Compare the2022 Kia K5VS 2021 Volkswagen Arteon

Both the K5 and Arteon have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The K5 EX Premium/GT-1 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Arteon’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the K5 are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Arteon doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The K5’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Arteon doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the K5 and the Arteon have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the K5 its highest rating: “Top Pick Plus” for 2021, a rating granted to only 62 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Arteon has not been fully tested, yet.

The K5 comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Arteon’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the K5 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Arteon. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Arteon ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 19 percent more Kia dealers than there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the K5’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2020 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in initial quality, above the industry average. With 16 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 9th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia third in reliability, above the industry average. With 66 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 9 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The K5 GT 2.5T’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 22 more horsepower (290 vs. 268) and 53 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 258) than the Arteon’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Consumer Reports the K5 1.6T 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Volkswagen Arteon:

On the EPA test cycle the K5 gets better fuel mileage than the Arteon:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia K5 uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Arteon requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Kia K5 higher (5 out of 10) than the Volkswagen Arteon (3). This means the K5 produces up to 16.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Arteon every 15,000 miles.

The K5 offers an available sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Arteon doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

For better stopping power the K5 GT’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Arteon:

The K5 stops shorter than the Arteon:

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the K5 is 1.3 inches wider in the front and 2 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Arteon.

The K5 GT-Line AWD handles at .86 G’s, while the Arteon SEL Premium R-Line 4Motion pulls only .84 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The K5 GT executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Arteon SEL Premium R-Line 4Motion (26.3 seconds @ .69 average G’s vs. 26.9 seconds @ .65 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the K5’s turning circle is 3 feet tighter than the Arteon’s (36 feet vs. 39 feet).

The Kia K5 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 550 to 750 pounds less than the Volkswagen Arteon.

The design of the Kia K5 amounts to more than styling. The K5 has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .27 Cd. That is lower than the Arteon (.29) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the K5 get better fuel mileage.

The K5 has 8.8 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Arteon (105.3 vs. 96.5).

The K5 has 2.3 inches more front headroom, 4.9 inches more front legroom, 1.5 inches more front shoulder room, .7 inches more rear headroom and 1.4 inches more rear shoulder room than the Arteon.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Kia K5 and the Volkswagen Arteon, based on reliability, safety and performance.