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Kia

Nancy

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My latest car question.

Does anyone have a Kia or knowledge of having one. Looking at the Sorento.

Thanks,
Nancy
 

Talent312

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Don't have one and never drove one, but a friend said to me:
I wouldn't touch 'em. They're basically aluminum cans and won't last.
Stick with quality brands like Honda or Toyota.

But I'm sure that someone will post that they've driven theirs forever.
So, YMMV.

.
 

rboesl

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I used to have a Kia Soul. Liked the car's design but found the engine under powered. Also didn't like the gas mileage. Was getting 28 mpg combined city/highway. I did test drive a Sorento. Liked the car, the engine had more horsepower, but chose the Soul based on the price. I now drive a Chevy Trax. Like it a lot. More room than the Soul, backup camera standard, and gas mileage far superior (32.5 mpg combined city/highway).
 

Passepartout

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We rented an Optima for a couple of thousand mikes in a week. It seemed tinny to me. Fit & finish we're not up to the Toyota standards we are used to. Then test drove their plug-in hybrid at our dealer. It was worse. YMMV.

Jim
 

rboesl

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I forgot to mention. There's a lot of veterans that refuse to buy one because of the military reference: KIA (Killed In Action)
 

Bucky

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I forgot to mention. There's a lot of veterans that refuse to buy one because of the military reference: KIA (Killed In Action)

LOL. Never crossed my mind.

But,having been in the auto business for many years before retiring the second time, I have many friends that are still managers with different brands. When I was recently shopping for an SUV I considered a Sorento. Never even got around to a test drive. One of the guys that used to work for me is now a manager at a local Kia dealership. His comments to me were “don’t waste your money”. Knowing that my previous SUV was a Toyota Highlander he said I would not be happy at all going to a Kia. Didnt even question why. When a manager of a brand tells you to stay away I listen. Ended up with another new Highlander. May not work for others and I’m sure there are many happy owners out there but I’ve always believed there’s a reason out there why a manufacturer puts a 100,000 mile warranty on a vehicle and it’s not usually all about creating sales!
 

Passepartout

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. . . . my previous SUV was a Toyota Highlander he said I would not be happy at all going to a Kia. Didnt even question why. When a manager of a brand tells you to stay away I listen. Ended up with another new Highlander.
I read that this brand/model has the most repeat buyers of ANY vehicle. People simply trade their old, reliable Highlander for a newer one. This says a lot.
 

klpca

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My BIL & SIL had nothing but problems with their Kia. Eventually they had to hire a lemon law attorney and ultimately replaced their Kia with a Honda.
 

DaveNV

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I think this page shows some telling information that may help you: http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2018/01/u-s-auto-sales-brand-rankings-december-2017-ytd/

Kia is the NINTH most popular brand in the USA, behind all those mentioned above, that you may already be considering. The fact that even domestic brands beat out Kia show there are lots of options ahead of them in the marketplace. I like cars a lot, and I must admit, I have never considered a Kia a contender for a car brand I was looking to buy. They always seemed kind of "meh" to me. I can't even tell you why, other than I always felt there were better options.

(Full disclosure: I am not claiming I know anything about cars, but I know what I like. I've owned an awful lot of vehicles over the years, new, used, and otherwise; everything from full-sized van conversions and pickups, down to just about every sort of family car, several SUVs, foreign and domestic great road cars, two-seater sports cars, and who knows what else. I currently own a Ford as my urban daily driver, just swapped out spouse's BMW for an Infiniti QX50, and I have a Porsche convertible as the play car for weekends.)

Go with what you like, but don't buy without considering why others tend to prefer other brands.

Dave
 

Elan

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I read that this brand/model has the most repeat buyers of ANY vehicle. People simply trade their old, reliable Highlander for a newer one. This says a lot.
I googled this and it's pretty amazing how much the results vary depending on the study. From Range Rovers to Lincoln MKZs at the top of the lists.

Sent from my Moto G (5S) Plus using Tapatalk
 

VanX

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I own a Kia Sorento and have for 5 years with no problems.

It was chosen for very specific reasons including most primarily for how we use our cars. Other car is a 2001 Nissan Pathfinder and we travel weekly with our 65 pound dog.

Kia storage and fold down flat back seats is perfect for our needs and the mileage is considerably better than the pathfinder.

There are many reasons to choose other cars but for our priorities it was the right choice.

List out your needs from your car and it will definitely help narrow the field.
 

GetawaysRus

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Lots of Kia bashing here.

I can't speak about the Sorento, but I do own a 2013 Kia Optima EX (purchased in summer 2012, so I've had it for 6 years and have a little over 50K miles on it) and am generally satisfied with it. It's not the flashiest car on the road, and the 4 cylinder engine is a little underpowered. But it is nicely equipped and has been reliable. To date, all I've had to do for it is routine maintenance. I am still well within the manufacturer's 100K powertrain warranty.

There have been 2 recalls on the vehicle, and Kia contacted me by mail each time. The first recall was an engine issue. I had to bring the vehicle into a local dealer, but fortunately it turned out that my vehicle was not one of those affected. There is now a second, more recently discovered issue related to the electronics controlling the airbag. I got a letter just a week or two ago that they are working on a fix and will contact me.

I agree with VanillaXtracts. Think about your wants and needs and it will lead you to the right vehicle.
 

WinniWoman

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Kia's have had some good reviews in Consumer Reports, but hubby refused to buy one when we needed a car after giving up our 2004 Rav4 with 220,000 miles on it.

Ended up with a 2016 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport- really nice. Love it. Was a rental car at Enterprise- purchased at a Hyundai dealer. Spacious interior- very comfortable- and lots of extras. Rides beautifully. Nice look to it. Got it this past Fall and got a good price on it.

Our other 2 cars are Honda CRV and Honda Fit- both 2013. They are nice also, but....I like Toyota's and Subaru's better than the Honda's.
 

WinniWoman

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Deleted- duplicate
 
Last edited:

rapmarks

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We have a 2012 Kia Sorebto which we bought new and have never had any problems
 

Bucky

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I read that this brand/model has the most repeat buyers of ANY vehicle. People simply trade their old, reliable Highlander for a newer one. This says a lot.

True story. This is our third one now and none of them have ever seen the dealers service department since day of delivery! We use an independent mechanic and all that has ever been needed was normal maintenance items, I.e., oil and filter changes and the occasional brake job.
 

pedro47

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The Honda CRV, Toyota Rav4 and the Toyota Highlanders are excellent SUV products.
 

Luanne

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The Honda CRV, Toyota Rav4 and the Toyota Highlanders are excellent SUV products.
When we moved to Santa Fe dh knew he wanted an AWD so he checked them out and test drove a bunch while we were still in California. He checked the Honda, Nissan, Subaru, Acura and maybe a couple more and chose the Acura. It had a little more high end feel to it and he felt it drove more like a sedan. He had that for about 4 years, now he's got the BMW X5.

When I decided I also wanted an AWD since he'd already done a lot of research in addition to the Honda I checked out Mazda. It wasn't as comfortable and you practically had to dismantle the back of the car to fold the seats down. That was the same problem I had with the Rav4 at the time. I hear that has been improved. But, as I've said I've been very happy with my Honda CR-V.
 

Sea Six

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Around here you don't get a Kia without a free vacation in Punta Cana or a cruise. Wonder why that is....
 

x3 skier

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Daughters both have Kia Souls. With the 100k drive train warranty, they don’t worry about problems.
BTW, they haven’t had any problems:D.

Cheers
 

Panina

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My latest car question.

Does anyone have a Kia or knowledge of having one. Looking at the Sorento.

Thanks,
Nancy
I think a car is like a timeshare. Buy what will work best for you that you like, will use and enjoy. For every one person who says something good someone else will say something bad.

At long at you have a service warranty you will be ok. What I would suggest is look up the safety record and make sure you are comfortable with that.

I only once was in a Kia Sorento, in the back seat and as a passenger I was very comfortable.

My favorite SUV’s are the Grand Jeep Cherokee SRT and the Volvo S60. Ultimately went with the Jeep, 3 years old, 24,000 miles, mint with an extended warranty because that was the best fit for our needs.
 
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