IRVINE, Calif., December 16, 2002 –Kia Motors’ web site received high marks from consumers according to the second wave of J.D. Power and Associates’ 2002 Manufacturer Web Site Evaluation StudySM (MWES2) just released. The study measures the success Web sites have in actually driving incremental consumer traffic to dealerships to test-drive vehicles. The Kia.com site was found to increase a shopper’s likelihood to test-drive a vehicle by 40 percent, highest in the industry. Kia ranked second overall among manufacturer web sites in terms of consumer evaluation of the site’s usefulness.

Results at the industry level show that overall site usefulness is up 11-points over Wave 1, which was published in May, 2002. The second wave of the 2002 Manufacturer Web Site Evaluation Study, acknowledged for being one of the most credible and recognized studies ranking manufacturer web sites, surveyed more than 5,500 Internet users who intend to purchase a new vehicle within 24 months. The study evaluates overall site functionality and the importance of site features to online shoppers.

“We are extremely pleased that our web site is functioning at such a high rate of return and is helping to draw people to the dealerships to test drive vehicles,” said Peter M. Butterfield, Kia’s executive vice president and chief operating officer.

This is the third year for the J.D. Power Manufacturer Web Site Evaluation Study. Survey respondents were recruited primarily from a variety of sources, including the Kelley Blue Book site (kbb.com), Yahoo! Autos and Auto Trader.com.

Kia Motors America is the sales, marketing and distribution arm of Kia Motors Corp. in Seoul, South Korea.

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