2002 Kia Optima LX review from North America

Weather stripping around windshield became loose.

CD/radio shows error message and turns on/off by itself. (not very often, once every few months)

Passenger window stuck down.

Driver power window stopped working. Small plastic part that prevents cable from coming off the wind up wheel broke and cable became lodged/stuck.

Engine light comes on once and a while and then goes off after a week.

Everything with the exception of the radio/CD problem and engine light problem was taken care of under warranty. Both problems would have been fixed, but service could not find a problem.

This is an update from almost 3 years ago. The old review was entitled "If a the Accord is a 10, then the Kia is at least an 8"

We have had no major problems in our 3 years of ownership and are likely going to buy a Kia sorento next.

Out friends just bought a new Accord and my wife and I agreed that we like the interior of the Optima better. Quality is VG. Color matching on doors and dash etc is not good, but it does not bother us. Seats were a little hard for me in the begining, but I have grown used to them and I now consider them to be a 7 out of a 10.

Engine is as smooth and quite as the day we bought it. It's been super reliable and the 5/60,000 warranty to the 2nd owner has been great, it is no longer under warranty, but all warranty work was done hassle free.

When you put things down in print. it appears that more things went wrong with the car then actually did. Overall we have had very few and very minor issues, all taken care of under warranty.

The biggest complaint we have is the quality of the sheet metal. It is very thin and will ding and dent easier than some other vehicles.

We are looking for a new car and considered the brand new Optima, but neither of us are crazy about the style so we are considering the Kia Soneta.

We are bargain hunters for sure. Honda and Toyota are the best cars out there, but after 3 years of owning a Kia, we believe we can get awfully close to the performance of the Japanese cars for thousands less.