Compare the2024 Kia K5VS 2023 Toyota Camry

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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Both the K5 and Camry have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The K5 EX/GT offers optional 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 Camry’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.

The K5 has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Camry’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the K5 has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning and Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Toyota charges extra for Rear Cross-Traffic Alert on the Camry.

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 Camry doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the K5 and the Camry have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia K5 is safer than the Toyota Camry:

	K5	Camry
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Stress	180 lbs.	262 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	444/276 lbs.	432/527 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Kia K5 is safer than the Toyota Camry:

	K5	Camry
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	110	134
Hip Force	264 lbs.	296 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	202	289
Hip Force	687 lbs.	752 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	14 inches	14 inches
Spine Acceleration	32 G’s	35 G’s
Hip Force	589 lbs.	622 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

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 Camry’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the K5 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Camry. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Camry ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the K5 has a standard 760-amp battery. The Camry’s 600-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in initial quality. With 24 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated below average.

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 Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 13 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked fifth.

Engine

The K5 has more powerful engines than the Camry:

	Torque
K5 1.6T 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder	195 lbs.-ft.
K5 GT 2.5T 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder	311 lbs.-ft.
Camry AWD 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	182 lbs.-ft.
Camry 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	184 lbs.-ft.
Camry XSE AWD 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	185 lbs.-ft.
Camry XSE 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder	186 lbs.-ft.
Camry 3.5 DOHC V6	267 lbs.-ft.

As tested in Car and Driver the K5 1.6T 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Toyota Camry 4 cyl.:

	K5	Camry
Zero to 60 MPH	7 sec	7.9 sec
Zero to 100 MPH	18.8 sec	20.5 sec
5 to 60 MPH Rolling Start	7.4 sec	8.2 sec
Quarter Mile	15.5 sec	16.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	92 MPH	90 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the K5 gets better mileage than the Camry:

			MPG
K5
	FWD	1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	27 city/37 hwy
		2.5 turbo 4-cyl.	24 city/32 hwy
Camry
	FWD	Camry XLE 3.5 DOHC V6	22 city/33 hwy
		Camry XSE 3.5 DOHC V6	22 city/32 hwy
		TRD 3.5 DOHC V6	22 city/31 hwy

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the K5 LX’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. The Camry doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The K5 has 1.4 gallons more fuel capacity than the Camry AWD’s standard fuel tank (15.8 vs. 14.4 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Transmission

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 Camry doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

Brakes and Stopping

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

	K5 GT	Camry	Camry TRD
Front Rotors	13.6 inches	12 inches	12.9 inches
Rear Rotors	12.8 inches	11.06 inches	11.06 inches

The K5 stops shorter than the Camry:

	K5	Camry
70 to 0 MPH	172 feet	175 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	116 feet	125 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the K5 GT’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Camry (245/40R19 vs. 235/45R18).

Suspension and Handling

The K5 has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Camry doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the K5 is 1.5 inches wider in the front and 1.2 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Camry.

The K5 GT-Line AWD handles at .86 G’s, while the Camry XLE pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The K5 GT executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.1 seconds quicker than the Camry SE (26.3 seconds @ .69 average G’s vs. 27.4 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the K5’s turning circle is 1.4 feet tighter than the Camry LE’s (36 feet vs. 37.4 feet). The K5’s turning circle is 3.3 feet tighter than the Camry AWD SE/XLE/XSE’s (36 feet vs. 39.3 feet).

Passenger Space

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the K5 a Large car, while the Camry is rated a Mid-size.

The K5 has 4.9 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Camry (105.3 vs. 100.4).

The K5 has 1.9 inches more front headroom, 4 inches more front legroom, 1.2 inches more front hip room, .3 inches more front shoulder room, 1.9 inches more rear hip room and .4 inches more rear shoulder room than the Camry.

Cargo Capacity

The K5 has a larger trunk than the Camry (16 vs. 15.1 cubic feet).

The K5’s standard rear seats fold to accommodate long and bulky cargo. The Camry TRD doesn’t offer folding rear seats.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the K5’s trunk can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Camry doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its trunk, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Ergonomics

When two different drivers share the K5 EX/GT, the optional memory seats and mirrors make it convenient for both. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position and outside mirror angle. The Camry doesn’t offer a memory system.

The K5 EX/GT’s optional easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Camry doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The K5’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Camry’s parking brake has to be released manually.

Consumer Reports rated the K5’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the Camry’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

The K5’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Heated mirrors cost extra on the Camry and aren’t offered on the Camry Nightshade/TRD.

The K5 has a standard center folding armrest for the rear passengers. A center armrest helps make rear passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Camry TRD doesn’t offer a rear seat center armrest.

The K5 has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is not available on the Camry TRD.

Recommendations

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

Motor Trend performed a comparison test in its May 2021 issue and they ranked the Kia K5 GT-Line AWD four places higher than the Toyota Camry SE.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the K5 first among midsize cars in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Camry isn’t in the top three.

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