1996 Kia Sephia RS from North America - Comments

The air conditioners' low pressure hose snapped and went through the radiator at 500 miles. At about 45,000 miles the low pressure air conditioning hose snapped again.

All rubber hoses and the like within the engine compartment had to be replaced due to damage from the air conditioning leak.

New rotors at 20,000 miles due to warping.

New dashboard due to warping at 20,000 miles.

New head gasket seal at 50,000 miles.

New gear shift was needed around 65,000 miles.

New alternator in October of 1999, and new one in August of 2001.

All new C.V. joints were need at 75,000 miles.

A new distributor was needed at about 80,000 miles.

The engine light goes on and off. Diagnostic checks get expensive after a while.

The radio was replaced 3 weeks after the purchase of the car. The tape deck kept eating my tapes.

The battery died after one year.

The car is comfortable but very noisy on the inside.

Parts for the 1996 Kia get very expensive and are not kept in stock anywhere. They all must be ordered.

The only thing that I do enjoy with my car is that I am one of only five or six owners of this type of Kia in my state. It makes me unique. However, I will never own a Kia again. I had better luck with my Buick at 135,000 miles than I have ever had with this, my Kia.

Oh yeah, after all the problems I have had with this car I have yet to replace any lights on it. They all still work great.

I have my Kia since 1996, bought "her" new. Besides being reliable, roomy, clean, cozy, and cool, she always has problem (s). I think she has $0.99 spare parts.

I failed my smog test due to malfunction indicator light. I've brought her to different mechanics due to engine light failure (s) after a regular changed oil, and nobody knew what's wrong with her. Next step, diagnostics.

I could have a real daughter, but I bought a Kia instead. I wish after this, she'll be fine.

I also own a 96 sephia.

I am having the same problem with getting it to pass the inspection. My error is a P0440 Evaporative emissions control system malfunction. I took it to kia and they grumbled about something having to do with the water pump and wanted to charge me $900 to get that fixed (which I did in a day for $200). Still no inspection pass though.

It is however a strong car with DOHC 1.8 manual shift. and I like the responsiveness of the steering. I also had to replace the slave cylinder for the hydraulic clutch. this took minimal work, but I had to remove the front engine mounts. you wanna talk about some HARD bolts to break loose.

Anyway, the outcome is a nice little car, but she needs some lovin sometimes.

96 sephia 88,000 miles.

I've had my 96 KIA since August of 02, so I've only had it for a few months the wheel bearings have already gone bad ($180),now it needs a new gear shift, and the check engine light is on.

My kia hasn't really gave me any problems, but there are a bunch of people that are having problems with there kia. I just know that I'm never buying a another kia again. I would'nt trust them.

I've got my KIA Sephia like a year a half ago and I really didn't have any big problems with it.. Like 3 months ago I put a turbocharger to it that I've got from a saab 9000 and its running so nice at 6.5 psi..

But I agree with you guys that the parts are expensive and have to be ordered.

Anyways is a cool car... have fun with it!!

I have a Sephia 96 RS with 76000 miles.

Yes,I have had my kia for about 6 months. It already has had several problems and no real value when you go to try trade it in. I will never buy a kia again. I am already having to replace the alternator the air the battery and the dash board. I think no-one needs to ever buy a kia, they are very badly bad cars.

I also have a '96 kia rs. I have driven the car for 8 months, already needed cv joints on both sides, radiator hose busted while I was on a deserted road luckily someone helped me, also, after the radiator hose was replaced the air stopped working. the car is noisy and god knows I will never ever buy another. plus the previous owner didn't take heed to the recalls and now the front seat belts don't work, if there was an accident I would be flying out of the window. good luck to the next sucker that buys my car, I'm getting rid of it before it costs me tooooo much money to repair.

JACKIE

My 1996 Kia now has 99,800 Miles. It has gotten me many places, but we have put too much money into this car. In the past 5 months, we have spent over $1,000 in repairs. I got it in the fall of 2000. The next Spring, the dash began to curl. My dad's solution was to take a sharp knife and cut it off. It now has a dash mat to cover up the ugliness. The check engine light has come on for no reason at all, (And I've taken it in to check.) I've had to replace axles 3 times in 4 years. Last year, the motor mount needed replacing. I had to repair a hole in the exhaust pipe, replace the windshield 3 times, and who knows how many belts. The belts always get loose and the car will squeal when it's cold or if the air/heater is on before the car is warmed up. The battery dies regularly, I think I have had 3 or 4 and it's currently dead. If it's not driven for more than a couple days, it will be dead when I try starting it. I don't recommend buying a Kia. They're a money pit!