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I actually own a Kia right now. (VWs are my car of choice but sometimes, you gotta go with what you can afford after your poor little VW just can't take it anymore.)
Except for the fact that it's not as powerful as the VWs I've had and except for the fact that if I get in a wreck...not so sure how protected I'll be, it's actually a great little car.
It has tons of room, more than you would imagine. It gets excellent gas mileage, (probably because it doesn't weigh very much), my car is a 2004 Rio and since I'm the second owner, it's been well maintained.
The ONLY issue I have ever had with it is the power window on the driver's side decided to stop working. Took it to a Kia dealer, (even though I was the second owner the 3 year warranty was still in affect), and got it fixed for free.
At this point, I've not had a single fricken problem that would cause me to think that the Kia "sucks". It simply does not suck. I'm surprised, mostly, and rather impressed.
Yah, I still want a VW but right now, I've got my Kia. It's paid for, it has done me well, it has never broke down on me, it saves me money and it holds everything I need it to hold with room left over.
It's kind of grown on me.
So to say that the Kia sucks because you don't understand warranties is not a fair nor accurate statement. It simply does not suck. And I think you'll find that every car "sucks" if that is your criteria for what cars do or do not "suck". You're in for a big surprise.
A coworker has a 2001 Hyundai Accent while ours is a 2000. I mentioned replacing a fuel filter and a few other things. She asked me why would I ever do that because the cars have a 100,000 mile warranty. I told her because those are normal wear and tear items that need to be replaced. She then told me that she wasn't replacing anything because 10 years or 100,000 miles means she doesn't have to. I told her that the company requires that you do the maintenance to keep the warranty in place. Another thing that the Hyundai and Kia line offer is a 10 year rust warranty which for those of you in snow country that should be a benefit.
SWEET! I did not know this! When I brought my Kia in for an oil change on Wednesday, the mechanic asked, "So this is your first wintah heah?" (I have talked to him before to have him buff out the headlights and do an oil change back in late May as well as get two new tires. He was also the one who did the inspection on the vehicle so I could be fully registered and legal on the streets. He said the car was in "excellent" shape, when he did the inspection, so he knows me and my car well.)
I told him yes. He shook his head sadly. He said, and I quote:
"Such a shame. Your car will be no good in 6 years because of the salt they put on the roads. They just rust away. Your car is in such good condition...and you're going to lose it."
Yes, he actually felt sad to see a car in such great condition knowing full well it was going to be a mess in just a few winters.
So I've been preparing myself for the inevitable in a few years and wondering what kind of car I might get when I need to do that. As much as I love VW, I might get another Kia. And knowing this about the 10 year rust thing? It may just tilt the scales in Kia's favor.
I would buy a Kia, oR Hyundai over anything that has spewed out of Detroit in the past 40+ years. Kias are well built, reliable cars. I bought my final Detroit POS in 1990. It had a warranty THAT WAS USED MANY TIMES. When the warranty went out, I couldn't afford the repairs, so I dumped the car. The best warranty is the one you don't have to use. Both my 18 year old Nissan truck, and my six year old Toyota needed NO warranty work. The Toyota has only needed a battery and new tires. The old truck has had less repairs in 18 years than my final detroit POS had init's first month! True, the warranty covered that junker, but that didn't alleve the inconvenience, and bad feelings I had toward the dealer, and the zone representatives. They were in terminal denial. They lost a customer to the Asian brands forever!
My car had 20,000 miles on it when I bought it for 13,000,not cheap at all to me. So,if I don't want to pay about $5000 in maintenence a year makes me cheap,so be it.
And we all wonder why the middle class is going broke......
Everything is set up to bleed people for money,whether its cars,healthcare,housing
$5Gs a year for 'maintenance'?
My 10+ yr old BMW X5 and my 9+ yr old Vette don't cost $2Gs every couple years in 'maintenance', combined...
The System is not really "set up to bleed" you. Common sense suggests you should have read the 'warranty'.
There is a plethora of good advice and the real issue(s) noted, in this thread, imo.
A coworker has a 2001 Hyundai Accent while ours is a 2000. I mentioned replacing a fuel filter and a few other things. She asked me why would I ever do that because the cars have a 100,000 mile warranty. I told her because those are normal wear and tear items that need to be replaced. She then told me that she wasn't replacing anything because 10 years or 100,000 miles means she doesn't have to. I told her that the company requires that you do the maintenance to keep the warranty in place. Another thing that the Hyundai and Kia line offer is a 10 year rust warranty which for those of you in snow country that should be a benefit.
I think that Kia knows that by listing a 100000 mile warranty that people will automatically think as your coworker does. A marketing ploy that helps sells vehicles. Kia is not deceiving people because they do list it as a 100000 mile powertrain warranty. However I think Kia is well aware of the fact that many customers do not fully understand what that means. The customer will just see 100000 mile warranty with Kia and a 36000 mile warranty with Ford, Toyota etc. All the customers is seeing Wow I can drive a car for 100000 miles and if it breaks down it will be fixed for free under the warranty.
Personally I understand the warranty and its limitations, but I have met 2 Kia owners that think exactly like your coworker does. They have already had the shock of car repairs at their expense, for thinking like your coworker. Its sad but I would love to talk to a Kia Dealer that would give the actual figures, on how often this lack of customer knowledge actually happens. . I'm guessing the customers lack of understanding their 100000 mile warranty happens quite often.
Please people really read your warranty and understand the terms. However I can understand how many people, could be confused by the terms set by Kia. Really sit down with the salesman or manager of the Dealer, and have them fully explain it. Especially if one feels confusion about the warranty. Kia as well as Hyundai have become a decent and dependable purchase. The past few years these cars have come along way in performance, style and dependabilty. I would not hesitate to buy one of their vehicles, and plan to when I purchase my next vehicle.
They still have one of the, if not the best bumper 2 bumper warranty.....5yr/60k miles. At least you are covered while paying the car off! Of course you have 12 or so oil changes, air filters, and a set of tires. So about ~$1,000 in maintenance over the 5 years while everything else is covered.
They still have one of the, if not the best bumper 2 bumper warranty.....5yr/60k miles. At least you are covered while paying the car off! Of course you have 12 or so oil changes, air filters, and a set of tires. So about ~$1,000 in maintenance over the 5 years while everything else is covered.
They don't have bumper to bumper,that's the point I'm trying to make.
Where do you people live that its only $1000 in maintenance?
There are oil changes,40,000,50,000 mile services,tune ups,throttle body services and so on that need to be done.
They still have one of the, if not the best bumper 2 bumper warranty.....5yr/60k miles. At least you are covered while paying the car off! Of course you have 12 or so oil changes, air filters, and a set of tires. So about ~$1,000 in maintenance over the 5 years while everything else is covered.
Quote:
Originally Posted by motordavid
$5Gs a year for 'maintenance'?
My 10+ yr old BMW X5 and my 9+ yr old Vette don't cost $2Gs every couple years in 'maintenance', combined...
The System is not really "set up to bleed" you. Common sense suggests you should have read the 'warranty'.
There is a plethora of good advice and the real issue(s) noted, in this thread, imo.
I'm in Nj so things cost more.
The 60,000 mile service costs $1200 at the dealership.
They don't have bumper to bumper,that's the point I'm trying to make.
Where do you people live that its only $1000 in maintenance?
There are oil changes,40,000,50,000 mile services,tune ups,throttle body services and so on that need to be done.
Yes they do have a bumper-to-bumper warranty, just like everyone else in they industry.
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