Compare the2023 Kia RioVS 2023 MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 Door

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Kia Rio are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

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 Rio S with its optional rear seat reminder are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tests front crash prevention systems. With a score of 6 points, IIHS rates the Autonomous Emergency Braking System optional in the Rio as “Superior.” The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door scores only 4 points and is rated only “Advanced.”

Both the Rio and the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available lane departure warning systems and driver alert monitors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, rear impact and roof-crush tests, with its optional front crash prevention system, its “Acceptable” rating in the new passenger-side small overlap crash test, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Rio the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2019, a rating granted to only 191 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door has not been fully tested, yet.

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

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

There are over 7 times as many Kia dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Rio’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Rio second among small cars in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 12 more problems per 100 vehicles, MINI is ranked 13th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 28 more problems per 100 vehicles, MINI is ranked 11th.

On the EPA test cycle the Rio gets better mileage than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Rio uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Kia Rio comes standard with an automatic transmission, for driver comfort, especially in the city. Automatic costs extra on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

The Rio has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer a CVT.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Rio is 1.2 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

For better maneuverability, the Rio’s turning circle is 2.7 feet tighter than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’s (33.5 feet vs. 36.2 feet).

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Rio Sedan a Compact car, while the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door is rated a Subcompact.

The Rio Sedan has 6.1 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door (89.9 vs. 83.8).

The Rio Sedan has .7 inches more front legroom, 2.9 inches more front shoulder room, 1.2 inches more rear legroom and 3.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

The Rio Sedan has a larger trunk than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door with its rear seat up (13.7 vs. 13.1 cubic feet).

The Rio has a much larger trunk than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door with its rear seat up (17.4 vs. 13.1 cubic feet).

The Rio S offers a remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Rio’s available headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

For greater rear passenger comfort, the Rio has standard rear heat vents to keep rear occupants more comfortable. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer rear vents.

Insurance will cost less for the Rio owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Rio with a number “1” insurance rate while the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door is rated higher at a number “5” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Rio is less expensive to operate than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door because it costs $145 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Rio than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door, including $203 less for a water pump, $78 less for a muffler, $46 less for front brake pads, $184 less for a starter, $256 less for a fuel pump, $161 less for front struts, $364 less for a timing belt/chain and $732 less for a power steering pump.