23rd Jan 2006, 14:59
I have had my Spectra 5 for over a year now and the engine runs great. 21,000 miles later, all is well! Perhaps you should look at a different KIA dealership. I have had good service out of my car and I am rough on it.
12th Apr 2009, 20:09
Wow, the odds of that happening is beyond belief! Unless they forgot to put oil in the crankcase, this just is really hard to believe (not that I doubt you). When they take the cars off the truck, the car has to be started and driven a short distance into the dealer lot. Without oil in the engine, severe damage would occur immediately. I can't believe that they would deliver cars without full engine fluids.
5th Dec 2009, 12:13
I agree with the guy above about his Spectra5... I realize all these posts are from years ago however, I just bought mine in March of this year (2009) with 30,000 miles for $7100 out the door. That's a pretty damn good deal. I've had absolutely no problems with my car whatsoever. I do wish it was more fun to drive however, I realize that it's a compact fuel miser. Wherever the O.P.'s dealership is located, those guys are morons. Both dealerships I've been to (one in southern California, and one in south-western Idaho), have been EXCELLENT. Great service and very friendly.
30th Mar 2010, 17:05
You can make it more fun to drive!! Check out STREETKIAZ.COM.
There are many things you can do to upgrade your Kia Spectra. This is the only knowledgeable place in regards to Kias. They know them inside and out.
4th Mar 2012, 17:44
I'm having a lot of trouble believing the earlier comments, both from the original poster with two bad engines, and the so-called mechanic who says the cars are shipped with no fluids. How would they load them on the ships?? The vehicles have to have all fluids in order to be driven on and off the big ships from Korea. They don't do that with a forklift. Sorry, I'm not buying this bizarre story.
16th May 2013, 06:25
Something almost identical happened to me while I was working for Hyundai (we sold Kia as well).
Anyway, I just sold a Spectra to this middle aged gentleman and everything seemed good. However around 7 PM that same day he was back and his car was on a flatbed tow truck. Turns out that the car was just topped off/filled with coolant right before he took delivery and it wasn't bled probably when he drove away. The car blew the head gasket on his way home. He took delivery of a second car, but we made extra sure that NOTHING else was wrong. He was still driving the car several years later when I moved to Mitsubishi.
And just to add, Spectras are decent cars. I had one myself of this generation (silver 5 speed) and it was a good car. 78k miles and it was solid as a rock, not a single problem.
I now have a Hyundai Accent with 115k miles and the same story, not a single problem.
5th Jan 2006, 00:26
As a former KIA employee, I do know that they cannot ship these cars to the dealerships with any fluids in them. Brake fluid, antifreeze, oil, gas, or anything toxic. So, obviously when the cars got to our dock, they were bone dry. Most likely they dealer had not put in sufficient fluids in the car to sustain a longer drive. It would pass the inspection because there is fluid in the compartments, but not enough. A test drive yes, a drive home, no.