Kia Corp., South Korea's second-biggest carmaker, said Friday it became the best-scoring mass-market brand in this year's J.D. Power's Vehicle Dependability Study results.

Kia beat perennial No. 1 Toyota Motor Corp. and 16 other mass-market brands to become the most dependable mainstream brand in terms of problems owners of three-year-old cars have experienced in the United States, the company said in a statement.

Kia's Optima (or K5) midsize sedan, Sportage compact SUV and Sorento midsize SUV beat their segment rivals of carmakers such as Toyota Motor Corp., Hyundai Motor Co. and General Motors Co. in terms of mass-market dependability, it said.

In a combined study of 32 mass-market and luxury car brands, Kia took third place following Lexus and Porsche.

Kia expects the study results to help enhance its brand image and boost sales in the world's most important automobile market.

Kia took the top spot in J.D. Power's mass-market Initial Quality Study results for six straight years through 2020. (Yonhap)