KIA <--- girlfriend planning on buying one

[NeoPTLD]

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: NeoPTLD
Edmunds.com data is based on statistical analysis, therefore individual result may vary. Obviously, there are going to be problem Hondas and fantastic Kias, but what statistical data says is that out of large sample, Hondas have lower cost of five-year ownership than do Kias.

i think the "cost" is mainly because of depreciation of the KIA. edmunds probably compare MSRP. and NOBODY would buy a KIA in MSRP IMO. hell i bet even the president of KIA wouldn't want to buy a KIA at full MSRP.

Irrecoverable cost from depreciation is still cost unless she plans to keep the car until it does not work anymore.

 

[MWink]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
Hyundai Elantra GLS with 10 year warranty for $10k FTW!

I don't know about Kia but I have to agree with RossMAN. The Hyundai Elantra is a great car for a great price. I got a 2005 Elantra GLS with almost all the options as well as most of the GT features (I wanted a GT but they couldn't find what I wanted so they added the alloy wheels, fog lights, and carpeted floor mats to a GLS that had everything else I wanted) for just over $14,000 (including tax, tags, etc.).

I've had it almost 6 months now and have had 0 problems. I'd highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good, cheap, quality car. Also the gas mileage is great, I average about 35MPG and can get as high as 37.5, though sometimes as low as 27 (but rarely). It's really a great car.

 

[bonkers325]

i thought your girlfriend was killed in action :Q

 

[imported_Snagle]

pics of GF?

 

[allanon1965]

most any car that is under a year old will be good....what is the defining moment on any given car is how they are a 120000 miles plus....alot of cheaper imports dont hold up thru the years like the could if they were designed a little better and built with better parts....they try to win over customers with long warranties, and fancy packages like leather, sunroofs, heated seats, cd changers, etc..... only to find out that once the car hits 100000 or more miles, the sunroof leaks, parts are expensive as well as labor to fix those, the heated seats no longer heat on low, just on high which is 2 degrees short of the combustion point of your pants, the cd changer skips...etc....they just seem to fall apart....mind you i am NOT trying to disrespect anyone here about the choices they have made, which i am sure were made with the best of intentions, research and financial obligations figured at the time, but the sad truth is that ALL cars are getting more and more prone to needing expensive repairs...its just a fact of life, nobody builds a plain, durable, no frills car anymore...why? no one would buy it but a few people. why? everybody wants to have all the fancy luxurys today, heated seats, onstar, gps mapping, sunroofs, leather interiors, 6way power seats, cup holders everywhere you can imagine, stow away seats, integrated cell phones...the list goes on....it all adds up to too damn much cost....and even more things to break down. forgive the rant but sometimes it gets damn tiring to have customers asking how come it costs so much to fix my car? i feel like saying "look lady, i didnt build it,i didnt buy it, i didnt break it, i just fix the damn thing"

 

[JinLien]

Get a new or lease a Kia/Honda/Toyota/etc... if you guys don't know much a bout cars because second hand cars may inherited problems from their previous owner/s.

 

[Ricemarine]

Originally posted by: bonkers325
i thought your girlfriend was killed in action :Q

yeah, you wrote KIA... = acronym.

 

[eakers]

My brother has had a kia (the minivan) for the last 6 years and has never had a major problem.. and all the problems he has had they have taken care of 100% without any hastle or cost to him.

He even got into an accident and a few weeks later something broke that may have been accident related but instead of making him go through insurance they just covered it under the warrenty so it got fixed quickly and without any hastle to him.

 

[sniperruff]

Originally posted by: allanon1965
most any car that is under a year old will be good....what is the defining moment on any given car is how they are a 120000 miles plus....alot of cheaper imports dont hold up thru the years like the could if they were designed a little better and built with better parts....they try to win over customers with long warranties, and fancy packages like leather, sunroofs, heated seats, cd changers, etc..... only to find out that once the car hits 100000 or more miles, the sunroof leaks, parts are expensive as well as labor to fix those, the heated seats no longer heat on low, just on high which is 2 degrees short of the combustion point of your pants, the cd changer skips...etc....they just seem to fall apart....mind you i am NOT trying to disrespect anyone here about the choices they have made, which i am sure were made with the best of intentions, research and financial obligations figured at the time, but the sad truth is that ALL cars are getting more and more prone to needing expensive repairs...its just a fact of life, nobody builds a plain, durable, no frills car anymore...why? no one would buy it but a few people. why? everybody wants to have all the fancy luxurys today, heated seats, onstar, gps mapping, sunroofs, leather interiors, 6way power seats, cup holders everywhere you can imagine, stow away seats, integrated cell phones...the list goes on....it all adds up to too damn much cost....and even more things to break down. forgive the rant but sometimes it gets damn tiring to have customers asking how come it costs so much to fix my car? i feel like saying "look lady, i didnt build it,i didnt buy it, i didnt break it, i just fix the damn thing"

but you have to keep in mind that all cars in general are built worse these days, no matter what brand you buy. they design cars that will fail within a certain period of time so people will buy new one.

same concept with almost everything except the most expensive things (medical equipment, lab equipment, aircrafts etc?). electronics, furniture, and even freaking sandles are designed to break after a while so they can sell you new ones.

Originally posted by: eakers
My brother has had a kia (the minivan) for the last 6 years...

AFAIK kia did not sell a mini-van 6 years ago, in the americas at least. maybe you meant a small SUV, the sportage.

 

[MikePanic]

ill prob be the off person to say this, but go look at leasing a new saturn. you can usually get some kind of deal somewhere for around $150 / month w/ almost nothing down. new car, warrenty, no problems and very affordable month to month

 

[Kipper]

Koreans don't drive Kias. Even the most gung-ho ones.

That says something.

 

[imported_KuJaX]

bump

 

[serialkiller]

Originally posted by: Legend
Kia? Hahaha.

Get a 10 year old Honda Civic with about 150k miles. It'll last longer than a brand new Kia.

agreed. You can be like me and find a good condition 88-91 Honda CRX. Good little indestructable cars... you can use many of the newer honda parts so part finding wont be too bad.... labor on the little thing is pretty cheap compared to many other cars.

 

[aswedc]

Originally posted by: Kipper
Koreans don't drive Kias. Even the most gung-ho ones.

That says something.

Yeah...that is why the Hyundai/Kia Corp has 70% of the Korean auto market.

:roll:

I have a rebadged Daewoo (Suzuki). Live in the city and drive it under 5k a year, what do I care if its crap or not, I wanted a new car for cheap No problems yet with 7k miles...

 

[nakedfrog]

I know one person who bought a Kia Rio (an 03 or 04, can't remember which)... he had to have the clutch replaced within a year for $600 and it wasn't covered under warranty.
I rode in that thing with him once. Maybe some of their pricier cars are built better, but I'd definitely stay far, far away from the Rio.

 

[DougK62]

Late model Cavalier with the Ecotec engine. It doesn't get any better for cheap + reliable.

 

[DragonMasterAlex]

I've got a buddy who's got a 2001 Rio, and he says it's been the best car he's ever owned. Not a powerhouse, of course, and not a luxury car either, but it gets decent mileage and runs well. I've been all over So Cal with him as we do film projects, and I've never seen it have an issue.

Jason

 

[DragonMasterAlex]

Originally posted by: Legend

or any other asian imports

Toyota and Honda are the cream of the crop when it comes to reliability. Nice fuel efficiency too.

True. Personally I wouldn't have a problem with a Kia, but then, I know how to work on my own cars . As before, I've got a buddy who's had a Rio since 2001 with NO problems at all. Not necessarily representative of the rest of them, though

Toyota or Honda if she can afford it, Kia if not, but try to get a close to new one, with the warranty still intact. I've recently seen some sales on one of their models for around $5500 brand spankin' new with a 100,000 mile warranty. Dunno what model, though.

Jason

 

[Metron]

Kia's are crap... a "paper plate" of an automobile.

She may not even be able to get financing on a Kia, since some major auto loan lenders won't even consider a Kia for financing (they won't last the life of the loan)!

This "fine print" was on the botton of my loan a couple years ago from Capital One Auto Finance:

This offer is valid for 45 days from the approval date, is not transferable and is valid for financing of one vehicle only, solely under the name(s) of the person or persons listed on this letter. Offer is valid for all models (1998 and newer) excluding discontinued vehicles, Daewoo, Mitsubishi, Kia, Oldsmobile or Suzuki models.

©2003 Capital One Services, Inc. Capital One is a federally registered service mark. All rights reserved.

As they suggest, I'd steer clear of Daewoo, Mitsubishi, Kia, Oldsmobile, and Suzuki.

 

[PandaBear]

...excluding discontinued vehicles, Daewoo, Mitsubishi, Kia, Oldsmobile or Suzuki models. ...

I would trust the financial guys more than any market research, magazine, or mechanics out there. They need foot the bill if it breaks before the lease end and they have the volume and man power to do all the research in their own interests.

But on the other hand, it may be just that these cars depreciate instead of break down, so the borrower just abandon those cars when they goes up side down on the loan.

Usually resell value is a function of its popularity, which is a function of its reliability.

 

[dainthomas]

Camrys pwn. I have a 93, and the only work I've ever done on it is brakes, tires, shocks etc. Blue books for about $2500.

 

[isekii]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
I know one person who bought a Kia Rio (an 03 or 04, can't remember which)... he had to have the clutch replaced within a year for $600 and it wasn't covered under warranty.
I rode in that thing with him once. Maybe some of their pricier cars are built better, but I'd definitely stay far, far away from the Rio.

Having hte clutch replaced within a year ?
It sounds like he's a sh!tty driver to me.

 

[flot]

Get something boring. In the american car segment, I'd lean towards a Neon. You can find a pretty nice one in the $5000 range. Simply car, nothing fancy, easy and cheap to repair, and there are a gazillion of them out there.

My gf bought one for her mom a year ago, it was ~2 years old with 26k miles and I think she paid around $5500-6000. Only problem is that at least down here in S. Florida the vast majority were ex-rental cars, which can be good or bad.

 

[SparkyJJO]

I'm driving a 93 Ford Taurus GL right now and its rock solid. 135K miles, doesn't have major rust, original engine/water pump/fuel pump/alternator/transmission, starter was replaced once. Runs great, gets about 30mpg on highway, mid-20s around town.
Worth only around $900 tho, but that means its cheap to buy one Only catch is the engine size - the 3.8 liter engine is junk, leaks oil and blows gaskets, but the 3.0 liter engine (what I got) is hard to kill. Mine had a slight oil leak around the valve covers but that was easily corrected by tightening the bolts (heck, after 12 years it isn't surprising that they loosened slightly).
One of those would be real cheap to come by, and reliability-wise would probably be good

 

[CraigRT]

Originally posted by: flot
Get something boring. In the american car segment, I'd lean towards a Neon. You can find a pretty nice one in the $5000 range. Simply car, nothing fancy, easy and cheap to repair, and there are a gazillion of them out there.

My gf bought one for her mom a year ago, it was ~2 years old with 26k miles and I think she paid around $5500-6000. Only problem is that at least down here in S. Florida the vast majority were ex-rental cars, which can be good or bad.

I was going to suggest a Neon too.. very reliable and cheap to own.

Don't ask anyone here who hasn't had one, only get opinions from people who have. Most people who have owned a Neon, know it's a very cheap car to operate and it never leaves you stranded. I have had my 2001 since new and it still runs strong as can be.