Is Kia Ceed really as good as people say it is?

Kia Ceed has built a reputation for being reliable, being often praised as a sensible option for a reliable car. Is this reputation earned, or is it just good marketing? Some owners go on and on about their Ceeds, and they swear that they’ve had no problems at all, even after years of use. But others say it's decent, but not much more reliable than other brands in its class. The other question is how reliable these cars are as they age – are older models still running strong, or do they start to show their age? Kia's 7 year warranty is often mentioned as a selling point, but is it really a long term reliability factor, or just a safety net if things go wrong early?