1998 Kia Sephia from North America - Comments

Well, I have a 1999 Kia Sephia LS and for the most part it has been great. I have over 175,000 miles on it and the transmission finally died. Costs me $1500 to replace, cheaper than a new car.

As for cost, normal maintenance which included changing the timing belt, which I did at 84,000 and probably should do again soon. Cost about $400.

The O2 sensor went out twice over since I had, at about 5 year intervals, cost about $150.

The fan / AC is acting up now, but its almost 10 years old now since I had the car and this is the first time I've run into that issue. No problem with alternators or starters or other stuff.

If you are honest with yourself and add up the costs, it's a great car for the price. That being said, not EVERY Kia Sephia is going to behave exactly the same...yes, there are lemons, but if you do a search on the internet for any car, you'll find someone complaining about it.

I only wish KIA was US made.