Kia has released pricing for the all-new 2016 Optima sedan and—surprise!—it costs the same as it did before. In today’s car-pricing climate, holding or cutting a car’s price is something of a coup, so kudos to Kia on that one. The Kia also undercuts most of its competition, including the Honda Accord, Ford Fusion, Nissan Altima, and the Toyota Camry. Here’s a breakdown of the Optima’s five trim levels—LX, LX 1.6T, EX, SX, and SXL:


Optima LX: $22,665; standard equipment includes a manual six-way driver’s seat, 60/40 split-folding rear seats, cruise control, a driver’s automatic down window, a 5-inch touch screen, a backup camera, Sirius satellite radio, Bluetooth, 16-inch aluminum wheels, and chrome exterior trim. The LX comes solely with a 185-hp 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and a six-speed automatic.

Optima LX 1.6T: $24,815; as its name implies, the LX 1.6T trades the LX’s 2.4-liter four for a turbocharged 1.6-liter four making 178 horsepower (but 195 lb-ft of torque, 17 greater than the LX’s engine). The turbo is paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. This trim level also adds gray-finished 16-inch aluminum wheels, heated and power-folding side mirrors, acoustic front window glass, auto up/down front windows, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, and pushbutton ignition with keyless entry.

Optima EX: $25,715; curiously, the EX goes back to the LX’s 2.4-liter four/six-speed automatic combo. Otherwise, it adds 17-inch wheels, LED taillights, dual projector-beam headlights, LED running lights, dual-zone automatic climate control, two rapid-charge USB ports (on top of the non-rapid-charging port standard on every other model), a heated steering wheel and front seats, a 12-way power driver’s seat, woodgrain interior trim, and leather seating surfaces.




Optima SX: $30,515; the SX steps up to a turbocharged 2.0-liter four with 245 horsepower and is the range’s sporty variant. As such, the SX adds a sport-tuned suspension, paddle shifters, 18-inch aluminum wheels, dual exhaust outlets, gloss black exterior trim, red-painted brake calipers, adaptive self-leveling HID headlights, and a rear spoiler. Inside, there’s an 8-inch touch screen with navigation, a color screen in the gauge cluster, metal trim, and rear side-window sunshades.




Optima SXL: $36,615; sharing its turbocharged 2.0-liter four with the SX, the SXL slathers the Optima in options. This means: quilted nappa leather seats, a 10-way power passenger seat, an electronic parking brake, adaptive cruise control, a panoramic sunroof, automatic high beams,  LED reading lamps, heated second-row seats (outboard positions only), and special 18-inch wheels. The safety roster is impressive, too, with rear parking sensors, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, autonomous emergency braking, forward collision warning, lane-departure warning, and a surround-view camera.