The interior of the 2007 Kia Rio represents a big improvement over the old Rio. It has a nicely contoured dashboard with a generous binnacle over the instrument panel, which includes a tachometer, even on the base model. The radio is well positioned in the center stack with large buttons and knobs for changing stations or volume. Three big knobs for the climate control are mounted on a bulge in the center that brings them closer to the driver's hands.The seats are on the soft side and don't offer the lateral support we'd expect on a sports sedan. Those of us with larger frames, however, will not fault the seats for that.
Rear seat legroom is better than the numbers suggest because passengers can place their feet under the front seats thanks to the generous open space below them.
Big storage pockets in all four doors along with a reasonable size glovebox provide places to stash stuff. The rear seatback folds down in a 60/40 split for added versatility in all but the base model. According to Kia, the total interior volume of the Rio is greater than that of the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla even though they are officially in the next size up segment. In practical terms, they are all pretty close. The Rio5 has a cargo carrying a capacity of almost 50 cubic feet with the seats folded down which is substantially more than in other hatchbacks of this size.