Peter Lyon
February 13, 2026
Since 1983, MotorWeek’s production team evaluates more than 150 cars, trucks, and SUVs every year. Drivers’ Choice Award winners, in 12 consumer-driven categories, were chosen based on driving performance, technology, practicality, fuel efficiency, and value for the dollar.
This year the Kia K4 compact sedan has been named MotorWeek’s Drivers’ Choice for Best Family Car in 2026. It was recognized for its styling, spacious interior, advanced technology and standard ADAS features.
With bold fastback styling and advanced connectivity, the K4 stands out as a confident and compelling choice. It boasts an available premium, feature-rich interior highlighted by an available nearly 30 inches total combined of digital displays, 11 standard ADAS features, and available upgrades like a Harman Kardon premium audio system, heated and ventilated front seats, and Digital Key 2.0 with Ultra-Wideband. Drivers can choose between two dynamic powertrains and enjoy up to 29 available ADAS features, including a 360° Surround View Monitor, depending on which trim is selected
“The K4 is the prime example of Kia’s commitment to meeting and exceeding customer expectations by raising the bar and delivering sedans that combine comfort, performance, technology, and safety,” said Eric Watson, vice president, sales operations, Kia America. “It’s an honor to be recognized as the 2026 MotorWeek Drivers’ Choice Award for Best Family Car as it validates the K4 checks every box that consumers look for, which makes it the obvious choice in the compact sedan segment.”
“MotorWeek’s choice of Best Family Car is the Kia K4. With the auto business favoring SUVs and trucks, it’s easy to forget that well over a million family cars were sold in the U.S. last year. Cars still represent great value, a trait personified by the K4,” said Brian Roberts, senior executive producer, MotorWeek.
“Beyond value, the Kia K4 also delivers impressive style – first in sedan form, and now also in a hatchback – along with easy-to-use tech, with extremely comfortable amounts of space. It is also one of the smoothest family cars we’ve ever driven. But really, it is the fact that Kia managed somehow to cram an entire midsize sport sedan’s worth of fun into this compact entry, and we just loved driving it.”
CARLIST THOUGHTS
For the last 45 years, MotorWeek has paused halfway through their television season to examine the state of the automotive business, and to judge the year’s best new cars, SUVs and trucks. Driving, researching, and performing instrumented testing of over 150 new vehicles every year, this intensive process nets a list of the best vehicles in each class. The goal is to produce a list of winners that align with the perspectives of automotive experts and consumers alike, with recommendations that can be used as a practical guide for new-vehicle shopping.
