2005 Kia Spectra EX review from North America

Nothing has gone wrong with the car since I bought it new in July, 2005.

The car has a nice 0-30 (mph) time, but that is because of the way that the first gear is set up. The 0-60 time is less impressive, but is still pretty good for a 2.0L engine.

The trunk is a very nice size for this car.

What's odd is that the driver's seat seems to be a bit softer than the passenger seat. The rear seats are extremely soft however, and I wish that the drivers seat was as soft.

The sunroof is a really nice thing to have and on the Kia it isn't expensive ($700).

The only thing I really would like to have, but don't is Anti-Lock Brakes. The reason I don't have them ($400 option) is because the dealer had only two models with the sunroof/alloy wheels and in the color I wanted, but there were no Anti-Lock Brakes. My parents bought this car for me when I was 16 (Now I am 17) and I was impatient so I didn't care much, but I still wish I had them. A lot of other cars don't have them, and not too long ago, no cars except the Mercedes S-Class had them so I suppose it isn't too much of a shortcoming.

The sunglass holder makes some kind of rattle every now and then and it really bothers me.

I like the fact that it has six airbags, it helps me feel a little safer despite the fact that it didn't get a stellar crash rating.

At 85mph, it is very stable. It never shakes, at any speed - even triple digit speeds. What I did notice is that around 115-120 mph (120 is top speed) it makes an odd, loud humming noise so I don't hit those speeds anymore.

Other than the sunglass holder making a rattle every now and then (which the music can drown out easily) the car is extremely stable and there are no rattles. At times I also drive a Porsche Cayenne S and a BMW X5 4.4i and the RIDE (not the handling) seems about the same. Very sure-footed and solid.

The handling is rather soft, but I suppose that's a good deterrent from speeding around corners.

I mostly drive city and have am very lead-footed, and it shows when I do my gas calculations. (Another thing I wish I had was a trip computer that shows gas mileage). I get about 20-22mpg.

The alloy rims look very nice, but I wish they were 16" or even 17" instead of 15". I suppose that the soft handling can be partly attributed to the size of the tires.

Honestly, the car feels and looks a lot more upscale than it's price would suggest. I'm not saying that it's like a Lexus or anything, but it feels like it costed $20,000 or so instead of the $17,500 it actually was priced at.

Anyway, that's all I can think of for now. I know the review jumps all over the place, but I was thinking of things as I went along.

When I drive to New Jersey (I live in central Long Island), I feel no fatigue when I emerge from the car and it also handles very nicely on the Belt Parkway. Anyone who drives on there knows how terrible it is, what with all the pot holes and the sewers every 100 feet.

It also stops very fast and easily.

There was an airbag recall that dealt with a problem when a light person (<100lbs) sits in the front seat. Apparently when you stick the key in, take it out, put it in again and turn it to accessories then turn it off and take it out, close the drivers door and lock it, then unlock it and turn the car on it creates a problem with the airbag. It seemed really weird to me that anyone would do that, but I guess anything can happen. The explanation that the letter sent to me was long and detailed, and alluded to something similar to what was mentioned above. I took it to the dealer and they fixed the problem.

Any questions can be written to taire_pdm@yahoo.com.