Any Kia owners on here?

[Phoneman1981]

Hello Friends: Not only do I depend on others here for advice on our RSTD, but I value your input on most everything else.

 

Are there any other Kia owners here on site. Are you satisfied with your Kia?? Strongly considering purchasing a 2012 Kia Optima GDI SX sedan for my wife. Input is appreciated. Thanks....Mark:)

[Freebird]

I've owned two Kia Sorentos. A 2004 and a 2012. I had absolutely no problems with either and would not hesitate to buy another one if it met my needs. I sold the 2012 because it was a 4 cylinder and did not have the towing capacity that I ended up needing. At the time for the small boat I was pulling, the V6 would have done just fine but I ended up getting an Avalanche instead and glad I did because then I ended up with a bigger boat.

 

Bottom line is, I really liked my Kias and would not hesitate to recommend them.

[Phoneman1981]

Thanks for the testimonial Don. Makes me feel better. I was impressed with the luxury and the ride. You are the third owner that I have connected with that has good things to say about the Kia line.

[TheKid]

Thanks for the testimonial Don. Makes me feel better. I was impressed with the luxury and the ride. You are the third owner that I have connected with that has good things to say about the Kia line.

 

I own a 2012 Sorento and a 2012 Optima. My wife uses the Sorento for work and puts about 350+ miles a week on it. The optima is more our weekend car and my car when i go into the office or on trips. I bought both because of the options that were standard and the reliability. Oh yea my mother also went out and bought a 2013 Sorento after driving ours.

 

I have had not issues with either. Standard maintenance to keep the warranty alive and drive them.

[steamer]

Robin owns a 2012 Sol, never had any problems with it. except the gas mileage was misstated by Kia on this model and several others. Says we should get 35 mpg highway. we maybe get 30-31 mpg. No problem though, Kia fix the problem by reimbursing us for the difference. So every year we own the car we receive between $500.00 to $600.00. It is based on miles driven.

[Mike G in SC]

Not Kia, but Hyundai,,, 2011 Santa Fe Limited.

Great little SUV. Has a lot of power and all the do-dads except for NAV/Camera.

Assembled in south Georgia (USA).

 

Got about 35 k miles on it. Real happy with performance and quality.

Dealer support is extraordinary.

Only possible complaint is that when you close the doors, with the windows open you do hear more tin than heavy like my previous Explorers.

 

And, it actually tows better than my Explorer did.

 

Do the Internet pricing thing with two local dealers. And let them know they have local competition and have them go twice each. They will fight for a sale. I got my wife's Honda Accord down $6000 and twice the value of my trade-in that way.

Edited November 15, 2013 by Mike G in SC

[BigLenny]

Hi Mark,

 

I'm glad you put that question out there. I am on the brink of pulling the trigger to purchase a 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe for my wife, and was thinking about asking the folks here about that. Kia and Hyundai are married companies that are making huge splashes in the automotive world providing what appears to be very good quality vehicles that are great looking and are covered with great warranties for super competitive prices. It's hard not to consider their products because they usually are equipped with quite a bit more content than other brands that cost more with less warranty.

 

I have yet to find anybody that I've talked to that have told me they didn't get good service from their Kia or Hynudai.

 

That Optima is a slick looking rig. I say you should go get it for your Honey. LOL.

[Sailor]

My wife has a KIA Sedona van with the V6. She loves it. It has been totally reliable and is also the only small van I could sit in comfortably.

[Carbon_One]

I've had two so far. A 08 Sportage with the V-6 engine then traded that in for a 11 Sorento with the bigger V-6. I had about 60,000 on the Sportage when it was traded . Never had any problems other than regular maintenance stuff. The Sorento has about 14,000 on it now.

Only reason for trading was to get a stronger engine for towing the trike, plus getting more room in the bigger SUV. It gets me 27-32 mpg except for towing then really takes a hit there. Last spring I replaced a 14 year old Dodge pickup with a Nissan Frontier so that gets all of the towing dutys now.

Larry

[Barrycuda]

Kia is the sister company, or daughter company of Hyundai. The Kia's have come a long way in style, and reliability, as is hyundais. I owned a few old school Hyundai 4-5 speed hatchbacks and you could drain the oil, add sand and still drive. FUN CARS. A co worker has the 2012 optima and simply raves about it. So far all news about them are pretty positive. Good luck !

[cowpuc]

Years ago we were a Festiva family,,, thousands and thousands of miles on them - my daughter did 53k in one year on one doing her premed.. Then we switched to Aspires - same trouble free stuff.. Then they went by the wayside too and left us looking for gas getters.. Little diggin showed those cars came from Kia.. I went to a local rental place (in Holland Mi) that had a fleet of Kias/Hyundia they rented out.. Come to find out, this guy runs them out to 180k before he turns em over.. Told me he knew of lots of em with well over 200k on em so we bought an 05 Spectra.. We are now at 135k on it - been a fantastic car - nary a hitch!!

The rental guy told me that he ALWAYS does his timing belts before 60k, replaces tranny fluids on schedule and that adds lot of life to em.. My Festivas/aspires were all single overhead cams and had all of them (between the kids and I we had 5 of them at one time,,, kinda like some of these guys and their Ventures) do over 200k with no timing belt problems BUT our "new" kia is a dual cam (more pressure) and it is for sure an interference motor so I did the belt in it at 60k (also did water pump).... Never met an Automatic tranny that I really trusted so I am also staying on top of the fluid changes..

I was also told somewhere along the line that one of the few differences between the Kias and Hyundia was skin thickness,, that the Hy has like .030 thicker sheetmetal.. I gotta believe that Barry is correct in his findings,, probably all part of the same company..

Hey,, you guys remember when Kia first came out as Kia,,, 2 for the price of one? We had big bill boards around here that you literally could get a free car if you bought a new one - maybe Yamaha will do that with thier new Venture

[BigLenny]

FYI.

 

Excerpt from Hyundai Motor News:

 

Kia Motors is the sister company of Hyundai Motor Co. Hyundai owns a controlling 34 percent stake in Kia. Together, the two brands form the core of the automotive operations of the Hyundai Motor Group, which also includes auto parts companies, such as Hyundai Mobis, and logistics companies, such as Glovis; as well as Hyundai Steel and Hyundai Engineering & Construction. Hyundai and Kia vehicles share platforms, powertrains and R&D facilities, to lower costs. Also, a small amount of cross-production occurs between Hyundai and Kia factories. However, Hyundai and Kia are completely separate in terms of management, sales, marketing, advertising, target customers, media relations and design. The Hyundai and Kia design studios are securely separated from each other.

 

Excerpt from CarScoops.com:

 

Hyundai and Kia have a strange, symbiotic relationship. They share factories, parts as well as engineering knowhow and product testing duties. And yet they remain separate entities with their own marketing, distribution and styling departments.

Michael Sprague, Kia’s VP for marketing and communication describes their relationships to the New York Times likes this:

 

“Kia Motors America operates as a completely separate sales, marketing and distribution organization in the United States. [Hyundai and Kia share engineering efficiencies] similar in many ways to other global automakers.”

 

Hyundai spokesman Jim Trainor echoes those comments:“[Hyundai treats Kia] just like any other competitor in the automotive space.”

 

On the flipside of the equation, the final product decisions for both brands are made by a joint Hyundai-Kia board that meets regularly through the year. And some very similar products – such as the Hyundai Sante Fe and Kia Sorrento – are even produced in the exact same factories.

 

Both carmakers are part of the family-owned Hyundai conglomerate in South Korea, one of the largest such commercial entities in the world. Despite numerous legal challenges from the state government and union, Hyundai / Kia have persevered to become the world’s fifth largest automaker.

[Mike G in SC]

When I went to south Alabama, below Montgomery I saw the Hyundai plant off I-65.

And on I-85 just in Georgia is the Kia plant.

 

So I bought a Hyundai Santa Fe and the door plate says made in Georgia.

So, yes the companies are tied,,,, like GA-AL cousins,,,, same mom.

[Phoneman1981]

Thank you everyone: My non motorcyle post is an great example of how helpful and friendly this "Extended Family" really is. I learned a lot in a short amount of time by reading each of your responses in regards to the Festiva, Hyundi and Kia history. Your testimonials convinced me. It made me feel more confident about buying a Kia. We purchased the car late afternoon yesterday. Thanks again so very much.

[RandyR]

Thank you everyone: My non motorcyle post is an great example of how helpful and friendly this "Extended Family" really is. I learned a lot in a short amount of time by reading each of your responses in regards to the Festiva, Hyundi and Kia history. Your testimonials convinced me. It made me feel more confident about buying a Kia. We purchased the car late afternoon yesterday. Thanks again so very much.

 

[Phoneman1981]

Randy: I will see what I can do. Daylight now, maybe I can get a picture before Lee leaves for work.

[jbillerzippo]

I purchased a Kia Rio back in March, an the wife Purchased a Kia Forte in April. Not one problem so far!