Kia has officially lifted the
veils off the 2020 Forte GT. The compact performance sedan has
its debut at the SEMA Show. There’s nothing surprising about the way it looks,
however, as it uses the same blueprint as the K3 GT Sedan sold in South Korea.
New for 2020, the Kia Forte will be offered in a GT Line trim level, which features
only cosmetic upgrades. On the outside, those include a gloss black grille
offset by red accents, gloss black mirror caps with LED turn signals, as well
as sport side skirts and rear spoiler — both finished in gloss black as well.
Inside, the 2020
Forte GT Line brings alloy sports pedals and a flat-bottomed steering wheel
with white contrast stitching. Interior upgrades are rounded off by
cloth-upholstered black sports seats with white stitching. The GT Line features
the Forte’s standard naturally aspirated 147 hp 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine
mated to the Intelligent Variable Transmission (IVT).
The full-blown 2020
Forte GT, gets even more styling tweaks plus a turbo engine
and sports suspension. The exterior features all the cosmetic tweaks from the
GT Line plus a sport-tuned dual exhaust, 18-inch alloys with a GT-exclusive two-tone
finish, and standard LED headlights.
The GT treatment
also includes racier red contrast stitching inside, LED ambient interior
lighting with an illuminated GT dash inlay, and Smart Key with Push Button
Start, among other things. Customers who want to improve the interior of their
2020 Forte GT can choose the optional GT1 and GT2 packages.
Both bring a power
sunroof, LED overhead lighting, a 320-watt Harman Kardon audio system with 8
speakers, wireless phone charging, 4.2-inch center LCD screen, and dual-zone
automatic air conditioning. The GT2 adds heated and ventilated Sofino GT sports
seats and a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s seat.
Performance-wise,
the 2020 Forte GT features the 1.6-liter GDI turbo-four engine rated at 201 hp
and 264 Nm of torque. The engine is linked to either a standard
six-speed manual or an optional seven-speed dual clutch transmission.
Mechanical upgrades
also include fully independent front and rear suspension, larger front disc
brakes and sway bars, and 225/40 R18 Michelin Pilot Sport summer tires. Kia
claims all of these components enable “better handling and cornering, improved
ride quality, and enhanced stability and steering.” Given the positive reviews
the standard 2019 Forte has received so far for its dynamics, we have all the
reasons to believe Kia’s claims about the 2020 Forte GT are true.
Safety-wise, both
GT trims bring the Kia Drive Wise standard suite of safety systems. Those
include Forward Collision Warning, Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist, Lane
Departure Warning, Lane Keeping Assist-Line, and Driver Attention Warning. The
GT1 package adds Blind Spot Collision Warning with Lane Change Assist and
Rear-Cross Traffic Collision Warning, while the GT2 package brings Smart Cruise
Control.
