Kia, one of the fastest growing car makers in the world, posted an 11-point year-on-year improvement on its 2006 result, scoring 125 points.

The company has seen a consistent improvement in scores, which capture issues experienced by owners in two distinct categories - quality of design and quality of production (defects and malfunctions).

Kia has improved by 43 points since 2003, recording the best percentage-gap-to-average improvement of all non-premium brands on the survey over the last five years.

Yong-Hwan Kim, Senior Executive Vice President and COO of Kia Motors Corporation, said, "This result reflects the consistent improvements we have made in terms of all aspects of quality over the last five years and the increasing satisfaction our customers are experiencing from driving our products.

"Alongside the very positive feedback we are receiving from the recent launch of the Cee'd in Europe, it encourages us to continue to improve our standards and the quality of our products."

The 2007 Kia Rio ranked highest in the sub-compact (light car) segment of the Initial Quality Study. Released as a completely new design in 2006, this is the second consecutive year that Rio has received this honour. Rio was the highest-ranking model in the sub-compact segment at 102 problems per 100 vehicles (PP100).

"The JD Power IQS awards are particularly significant since they are based directly on positive feedback from Kia owners," said Len Hunt, executive vice president and COO of Kia Motors America.

"This JD Power honour further demonstrates the strength of the full Kia line-up."

The JD Power annual report measures 228 vehicle attributes across eight categories, including the driving experience, engine and transmission, and a broad range of quality symptoms reported by vehicle owners.

In Australia, the Kia Rio range starts at a recommended retail price (RRP) of $14,990 plus on-road costs for the 1.4-litre Rio LX manual 5-door hatch and ranges up to $20,990 RRP plus on-road costs for the top-line 1.6-litre Rio EX Luxury 4-door sedan and 1.6-litre Sports 5-door hatch.