2004 Kia Sorento EX from United Arab Emirates - Comments

Nothing. Even in the 40 - 50 degree heat here in Dubai and taking the car off-road into the sand dunes nothing has gone wrong.

I couldnt afford to handle the 3.5 V6 engine in the Uk as petrol prices would bankrupt me and this is not the most economical of engines. In Europe, the diesel engine would be the better choice financially.

The head rests that tilt make driving very comfortable.

The middle arm rest in the rear passenger seats makes a big difference for adults travelling in the rear.

Bodywork and finish seem to be of very good quality. I have the indigo blue with beige body cladding and this gives the car an expensive almost classy look.

Nice chrome door handles inside and out and chrome edged mirrirs add to the classy look aforementioned.

Excellent standard CD and cassetts player with 8 speakers. No need to upgrade there.

Speed sensitive steering is a huge help when parking in confined spaces. It also makes driving the car feel more luxurious and upmarket.

Very quiet and smooth drive. Twice after filling up with petrol, I have tried to turn on the engine when it is already on, it's so quiet.

The quality of the interior fittings again give that expensive feel and look.

The multimeter in the roof is a nice touch, stating temperature in celcius and farenheit, altitude above sea level and air pressure!!??

The cloth used in bright and makes the car feel bigger even though it is big enough for 5 adults to sit comfortably.

6 air bags, ABS and EBD, steel bar reinforced doors, excellent brakes and good all round vision make this car 'safety features packed.'

I bought this car for 13,000 GBP in Dubai. The equivalent cost in the UK is approximately 23,000 GBP. Go figure??

I just bought a 2005 Kia Sorento, my first glance at this 4x4 I liked it. Now well my thoughts have changed in the first month of owning it I had to replace the altenator, constantly in the shop for the check engine light coming on because of the ECS, my Led clock keeps on flickering, I was stopped by the police at night saying I didn't have rear lights my transmission slips and I am just dying to see what goes next. In three months of owning a brand new Sorento it has spent more time in the shop than time to enjoy it. Plus may I say it is our only transportation to go places when it is in the shop you only get a ride to work and no where else WOW I just bought lemon and I wish I had my old dependable Hyundai accent lease I can say that was more reliable than this over priced lemon, maybe they are good, but my review is not as exciting as yours.

I guess it is a matter of luck with this brand. I bought a KIA Carnival and I have never had a single problem in 3 years with a distance of 66000 KM. My brother bought a 2005 model that spent more time in the shop than in his house.

I bought a new 2005 KIA Sorento EX. I mainly bought it because of the 100,000 mile warranty since I drive a lot, but I also liked the design. I quickly learned this would be the worst experience I could ever imagine with a vehicle. First the engine light started coming on which they said was a sensor problem, then the radio/clock went crazy and had to be replaced, the passenger air bag had to be replaced, it started skipping when I would press the brakes, made noises when I turned the wheel a certain direction, the battery started going dead for no reason, and then worst of all at less than 28,000 miles the engine blew up. If all this was not enough, they would not honor the warranty either. They have given me about 8 different excuses why they cannot, but would not put it in writing. They said if I showed them my oil receipts they would cover it. I had receipts for 6 of the seven oil changes. Then they blamed it on the vendor that changed my oil. It has been 9 months now that I have been without a working vehicle. I had to pay towing twice – one to the dealer and one home. I still am paying a $500+ car payment, plus insurance monthly, and have nothing to drive. They would not pay for a rental vehicle. What are people suppose to do when they get treated like this? I loved it to start with, but I would not recommend this vehicle to anyone ever again now. What good is a warranty if you do not honor it!!! I wish somebody could offer some advice on this or put me in contact with others that have this problem.

Bought a used 2004 Kia Sorento at 39.999 miles. Went out to start the car and found that the engine would not turn over.

I have 59,000 miles now. Car makes a strange clicking noise when the key is turned. I have lights, but saw the previous comment about the sorento's battery dying for no apparent reason. Any one else have a "battery" problem?? I also have the strange noise when turning the wheels. My husband also has the strange noise with his 2005 Spectra. The noise will not duplicate itself in the presence of the mechanic. I love my Kia, my trade in was a 2000 Mercedes 320 from Heckk!!!

2004 Kia Sorento EX Fully loaded, bought used only 1 year old. Great for about the first year, since then nothing, but a bunch of problems! First the power steering rack was replaced, then the radio, then the drive-shaft, now with the crank shaft problems they replaced basically my whole engine. 3 months later there is a recall on the crankshaft bolt that was just replaced 3 months ago from the same problem!

This vehicle looks great, has nice options, but regret the day I bought it. Even though so far all work has been covered by warranty.

I bought a Kia Sorento EX 2004 model nearly 3 months ago

and have had a problem with it over revving and losing power.

I took it back to the dealer (KIA) and told them to fix it.

It took them about 10 days to finally tell me that it was a crank shaft sensor.

The part is not available in Australia and they told me I would have to wait, still waiting.

It really goes to show whats lacking in the car industry.

If any body else has had this problem please post a message.

Regards,

Frank.

I bought my 2005 Kia sorento in November of 2004, within the first year I had to take it to the dealer for a problem with the gas pump. Every time I tried to pump gas it would squirt it all back out like it was full. I got stuck with no gas and no way to get home one night because of this. A call to the Kia phone number inside the owner's manual got me nowhere. Finally I was able to put enough gas to get home and take it to the dealer the next morning. I'm still not sure what is wrong with my light receptors because sometimes it seems like my back lights are out and they really aren't. My fog lights keep burning out so I finally decided to just not use them. (burnt out lights are not covered by the warranty). Now the door handles are chipped and the paint on the body of the car is chipping too! I called the dealer today and they told me my door handles had to be replaced at my expense and that they had to see the car to give me an estimate. I'm still not sure on what to do about this because I am not sure if they would have to cover that.

Regarding the problems with the clicking and the flat battery on the Kia Sorento, I have had this problem twice on my car. When Kia Assist sent the RAC to my car today the engineer found that once he "jump-started" it there wasn't any problem with the battery or the voltage. He contacted the RAC technical team who told him that there is a problem with the radio which causes it to switch itself on, even though the ignition is off, and there can also be a problem with the rear boot light coming on on its own, both of which can flatten the battery. However, when I contacted my local Kia agent this afternoon they said they had not heard of these problems, but suggested I bring the car right away and leave it with them to check out.

These comments remind me of my first, last and only experience with the Sorento. My wife and I were looking to trade our Ford Explorer for a newer SUV. I loved the look of the Sorento and went to test drive one. The salesman and I had gotten about a half mile from the dealership when the car just died and rolled to a stop. Nothing we tried worked at getting it started. The salesman called the dealership and had them send a couple of techs down. They just stood there scratching their heads and saying "Uhh...we don't know very much about these things." That was NOT encouraging!!

I told the salesman I had an appointment to get to, and asked if someone from the dealership could come and give me a ride back to my car. He said he'd have an employee bring a "service vehicle" to come pick me up. When it arrived it was the exact year, make, model and COLOR of our old Explorer!! I took that as an omen that we should keep the Explorer a while longer.

My clock resets for no reason... sometimes it just goes off for a while. I also have the weird sounds in the front end.

I have a 2005 KIA Sorento that I loved.. It has 25k on it. I bought it new in 2004. I am terrified to drive it. Today I was at a red light completely stopped and then my car started moving forward on its own, I pushed the brakes as far down as they could go and it just kept moving forward, I ran into the car in front of me and even as the guy was getting out my car was still trying to move forward. I was in such shock that I didn't know what to do.. I had to jam it into reverse to get it to stop moving forward.

I didn't even think about using the parking brake.. duh but this was terrifying as I had my 2 year old daughter in the back seat. What it this would have happened on the freeway? I had it towed to the dealer and they looked at me like I was crazy,,, so we will see what they say tomorrow.

I have also have had the annoyances that others have experienced. My rotors warped at 13k they said that it wasn't covered. I called customer service and they were fixed for a VERY short while that are like that again. My bulbs in my fog, tail, and head lights have had to be replaced 3 times.

I have what sounds like little birds chirping in my engine every time I start it, my dash lights keep dimming, my transmission is shifting very rough (was just in the shop for this, they supposedly re-set a computer), my side step won't stay on even though they have tried 5 times, it clunks every time I turn, I get less than 15mpg.

My paint is horrible and I have little dents and dings everywhere from??? who knows???, the body seems like it dents and scratches with your finger tip, oh and my battery has also died mysteriously.