2003 Kia Carnival LS from Australia and New Zealand - Comments

None.

My Carnival goes, handles and rides well for a people mover. My old MPV would often bottom out on the bump stops with more than four adults on board. A friend with a latter LV series MPV has the same problem. Also noisy lifters in the MPV was a problem. Friend again has the same problem with less than 100,000kms on the clock.

Performance for this type of vehicle is good given that the Carnival is a full sized people mover and not based on a passenger car like the Zafira.

Economy is good with my manual Carnival returning better than 12l/100kms in surburban driving which is much improved over my old MPV with 160,000 klms on the clock. Standard Hancook Powermax tires are a bit noisy, but bearable. Had these as replacements on my 1993 Mazda MPV and they handle and wear well.

I have compared the Carnival with the Zafira, Nimbus and Four wheel drive wagons and it certainly has more room and fully formed seating in the rear most positions. My six feet plus sons are happy to ride in the rear most seats.

Panel fit and finish is good and comparable to Australian made vehicles such as Falcon and Commodore and not as good as some Japanese imports.

I have read negative comments in the press about interior plastics used in the Carnival, but personally I think the interior looks better than a base model Tarago. Seats and switches etc have a quality feel and no rattles have developed yet. The only annoyance is the back to front location of the air/fan controls and the ariel mounted on the drivers side guard. Generally the interior finish is very good and asthetically pleasing.

I am hoping for many years of trouble free motoring. The cost of parts for repairs to my old Mazda MPV were prohibitive. Try $1200.00 for a Timing belt kit! They are only available from Mazda. A new Kia Carnival has got to be a better buy than a second hand People Mover of another make.

I don't know about the timing belt kits for Mazda MPV's, but I have just replaced the timing belt in my Mazda MX-6 and it cost £28.

The above had to be written by a dealer surely. :^ (

"Employees of car companies and their families should not participate in this survey without making their commercial interests clear."

The timing belt kit for the mazda included new idlers and tensioner. This is approximate mazda aust pricing and they where/are the only supplier available at the time.

My Carnival has 30,000 klms on it now and no problems yet.

If the head gasket is such a common issue Kia should come clean and recall the vehicle. Surely consumer bodies in various countries would or should exact pressure on Kia to do this if there is an avalanche of engine failures?

A year or two ago in Australia many new owners of GM Holdens featuring the Chev Gen 3 v8 complained about major engine issues such as excessively noisy valve train/lifters in brand new engines as well as excessive oil consumption in others. GMH reconditioned many of these engines under warranty, but some owners claimed that there was little improvement. In the media and current affairs shows of the day.

In the mid nineties SAAB were compelled to recall vehicles for failure of the front suspension as it could collapse under arduous conditions. Also widely publicised in the media at the time.

I, ve already mentioned the toyota prado v6 head gasket failures in the early days and going back a bit there was also the widely known premature valve train wear of toyota cressida straight injected sixes with under 100,000 klms on the odometer. Ask a toyota mechanic.

For several years Ford has had a common problem of blowing head gaskets on it's Falcon sixes to the extent that they introduced a limp home mode in the event to help prevent further damage such as warping of the head with the introduction of the au model, the last of the series. Ask a ford mechanic.

Lets face it unless you can afford a top spec Merc or BMW then most cars are a quality compromise.

No, I don't work for Kia, but they will certainly hear from me if I experience any major problems in the future.

Yes the 2.5 litre motor is too peaky with it's high RPM torque delivery resulting in a relatively slow move off the mark, but unless the tail gating moron in the holden commodore behind bothers you then this shouldn't be a concern. In recent times the price gap between the carnival and competitors has narrowed considerably. The latest Oddessy looks a good thing, but I would want to load it up with seven adults and a box trailer to see if it rides on it's bump stops an issue common too many japanese cars under full load with a compliment of full size adults onboard. I cannot get over how competent the carnival is in this regard. This is a very important consideration in Australia given the condition of some of our roads.

To finish I reckon some people can break anything i. e door handles etc. Perhaps one of your little darlings swung on it!

If anyone is still listening I will endeavour to advise of progress at the next milestone.

Just want to find out why a Carnival bought brand new in 2003/4 would start to smoke and jack, even though it has never been to a roadside mechanic but the KIA dealers in Nigeria and before its next service due date. Can anyone help on this one, what do you suppose is the fault; engine, brain box or...