Used car safety, rank #170 of 181
Kia Forte Safety Rating (2019-20)
Real IIHS driver death rates for the 2019-20 Kia Forte, a small car, compared with its class and with the current model.
The 2019-20 Kia Forte has an IIHS driver death rate of 111 per million registered vehicle years against a small cars average of 60.5, which is 83% above the class average. That places it #170 of 181 used vehicles with a safety score of 9.0/100.
What the Kia Forte death rate means
At 111 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years, the Kia Forte is 83% worse than the small cars average of 60.5. The 95% confidence interval is 62 to 160, entirely above the class average, so the gap is unlikely to be chance.
The other-driver death rate of 96 measures the opposite risk: how many drivers of other vehicles died in crashes with a Kia Forte. It is no higher than the Kia Forte's own driver death rate. Remember that death rates describe vehicles and their drivers together: IIHS adjusts for driver age and gender, but not for where or how carefully people drive. Our score weights this model's own rate at 70% and its class at 30%; see how we rank used cars.
Compared with similar used cars
The safest small cars in the IIHS study, by our score, with the Kia Forte highlighted. It ranks 9 of the 9 shown; the class leader is the Chevrolet Bolt at a death rate of 8.
| Vehicle | Years | Death rate | Score | Reliability | Used price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevrolet Bolt | 2017-20 | 8 (0 to 19) | 65.3 | n/a | n/a |
| Toyota Prius Prime | 2017-20 | 23 (0 to 45) | 52.5 | n/a | n/a |
| Subaru WRX | 2017-20 | 38 (19 to 58) | 34.2 | n/a | n/a |
| Toyota Prius | 2017-20 | 45 (23 to 67) | 29.6 | n/a | n/a |
| Subaru Impreza sedan | 2017-20 | 46 (18 to 74) | 28.4 | n/a | n/a |
| Honda Civic | 2019-20 | 49 (29 to 69) | 26.5 | n/a | n/a |
| Toyota Corolla | 2020 | 58 (31 to 86) | 19.5 | n/a | n/a |
| Honda Civic hatchback | 2019-20 | 78 (26 to 130) | 13.6 | n/a | n/a |
| Kia Forte (this page) | 2019-20 | 111 (62 to 160) | 9.0 | n/a | n/a |
Class average for small cars: 60.5 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years.
Safety recalls for the Kia Forte
No recalls on record for the 2020 model year.
Kia Forte: Common Questions
Is the Kia Forte a safe car?
Not on this measure: its drivers died at a higher rate than its class average. IIHS recorded a driver death rate of 111 per million registered vehicle years for the 2019-20 Kia Forte, 83% above the class average (60.5 for small cars). That earns a used-car safety score of 9.0 out of 100 and rank #170 of 181 used vehicles.
What is the Kia Forte driver death rate?
111 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years, with a 95% confidence interval of 62 to 160. Drivers of other vehicles that collided with a Kia Forte died at a rate of 96 per million. Source: IIHS driver death rates by make and model, covering 2019-20 models.
How does the Kia Forte compare with other small cars?
The small cars class averages 60.5 driver deaths per million; the Kia Forte sits at 111. Among the 9 small cars compared above it ranks 9 by safety score; the top of that group is the Chevrolet Bolt with a death rate of 8.