm torsion-beam rear lets passengers feel bumps and turns jittery on broken pavement, and reviewers place it behind the class leaders here.

Reviewers are split. Some find the cabin quiet at a cruise, while others call it loud when the 2.0L is worked through the IVT. With no acoustic glass or active noise cancellation, it sits mid-band.

Comfort equipment is sparse where most buyers shop. The FE, LXS and GT-Line get manual single-zone A/C without heated seats. Dual-zone automatic climate, rear vents and heated/ventilated front seats are confined to the EX (and GT packages), and the volume trim has no factory remote start.

The 2020 Forte FE was one of the cheapest new compact sedans of its year, well below the sedan band floor.

The LXS, which replaced the LX/S for 2020, is the volume trim. At about $20.3k delivered it sits well below the sedan band floor.

Edmunds' True Cost to Own projects typical economy-car maintenance with modest repair costs. CarEdge puts the nameplate's maintenance and repairs at about $1,950, well below the sedan average, so the Edmunds figure is the conservative one.

Edmunds projected $8,944 of depreciation on a ~$20.3k LXS, or about 56% retained. The 2020 cohort then rode the 2021–22 used-car price spike, and CarEdge's nameplate five-year average is around 61%, so a blended ~59% is used.

Kia's 5-year/60,000-mile limited basic warranty is among the longest in the industry.

The 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty is best in class, though it drops to 5 yr/60k for second owners.

Kia included no scheduled maintenance on the 2020 Forte. The perks stop at 5-yr/unlimited-mile roadside assistance plus a UVO eServices trial on equipped trims, which puts it in the basic-roadside band.

$20,255 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (59% retained, or about $11,950) leaves about $8,305 in depreciation. Add the projected $6,567 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $14,872 in total.

2020 is the second model year of the third-generation (BD) Forte, a trim-reshuffle year (GT/GT-Line added, S and manual dropped, LX renamed LXS) on the same 2.0L/IVT drivetrain. J.D. Power rates it 90/100 ("Great"), but Consumer Reports' view of the early BD cars was more reserved amid IVT complaints, so the signals are strong but not uniformly top-tier.

In the 2020 timeframe Kia was a top initial-quality brand (J.D. Power 2020 IQS ranked Kia highest among mass-market brands) but only about industry-average in the 2020 Vehicle Dependability Study, before its 2021-2023 run as the top mass-market VDS brand. Consumer Reports placed Kia upper-mid pack — above average, below the Toyota/Lexus tier.

The 2020 model year has no NHTSA recall campaigns at all — cleaner than the 2019 (headlight and axle-shaft recalls), 2021 (OCS and steering-column recalls) and 2023 (control-arm/knuckle recalls) Fortes. The generation's recurring IVT shudder/hesitation complaints, handled by software-update TSBs, keep it from the top of the band.

The volume LXS uses the port-injected 2.0L Nu MPi four (147 hp) with Kia's IVT — a low-stress engine with a long high-mileage record that avoids the Theta II family behind Kia's engine campaigns. The chain-belt IVT was only in its second year and the 2019-2020 cars drew the most shudder/hesitation complaints before revised calibrations, so it sits slightly below the 2021.

The BD cabin is attractively designed and well laid out, but hard plastics dominate the volume FE/LXS trims, with soft-touch and metallic trim reserved for EX/GT grades. Competitive for an economy compact rather than class-leading.

Initial quality is a Forte strength: it ranked first in the Compact Car segment of J.D. Power's 2020 U.S. Initial Quality Study, the second of four consecutive segment wins, a direct measure of owner-reported first-90-day defects including fit and rattles. Reviewers report solid assembly with no panel-gap or rattle theme.

Kia's roughly 775-800 US dealers give adequate metro and suburban coverage but a thinner rural footprint than Toyota, Honda, Ford or Chevrolet, and Kia sat below the mass-market leaders in J.D. Power's Customer Service Index. The 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty offsets some of that.

Running costs are low and well documented: RepairPal puts the Forte's average annual repair and maintenance at $451 against a $526 compact-car average, with fewer unscheduled shop visits than the segment. The 2.0L MPi and IVT are shared widely across Hyundai-Kia, so OEM and aftermarket parts are cheap and abundant.

Every 2020 Forte, including the volume LXS, uses the tablet-style 8-inch touchscreen. The 10.25-inch screen came with the facelift.

Kia's 8-inch system is simple, responsive and logically laid out. Physical audio and climate knobs back it up. The small screen and basic graphics keep it below the best in class.

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on every 2020 trim, but they connect only by cable. No 2020 Forte offers wireless projection. Standard wired support keeps it at the top of the low band.

The volume LXS has no built-in navigation, only the 8-inch audio unit with basic button-activated voice commands. Native UVO link navigation is limited to the top EX package, so most owners navigate through wired phone projection.

The volume trims' basic speaker setup sounds adequate. The 8-speaker Harman Kardon system is an upper-trim option (GT-Line, EX, GT), so volume buyers can't get it.

The volume LXS uses analog gauges around a small monochrome TFT display. A color 4.2-inch TFT is limited to upper trims, and no trim offers a full-digital cluster.

There are no over-the-air vehicle updates. The volume LXS has no modem, and head-unit and map updates go by USB download from Kia's update site.

The volume LXS has no telematics and no factory remote start, so the companion app adds nothing for it. UVO services with remote functions are confined to upper trims and packages.

The LXS has a single front USB-A port and a 12V outlet. The two charge-only USB ports come with the EX, and wireless charging is an upper-trim option. There is no USB-C and no rear port on the volume trim.

The volume LXS has remote keyless entry and a turn-key ignition. Keyless entry and push-button start begin at the GT-Line. No trim offers phone-as-key.

The only parking aid on the volume LXS is the rear camera. Rear parking sensors are a top-trim option, and no trim has surround view or automated parking.

No 2020 Forte trim or package offers a head-up display, which is typical for an economy compact sedan.

The 15.3 cu ft trunk easily takes a stroller, and the LXS adds a 60/40 split-folding rear seat. On the other hand, 35.7 in of rear legroom crowds a rear-facing seat, and LATCH rates only Acceptable.

The 2020 Forte was an IIHS Top Safety Pick and rated Good in the original crash tests. The award applied only with front crash prevention and the GT's LED headlights, though, and the volume LXS has Poor-rated halogens. NHTSA rates it 4 stars overall, and blind-spot warning starts at the GT-Line.

The large trunk handles family luggage, but the rest of the road-trip case is weak. Rear legroom is tight, the LXS has manual single-zone A/C with no rear vents or rear USB, the front seats lack lumbar support and the ride is stiff.

As a commuter it is easy to live with: light steering, a tight 34.8 ft turning circle, an IVT that is smooth in traffic, simple physical controls and standard lane-keeping and AEB. The volume trim gives up adaptive cruise, push-button start and heated seats, and the firm ride is felt on rough roads.

It is cheap to buy and run: 33 MPG combined on regular fuel (35 for the FE), about $2,050 a year, with a $19,290 LXS sticker and a 10-year powertrain warranty. No hybrid version was offered to match the Corolla Hybrid.

With a 182.7 in length and a 34.8 ft turning circle, it is easy to place in town. The fastback's thick C-pillars limit rear sightlines, and the volume trim has only the rear camera.

This is not a work vehicle. There is no published US tow rating and no bed, and hauling is limited to a 15.3 cu ft trunk behind a 147 hp front-drive four-cylinder.

The simple port-injected 2.0L, the 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty and heavy fleet use are positives. Early-generation IVT complaints and oil-consumption reports weigh against heavy-duty use.

There are almost no work provisions: no AC inverter, no tow package and no upfit ecosystem, with a single USB port and a 12V outlet on the LXS. The folding rear seat for long items is the only credit.

Range is excellent: about 460 miles combined and roughly 560 miles at highway economy. Comfort on the volume trim is middling, with a manual seat without lumbar, no adaptive cruise, a stiff ride and an IVT that drones under load.

It is front-drive only, with low ground clearance, no tow rating and no off-road modes, so it belongs on pavement. Accessory roof crossbars are the only adventure provision.

The 15.3 cu ft trunk is among the class's biggest, and the LXS's 60/40 split-folding seat extends it. Bulky items are limited by the fixed sedan opening, and there is no hatch or hitch.

The car turns in willingly, but the volume LXS's strut/torsion-beam setup on 16-inch tires is unremarkable, and reviewers rank it behind the Mazda3 and Civic. The multi-link rear is new for 2020 but limited to the GT.

The electric rack is light and accurate enough for commuting, but reviewers consistently call it vague, with little feedback.

The four-wheel discs stop competently for a light compact, with a 120 ft 60–0 mph stop in Edmunds' testing and no complaints about fade or pedal feel. The result is average, not standout.

The 147 hp 2.0L with Kia's IVT is smooth in light driving, helped by simulated shift points. Response is only adequate, at about 8.1–8.7 s to 60 mph, and it flares and drones under hard throttle.

The naturally aspirated four turns coarse and buzzy when pushed, and the IVT holds revs on merges. With thin sound deadening, some reviewers call the car loud.

At 34.8 ft, the turning circle is at the tight end of the compact-sedan band, which makes U-turns and parking easy.

Logically grouped physical controls, a tilt/telescoping wheel and good front headroom are strengths. The volume LXS's manual height-adjustable seat lacks lumbar support.

The volume car is pleasant but forgettable: 0–60 takes about 8 seconds, the steering is vague and the IVT drones. The enthusiast pick is the GT, new for 2020 with 201 hp, a 7-speed DCT or 6-speed manual and a multi-link rear, but it is not the configuration scored here.

For under $19k, the 2020 Forte came standard with an 8-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and forward collision-avoidance and lane-keeping assist. Reviewers note that even the base car has the latest driver aids, though LED headlights and automatic climate control cost extra.

It undercuts the Civic, Corolla and Mazda3 by thousands at comparable trims, and the new 201-hp turbo GT costs about $23.5k delivered. Reviewers call it a fantastic value; the drawback is the unexciting 147-hp base engine with its CVT.

For 2020 Kia added the GT-Line and turbo GT, giving five trims (FE, LXS, GT-Line, EX, GT) with manuals on the FE and GT plus Premium/Special Edition/GT2 packages. That runs from budget to sporty, but the US gets one body style and no AWD or hybrid.

About 85k US sales in pandemic-hit calendar 2020 kept the Forte a steady mid-pack compact seller, well behind the Civic, Corolla and Sentra, and down from the prior year.

In 2020 the Telluride halo was lifting Kia's image, but the 2021 rebrand had not arrived yet. In the compact class Kia still read as the value alternative to Honda, Toyota and Mazda.

The 2020 model year had typical Kia cash-back offers plus long-term 0% financing during the spring 2020 pandemic sales push, before the 2021 chip shortage pushed prices toward MSRP. Buyers had real deals to choose from.

The 2020 is the second model year of the BD generation (launched for 2019) and gained the new GT and GT-Line trims. It is current but not cutting-edge; the facelift arrived in the US as a 2022 model in October 2021.

Reviews were positive, praising value, the warranty and the new turbo GT, and the sedan earned an IIHS 2020 Top Safety Pick. It rarely won comparison tests against the Civic, Mazda3 or Corolla.