2000 Kia Sportage EX from North America - Comments

First off: Cup holders are in a very poor spot, right in front of the air conditioning vents. Middle armrest tray only stays in forward position, where I don't want it of course. I didn't realize it was so underpowered either. Window and door trim or seals are lousy, the cabin is very noisy on the highway as if the windows are open a crack.

Brakes are spongy feeling, took some getting used to.

5,000 miles: Interior electrical problems. The fan setting for the air conditioner and heat wouldn't work in the first and second settings, so I either froze in summer or melted in winter. The radio and interior lights would go out and come back on whenever they felt like it. Windshield wipers go on for no apparent reason as well.

5,000 miles: Rims become very black from brake dust, very unsightly and hard to keep up with. They start to get black after a few minutes on the road after cleaning.

5,000 miles: Check engine light will come on if you don't "click" the gas cap violently after filling up. I mean standing there in front of everyone at the gas station and obnoxiously clicking this stupid thing loudly. Dealer says the Sportage has an extra sensitive sensor that says the gas cap is loose.

9,000 miles: Battery and battery tray became severely corroded and had to be serviced. Not sure if the dealer ever checked it, I have since then switched dealers and the new one has been on top of small maintenance stuff like this when I go in for oil changes.

9,000 miles: A strap on the exhaust became loose and rattled loudly upon acceleration, this was replaced without a problem.

9,000 miles: The assembly that holds the spare tire has started to rust and continues to stain the pewter colored paint below it.

12,000 miles: This is the one that really upset me, I lost the four wheel drive during a snow storm when I needed it the most. Dealer had it for a day and replaced the hubs. Afterwords I asked what caused such a premature failure he simply stated without emotion, "Poor design." and walked away.

15,000 miles: The whole truck has already started to creak and rattle as if it had 100,000 miles. It's starting to look it too with the cheap paint job. I have all sorts of scratched and nicks, no matter how careful I am with parking and washing, ect.

23,000: Two days ago, Connecticut was hit with our first snow storm of this year. I went to engage the four wheel drive, and I have nothing! Without it I have a $21,000 bobsled. No traction at all. We are expecting 12" of snow tonight and tomorrow and I'm driving my front wheel drive 98 Dodge Stratus instead because I feel I would fare better in that.

Most importantly what is wrong with this SUV, I do not feel safe anymore driving it. If the four wheel drive clonks out on me two winters in a row and it's only three years old, who's to say a wheel won't fall off at 65mph?

I blame myself for not researching more on the Sportage, but I cannot stress enough how unsafe and cheaply made this SUV is. I bought it at $21,000 and owe maybe $9,000. Trade in value is disgusting at $4,000. This purchase is by far the biggest mistake I've ever made. After I get the four wheel drive replaced AGAIN, it's trade off time no matter the price. Looking at Jeeps or maybe a Ford Escape.

I took great care of my Sportage, it's pampered in a heated garage every night and was washed every couple of weeks and waxed twice a year. I kept the interior spotless and did all the daily maintenace I could on my own. I never beat on it and only drove it to work, it took me a year to put the first 8,000 miles on it.

I stopped asking myself if it was me that was causing all these malfunctions, as you should too if you own one.

I also forgot to add that I had to have the gas tank and fuel pump replaced because of rust. The rust ended up clogging my fuel injectors. One morning on my way to work I lost half of my horsepower. All I could do was laugh as it struggled to go up a tiny hill. This one laid her up for a week in the shop until the dealer finally figured out the problem. Thank God for the few good dealers out there!

I wish I had read the previous comments on the Sportage Ex before I bought mine, but they weren't written yet. I have a 2001 Sportage EX. I will say that mine seems to have faired slightly better, but not much.

After about 2 months I had to have the rear gate and doors oiled and adjusted, as well as the lock for the rear door. It wouldn't fully close. About a year in the security alarm began going off if locked with the remote locker, so I have to manually push down the driver's side lock to lock the doors, without fear of it going off on it's own. About 1 and a half years in I lost the goofy little hub cap thing. I can deal with all of these issues, even the occasional lose of power on steep hills. But yesterday we got 5 inches of snow, in Pittsburgh it is extremely hilly and the street I live on is downhill so I have to go up a hill to get out. I got the car cleaned off put it in drive, then realized four wheel drive was necessary I shifted it on. Hit the gas... began to slide backward. Cursed for a couple minutes... tried again... same results. Had my wife look outside, she confirmed that only the rear tires were spinning. The plow didn't come through until the next day. But they didn't plow my street they plowed one over, so I drove it in reverse over to the next street, which was kind of funny. Then I proceeded to drive out. I am taking it to the dealer tonight. I am at 50,001 miles and the drivetrain warranty is for 60,000 so fingers crossed that it is under warranty. Where I live Four wheel drive is mandatory. I'll update you on how the dealership adventure goes. I will say that this has been an okay car, and would be very happy with it if I had payed 12-13,000 but for 21,000 I really expected much more in quality and design, and the cup holders really do suck.

I wish I would have did a little more research as well. I bought mine with 14,000 miles on it and there is no doubt why this thing got traded in before she hit 15,000. At about 30,000 miles I brought the thing in to have the windows looked at due to the previously mentioned comment that it seemed like the windows were cracked when driving down the highway. This doesn't bother me much anymore as I have lost 25% of my hearing do to turning my stereo up to drown out the wind tunnel noise. At about 50K the 4 wheel drive went out and of course this isn't considered part of the "power train." I should have figured since this thing had no power to begin with. $1500 later I was back and running. At 65K the check engine light came on. I brought the vehicle in to the dealer and was told "it's an evap problem and we can start troubleshooting for $70 an hour." Needless to say I said forget about it. The vehicle is at about 125K these days and the check engine light is still on. I clear the OBD codes from time to time, but like my mother-in-law it won't just go away. My latest favorite with this thing is when I close the driver door and it pops back open because the door handle no longer works. Then when I go to open the driver door with the key the alarm goes off until I walk around the vehicle, open the passenger door and unlock the driver door from the inside. The driver side rear door is fun as well. When I decide to let my dogs in to go for a ride, the lock no longer works unless I pull up from the inside as hard as I can and open it from the outside at the same time. I'm afraid to bring this to the dealer to look at it as I'm sure they bill it as an "anti-theft" feature. Anti-theft...I doubt anyone is really going to be interested in a rusted out 2000 Sportage.

To anyone thinking of buying a KIA 4x4, instead, buy a second-hand Subaru 4x4 for a few thousand dollars.

You'll need a few repairs, but not as much as a new KIA.

These cars are biodegradable.

LOL this is just about the funniest things I have read in a very long time. I also own one of these lovely little 'toys'. I am so frustrated with all of the little problems. The Weenie cup holder broke, and it is now like a red-neck version with little coke cups sitting in the slots so I can set a beverage in it.

I bought this used, found out shortly the 4WD was out, luckily it was just a broken vacuum line. Easy fix. The motors for the 'power' windows are failing on half of the windows. Thought it would be a great idea to take the rear drivers side door apart to see what the problem was, and get this... a 2x4 was holding the window up!

Anyone know what it sounds like when the hubs go out?? SOMETHING is make noise and I have no idea what it is!

I own a 2006 Kia Sportage, bought it new in 2005. In reading troubleshooting about the little SUVs, am I to understand that since my check engine light comes on when I've got less than 1/4 tank of gas, that it's an evap problem with the gas cap? Gas here in Texas went down and I probably did overfill it.

I bought a 1999 4x4 model for $5000 in 2002 and still believe it was a great buy. Of course my perception is quite different than of that somebody who paid a full price.

This is a TRUCK (frame-based body) -- I am not expecting a "soft-n-quiet" ride on it either and being DIY guy I just enjoy fixing the car when needed.

You can get access to Sportage's service manuals for $10 a month from KIA's website (access was free until two years ago) and download needed/all pages for "eternal" use.

Hubcaps could be replaced with manual (reliable) aftermarket ones. That means you should stop and exit a car to engage/disengage them. I guess most readers here (including me) will not like to do it.

For myself I did a known "trick" with original hubs reassembly with springs' position relocation to have hubs engaged permanently. This does not mean I have 4x4 at all times (you still control it on AT) -- it just keeps front wheels connected to each other through differential even if power is disengaged. This adds some extra wear to front wheels, true, but not too much. My city gas mileage is 15-16 mpg on Shell's 87 (hilly place and I am a "lead foot") with this thing always on.

I KNOW! The placement of the cup holders is so stupid! Not only in front of the air conditioner, but also the clock. Just an overall stupid car.

Thanks for the info. I was looking at buying one. You're all life savers.

I own a 2000 Kia Sportage, which I bought used in 2005 with 52,000 miles. I too had problems with the 4 wheel drive, which was luckily covered under warranty. My problem now is with the frame rusting out. I checked to see if there was a recall, as there is on the fuel tank for rust, and there is not. However, I contacted Kia at 800-333-4Kia and was told that if enough people with the same problem call it will be logged and possibly there will be a recall. Unfortunately this will be probably too late for me but hopefully, if we get the word out, it may help other Sportage owners who would like to keep their car.

I have the exact same problem. I purchased a used 2000 Kia Sportage last spring. I recently brought it into the garage due to my 4 wheel drive not working, and was told it wasn't worth fixing as my frame is rotting!!! This car only has 70,000 miles.. this is crazy, I am calling the number.