2000 Kia Sephia SL review from North America

The rear doors stick. Especially when the weather temperature is hot. I have to jerk the doors to open them. I can feel the suction release when the door opens.

The front passenger door sticks and is difficult to open occasionally.

The car has electric windows. The rear windows stick and will not go down. I have to push the buttons on and off several times to get them to unstick and go down.

The gear shift is stiff and often will not release from the park position. This is more frequent in the winter when the temperature is cooler, but it also occurs in the summer. No matter how hard you push the button in and pull back on the shifter it will not move. I have found that if I pump the brakes really hard over and over that the shifter will release quicker and I can put the car in reverse or drive.

(This is extremely irritating)

The seats are uncomfortable. There is not enough padding in them and they are designed in a way that they are hard to get out of. Sitting in the for any length of time leaves you stiff and tired.

The driver air bag did not release in an accident I had with the car. The seat belt did hold me in place and I wasn't hurt, but I expected the bag to release on impact and it did not.

The car does not drive well when it is raining. I have to drive really slow to keep it from hydroplaning. This was the reason for the accident mentioned previously when the air bag did not release. It was raining and the car would not hold to the road.

I have 60,000 miles on the car and have started replacing parts. The timing chain was only for 60,000 miles so time to replace it. I was told if I didn't and the chain broke that there would be damage to valves and other parts which would cost me major money. I replaced plug wires and other smaller parts. It is always something.

The engine light stays on and nothing is wrong with the car. How am I to know if something really is wrong with the car if the light won't go off when it should not be on???

The car looses oil and no mechanic so far can determine why. I change the oil every 3000 miles. There seems to be no oil lost until I drive it about 800 miles after the change and then I add a quart or 2 a week until I am up to the 3000 miles for another oil change. So I am checking the oil all the time to be sure I have oil in the car.

The brakes never have held very well. When I ease down on the brakes I often feel like the car is not going to stop in time. Sometimes when I have to brake suddenly the car feels like the back end is catching up to the front and the brakes are not holding. I have had the brakes checked several times and have been told nothing is wrong.

The price of the car was moderate. I could have purchased a Toyota, Jeep, or a number of cars that I think I would have been more satisfied with for the same price. For the price the car is just built cheap, drives cheap, is noisy and most of all I do not feel safe in the car.

The car is a o.k. ride if you only use it a very short time.

Even with a few good points this car is not safe.