Kia K4: The Sedan Is Safer Than the Hatchback, According to the IIHS

The Kia K4, which replaced the Forte, has quickly become one of the more compelling compacts on the market. It brings fresh, distinctive styling, generous tech, all at an attractive price. That’s a winning formula. Yet the latest crash tests from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) have turned up a surprising gap between the sedan and the hatchback, even though both ride on the same platform. What gives?

• The K4 sedan earns an IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award

• The hatchback comes away empty-handed

• Rear-seat occupant protection makes all the difference

Here’s a closer look at where one of them falls short.

Back Seat Stories

The IIHS runs six tests that determine a vehicle’s overall ratings and, when warranted, a safety award. The two K4 body styles score identically in five of them. The trouble shows up in the moderate front overlap test, in which 40 percent of the vehicle’s width strikes a deformable barrier at 64 km/h (40 mph).

The IIHS has reworked this test in recent years to assess better how well rear-seat passengers are protected. That’s exactly where one of the two models stumbles.

The sedan’s only blemish is an Acceptable rating for rear-passenger chest injury risk. That’s still a solid result, and enough for the car to earn top marks overall.

The hatchback shares that same weakness, but its rear dummy moved around considerably more during the crash, earning a Marginal rating in this test. That alone knocks it out of contention for any award.

In plain terms, the sedan’s rear seatbelts do a better job of keeping occupants in place during a collision.

The difference between the two models is slight, but it’s significant enough to warrant attention, especially since it could translate into injuries for rear-seat passengers.

And again, it’s all the more surprising given how closely related these two cars are.

None of this makes the K4 hatchback unsafe. Still, for families who regularly carry passengers in the back, it remains a legitimate concern.

The good news for Kia is that the fix appears well within reach. A few tweaks to the rear-seat restraints should be enough to bring the hatchback up to the sedan’s level.