Kia is being generous with the buyback offer. If you read that article, and pay attention, the Kia rep also states that this is not a recall because it is not a safety issue. It's paint which they are offering to fix. A buyback is icing on the cake to make customers happy, if you would even consider that option, which I am not. But please, if you have a yellow and want to sell it back to Kia, go ahead. I'll be that much happier driving a color that is less in circulation, and probably now, never going to be made again.
Consumer protection laws are for lemons, hazardous safety issues, etc. Paint IS NOT a safety issue. Does it affect your ability to use, drive, and function in the car on a daily basis? No. Does it have the possibility of killing you and/or your family the next time you drive the car? No. Is there a risk of the engine turning into a grenade spontaneously? No. Have you taken the car to the dealer more than 3 times in the past 90 days for the same issue which rendered it unable to be driven and had to leave it for at least a week and the problem not be fixed or reappear? No.
Kia is trying to make this better, which I am sure we appreciate, but the apparently obtuse fact is that they NEVER HAVE TO offer a buyback. Since it seems they are, they are doing it to placate the people who apparently see this as a world changing event because the paint has a problem.
People getting all up in arms and demanding millions of dollars for dumb shit are why there are so many asinine rules/laws/contracts/etc. in the world today. Manufacturers even coming close to admitting they had an issue are very few and far between. The fact Kia even admitted a problem is a win, and they are going to fix it which is even better. They are apparently also giving a lifetime warranty on the repaint (according to an Australian member earlier in this thread) which says they have done their homework on who is going to be completing these jobs, at least in Australia.
At the end of the day, if they give me a full repaint, I'm happy. If you want a buyback, go for it. There is no reason for us to grab pitchforks, start bonfires, and want them burned at the stake. They could just as easily tell us to piss off for 'demanding' anything.