Kia Quality

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: steppinthrax
So no one THINKS, they in fact know from past experience.

no, they only think they know about what the future will hold based on past experience. if you knew the future you'd be out making a sh!t ton of money instead of starting troll threads.

 

[dud]

How did this thread move to a debate on Japanese vs. domestic cars?

"Kia's bankruptcy in 1997, part of the Asian financial crisis, resulted in the company being acquired in 1998 by South Korean rival Hyundai Motor Company, outbidding Ford Motor Company which had owned an interest in Kia Motors since 1986."


KIA is owned by Hyundai, a Korean company.

 

[thomsbrain]

Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: steppinthrax
Almost any car you can put 100K on it. It's just that American Cars turn immediately to shit once you do this. Japanese cars on the other hand go at least 100K more if well maintained.</end quote></div>

Can we have at least one thread where you don't start with this crap again?

ZV</end quote></div>

its true tho... how often do u see a 150k old ford taurus on the road? ok mb a few here and there. i see 150k (pre 1988) honda accords, and civics all the time

Yeah, my friend has a 1991 Taurus with 120,000 miles. It is on its THIRD transmission, its second radiator, the heater core is busted and bypassed, the A/C went out years ago, some of the windows don't work, some of the stereo speakers don't work, the windshield washers don't work, it has loose trim pieces, and the clear coat is toast. I could go on but you get the picture. My Accord from the same year with double the miles was in much better condition when I sold it.

As for newer cars:

I'll have to respectfully disagree with Zen regarding new japanese cars. Every single aspect of my new Accord represents a vast improvement in engineering, design, refinement, and fit/finish quality over my old Accord. I spend 3+ hours a day in my car, so I have a lot of time to ponder such things and rack up the miles. My only gripe is the wide front pillars due to the curtain airbags and the higher beltline due to modern styling. I could have filled a page with gripes about the old car's design, though I still loved it. i know toyota has apparently been having some quality issues, but that doesn't carry over to the other manufacturers. toyota has grown too fast (by their own admission), and they are playing catch-up. the other companies have had manageable growth.

As for Kia:

If all I needed was basic low-distance transportation, I would consider buying a used one to take advantage of their low-resale value and Kia's focus on comfort-for-the-money. For other needs, I think there are better options.

 

[steppinthrax]

There you go again.... :thumbsup:

 

[imported_Truenofan]

im sorry, i currently own a 88 rx7, but the new imports are if anything, not that good. and also, yeah they were good in the 80/90's, but what about before then, you hardly see ANY on the road, but you can go out, and find american cars from even before then, just because imports had a good stint, doesnt mean they are still good today. i will not buy a new japanese car, just due to the fact that they havent proven themselves over 120k. but i will vouch on the fact that older imports are alot more durable than american cars. my dad used to own a 85 mazda 323 with over 200k miles on it, almost no rust, and the engine was in perfect running condition, although the suspension was going bad on it, and the exhaust was shot(normal maintinence). but from what i know, kia seems to be fairly good on luxury and quality. Oh and for the guy who said samsung makes quality electronics, they also make cars, go to korea and you'll find out.

 

[alembic5]

I'm personally not a Kia fan at all. We had a 2001 Sportage, and that thing was a complete rattle trap. We constantly had it in to the dealership for little issues here and there. The clutch was weak, and the throwout bearing was going out. The interior was spartan at best, completely underpowered and extremely noisy. Granted... I wasn't expecting a lexus ride. It was inexpensive, and my wife just had to have it because it was "cute". We sold it 2 years later and bought a 2001 Durango. Used, we got it for $12K with 60,000 miles from the original owner. It was in perfect condition, and had pretty much every option available including heated leather seats, split zone climate control, etc. We don't put many miles on it, but it has been completely problem free thus far. My carpool buddy has a '04 or '05 kia minivan (sedona?) and he has already had the engine replaced once, and it is back in the shop again now with similar problems. With that being said, my mom has had 2 Hyundai Santa Fe's (1st was sold because my parents needed a special access minivan for my dad, second one purchased after my dad passed away) and they have been fantastic. Night and day quality when compared to my Kia. My sis has a Sorento, and that seems to be much closer in quality to the Santa Fe. Enough rambling... those are just my observations. Nothing more, nothing less!

 

[rbV5]

2005 KIA Sorento EX purchased new Nov 2005.

Just turned 18K miles this past week.

Issues thus far:

*Dealer replaced faulty driver side power seat control. Warranty, no charge. Dealer picked up and dropped off vehicle at my wifes job for repair.
*I had to retighten set screw for shift knob.

I've had a variety of 4x4's and 4x4 SUV's (traded my beloved '93 Trooper LS for this one) I'm still liking this Sorento quite a bit. For me and my family, its a great vehicle. In hindsight, I may have went with a White model after having to spend so much time keeping this Black one looking nice and clean

It has proven to be a plenty capable offroad vehicle. I've not had it in extreme conditions, but I've forded streams, primitive roads, snow and sand and its performed like a champ. Towing a small trailer is great, the "sport mode" auto gives you control like a manual transmission, with the far more usable automatic (I HATE pulling a trailer with a manual transmission (especially on rougher terrain), my Trooper was a PITA by comparison)

Its ride is a little harsh due to its ladder frame construction, but it really is quite comfortable for a "truck". It still has a tight "feel" and has developed no rattles. I expect to keep this vehicle at this point. Everyone loves driving it, and I taught my daughter to drive in it.

So far, so good, and it has felt like a "quality" vehicle from day-one.

 

[Fenixgoon]

Originally posted by: steppinthrax
There you go again.... :thumbsup:

my VW passat has 125k with minimal problems, my brother's audi A4 has 80+k also minimal problems.

i thought german cars were unreliable.

perception != reality

i'm almost willing to say that long term usage says more about the driver/owner than the MFR these days.

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: Fenixgoon

Originally posted by: steppinthrax
There you go again.... :thumbsup:

my VW passat has 125k with minimal problems, my brother's audi A4 has 80+k also minimal problems.

i thought german cars were unreliable.

perception != reality

i'm almost willing to say that long term usage says more about the driver/owner than the MFR these days.

Your "perception" based on two examples is probably skewed too...

but I totally agree on the owner being primarily responsible for how long a car lasts, regardless of brand.

Unfortunately, by the time a particular model has stood the test of time for long enough to stand out among its peers, it's now decades old and most of them were poorly taken care of.

 

[DougK62]

Hah, it's funny to see someone hijack their OWN thread. Sad, really.

 

[herm0016]

the only kia i have known has spent as much time in the shop as it has on the road, a Rio. drives like a tin can, about as much power as a kitchen appliance.

 

[PingSpike]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: steppinthrax
So no one THINKS, they in fact know from past experience.

no, they only think they know about what the future will hold based on past experience. if you knew the future you'd be out making a sh!t ton of money instead of starting troll threads.

Exactly. No one actually knows how reliable new cars will be in the long run because thats impossible. Hell, its hard enough to develop any hard conclusions on the old ones that don't require a time machine to get useful data on.

 

[MovingTarget]

From what I've seen, they still have some catching up to do, but the newer ones should be decent considering the price. I would consider buying one myself if I could afford it. All this American vs Japaneese stuff here seems to be nothing but fanboyism. A car will last as long as you take care of it and not drive it into the ground. Typically, American cars take a higher beating than their Japanese counterparts considering who buys them (I see this having lived in a rural environment). Like ZV said, its all about perception. If a car can last up to 100k miles typically without any major mechanical breakdown (engine/trans), then with the proper care, you can make it last until 200k. Eventually things will go wrong though, no matter what you drive.

 

[desy]

Pretty much all cars today are built fairly well with the gap between worst to best, small, and the types of problems aren't catastrophic like they used to be.

I hate all the anecdotal eveidence people puke up and saying well look at cars 20 yrs ago well look at 30 yrs ago, Japan was total POS they pulled themselves up.
Just like Korea has today 5 yrs ago they were still working on it.
Every manufacturer has a dog or two in the stable, usually old product design.

I worry far less about quality today and consider function for purpose #1 style choice #2 and quality #3 resale last

 

[KDKPSJ]

Kia is not that bad, but keep in mind that it's worse than its brother company, Hyundai. As many know they share lots of part.

The issue is Quality Control. Even in Korea (their home market), QC difference between Kia and Hyundai is pretty huge. This is because of a pretty simple reason. Hyundai wants its own brand is superior, no matter what, than its subsidiary, Kia. Just like GM put more attention to Cadillac than Chevy. Hyundai also plans that, in a long term, Kia will take care economy market (sub-18k) and Hyundai will take care mainstream and above.

So if you believe Hyundai's quality is still bad, don't even think about Kia. They are obviously worse than Hyundai. That's what Hyundai is trying to make us think, and that's what it is doing. On the other hand, if you think Hyundai's quality is good now, Kia might be good as well. Since Hyundai took over Kia, Kia's quality has been improved a lot as well, just not as good as its own Hyundai cars.

 

[redgtxdi]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
Japanese cars are living off the reputation they built in the 1980's and early 1990's. The current crop of Japanese cars have cheap, low-grade interiors and fact that they've long since begun cutting corners is obvious. The '88 Accord I used to have was vastly higher quality than any of the modern Japanese vehicles that I've driven. They just aren't that great anymore. They're not bad by any stretch, but they aren't the paragons of reliability that they were in the late 1980's and early 1990's.

ZV

Let's just say I don't agree with the above & save some bandwidth!

 

[BlacKJesu5]

Originally posted by: LOUISSSSS

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: steppinthrax
Almost any car you can put 100K on it. It's just that American Cars turn immediately to shit once you do this. Japanese cars on the other hand go at least 100K more if well maintained.</end quote></div>

Can we have at least one thread where you don't start with this crap again?

ZV

its true tho... how often do u see a 150k old ford taurus on the road? ok mb a few here and there. i see 150k (pre 1988) honda accords, and civics all the time

rather often.

 

[Parasitic]

I don't see the Japanese advertised or ever made a claim that so-and-so owner of their trucks went 1 million miles in it.

 

[redgtxdi]

Toyota pwns!.........



http://www.racetoretirement.org/


And one for the archives........FOREVAARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhoOkMccPZo

 

[Pacfanweb]

Originally posted by: steppinthrax


If you look though any car review or reliability report article you will find Toyota, Honda being the top in reliability (hands down). Consumer reports for example reports year after year the same. This is true for JD power and Associates. Yes the quality of the older Japanese cars are SLIGHTLY better then current Japanese models. That is why you see a 91 Toyota Camry (well known for reliability) selling for 3 to 4K while a newer Ford Taurus selling for 1K. Yes, the gap is narrowing considering American Cars are catching up. But it's pretty far from Japanese. So no one THINKS, they in fact know from past experience.

You might want to start studying some more, because the domestics have pretty much caught the Jap cars (Honda/Toyota) in reliability.

As ZV said, the Jap cars are currently relying on their past reputation, as current quality is no better than GM or Ford.

 

[krunchykrome]

It's crazy to think that just a few years ago, Hyundai and Kia were regarded as being comparable. Today though, Hyundai blows Kia away in everything.

 

[Pacfanweb]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome
It's crazy to think that just a few years ago, Hyundai and Kia were regarded as being comparable. Today though, Hyundai blows Kia away in everything.

Don't see why you'd think that, they are the same car.

 

[KDKPSJ]

Originally posted by: Pacfanweb

Originally posted by: krunchykrome
It's crazy to think that just a few years ago, Hyundai and Kia were regarded as being comparable. Today though, Hyundai blows Kia away in everything.

Don't see why you'd think that, they are the same car.

No they are not. Hyundai uses lower quality material and puts less quality control effort to Kia's models, because they want to draw a line between them. (Just like what VW does with VW and Audi)

 

[Ferocious]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: steppinthrax
However inflated it may seem people are willing to spend more money on a japanese car just because they know it will last longer.

No, they THINK it will last longer. Price represents perception, not actuality. Additionally, since the high-volume domestics are sold to fleet purchasers, there are many more late-model domestics on the market due to corporate fleets and rental car companies turning over their stock every few years. This also drives the prices down for domestics.

Japanese cars are living off the reputation they built in the 1980's and early 1990's. The current crop of Japanese cars have cheap, low-grade interiors and fact that they've long since begun cutting corners is obvious. The '88 Accord I used to have was vastly higher quality than any of the modern Japanese vehicles that I've driven. They just aren't that great anymore. They're not bad by any stretch, but they aren't the paragons of reliability that they were in the late 1980's and early 1990's.

ZV

Right on.

I had an '85 CIVIC during my college years. That thing was a freakin tank! Bought it beat up in 1987 with 50k miles, drove it another 100k miles in 3 years...and never had a single problem with it.

My wife bought a new 2000 CIVIC and had it for almost 3 years...and we unloaded it prior to the warranty expiring. It had been the garage for service twice already and it had an annoying mild rattle that we never did pinpoint. Though a decent enough car....the quality was obviously nowhere near that of the '85.

 

[WhipperSnapper]

Originally posted by: TruenofanOh and for the guy who said samsung makes quality electronics, they also make cars, go to korea and you'll find out.

<Bump and resurrection of old thread>

At one time Hyundai also made computers. Back in late 2000 or early 2001 I remember seeing funky-looking, colorful Hyundai computers up for bid on UBid.

Ok, so has anyone's opinion changed in two years?

Any thoughts about the Kia Optima? I've seen a number of them with low mileage available for around $10,000. Still, I'd be leery of purchasing one of them; you have to wonder whether low build quality was the reason for their being traded in.