The only good thing about this car is the gas mileage.

Rotors wear out every 3 months, bad transmissions, bad breaks, nothing but problems time after time. not even worth paying $3000.00 for. they dont even hold up on their end of the warrenty. Cheap car indeed. Pourly put together and the company doesnt seem to care about the problems.

Time consuming, money consuming, its seems like everytime something is wrong with my car i am out of one for quit awhile. its not worth buying a car that cant be used. Nobody should buy this car. Anything can be better than a kia.

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I would rather drive a rusted old car that sounds like crap than have to deal with the problem that kia cars cause.

Matrix intake
custom strut tower sway bar
loward
z racing wheels
pioneer cd player with jensen 10" sub
custum grill
carbon fiber shift knob

this car kicks A$$. great gas milege, fast enough 140(mph), i love this car. it will be one of the first decked-out kia's ever.

roaders, like everyone else on this site.

i love my kia! i would definatly buy it again.

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piece 87 accord, that car sucks!

Not a thing this car has caused me more problems and have spent more time in the garage than on the road.

The whole car is junk!!!!!

I would only recommend this car to a the owner of the Kia company, so he or she can deal with all the problems that I had to go through the past three months..... If you spend more time in a rental and not your own car there is something wrong with that picture. I gave the dealership many of times to fix this problem and still no solution. You can take this car and put it in the river and let it sink because that is the safest place for this car to be.. thank you and hope that you dont get any lawsuits against your company... Maybe you should start making toy cars?????

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To a big pile of trash..

Everything. Agile, responsive, smooth. Other reviewers must have had the overdrive turned off, because this car has plenty of power and runs like a dream. Why would you want to pay >$18,000 for a car with less horsepower, worse handling, and a shorter warranty? (i.e. Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Dodge Neon, Saturn LS etc.)

None

Anyone looking for an affordable, reliable, comfortable car should buy the Sephia. A friend who has a highly-dressed Accord V6 prefers driving my Sephia because "it feels better." And her car screams!!

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I like the way it looks and I think it takes hill well.

Everything else. I have had nothing but problems with this car. In a year and a half I has had three major recalls, a new set of tires, three new sets of brakes and rotors, numerous trips to the dealer to have other things fixed. Everytime I think everything is fixed something else goes wrong. I've been reading other peoples reviews and the same thing goes wrong with all the cars. My car also has a problem starting, if it sits overnight I have to turn the key around three times to start it. Not very good for a new car.

I wouldn't reccommend this car to anyone unless you enjoy having one headache after the next. It takes so much time to get everything repaired at least I finally found a dealer that doesn't hassle me every time I bring the car in for warranty work. The customer service of Kia is not very good and most of the service people aren't very friendly or helpful. I think I'm going to get rid of this car before it kills me... just read the reviews!

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It uncomparable because its so terrible

Good looking, cost efficient, Fast and comfortable

It is a small car but not too small

I bought this car because I needed a vehicle I could drive the wheels off of. I owned a sports car that was killing me with maintenance costs and I wanted to park it. Once I bought the Kia Sephia LS, I parked my sports car but didn't have to trade it in, because the Kia was so affordable.

The Kia is synonomous with other small cars. I looked at Saturns, Mazdas, and Hondas. They were all too expensive. If one is looking at the 18k price range, they ought to buy a Ford Taurus. Much more car for the money. However, if you want a new car for 13k or lower, the Kia Sephia is alone.

First, the Kia does not feel like an econo job. The interior of the LS model is way above the comfort level of comparable Toyotas. For example, where Toyota gives you vinyl, the Kia gives you cloth seats and carpet.

Second, I was concerned about the engineering of the vehicle. However, I knew the 1.8L 4 cylinder engine was a proven motor. 3 years later and 90k miles I've had no problems with the engine or drivetrain.

Service is always key with any hard driven vehicle and I make sure my car gets regular oil/lube maintenance and checkups. My brakes started wearing out at 45k. I had them changed out at reasonable cost. Also, I put the best tires on the Kia when they needed changing. Don't buy the cheapest tires you can get. Buy the best. I bought Goodyears. But Khumo or Michelin tires will give your car good feet.

Bottom line is that this is a durable little car that will give you good value if you maintain it.

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Performance, price

Dash rattles & squeaks. Factory tires suck.

31,000 and still going strong on the original brakes, battery, bulbs, etc. I've had all 4 tires replaced, the factory general tires slipped belts(no suprise, general tire generally sucks). Runs fine on the cheap gas, has never left me stranded. Been to the dealer 4 times I think for minor stuff.
Rear passenger door latch didn't work, replaced.
Pull to the left- checked, bad tire. Replaced.
Dashboard developed a discoloration above the speedometer. Replaced.
Engine started sputtering/cutting out. Found a loose ground wire. Repaired.

Other than that it's been uneventful. I advanced the timing 8 degrees over stock and ran a 16.9 1/4mile at the local track a few months back.

Overall a good buy. I'd do it again.

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- Good Gas Mileage
- Great Handling
- Kia Long Haul Warranty Program
- Great Dealer Service
- Good Price

Haven't found anything wrong

I was always a Chevy fan. Had probably about 10 of them. Never had a bad one. The last one I owned was a Caprice. It lasted me 10 yrs. It was about time I got a new car. I had researched a lot of cars. I never heard of the Kia until I went to the local mall and they had two on display-the 4 x 4 and a Sephia. I then went to my local dealer and took a test drive.

It was the best car I had ever driven. It handled well on the highway. I was very impressed with the 24hr bumper to bumper service plan. After I bought the new jade green Sephia 2000 I was called by the dealer to see if I was satisfied or if there were any problems that had to be resolved. The problems were very minor which were taken care of right away. In the past I have had problems with new cars and they have kept the car for sometimes up to 3 days. Not so with the Kia. They fix it right away.

And they make sure you have a rental car. I would recommend the Kia to anyone. It is not as small as you think it is. The trunk is quite large.
So if you are looking into a new or used car-check out the Kia. You will be surprised. I have all the features of the other brands with less money. And the best part is they don't try to push you to buy the car.

There was absolutely no pressure like other dealers. I understand this is the policy that Kia has.

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I like that it will be paid off soon and I can hope to pay someone to take it away.

I don't like the safety issues, the repair costs, the unavailability of replacement parts, the lack of power... (see what consumer reports said about Kia)

This car has been the worse vehicle I have ever owned. It was my first new car and I thought it was great until the first week I had it it had to go back to the shop for a new battery and the check engine light coming on. I laughed so hard at some of these reviews. I have had the same issues with my car. My molding has never come off but my bumper has a gap in it. My trunk doesn't open sometimes. My seat belts come loose while I drive down the road. I have two kids and I have to tug on them to make sure they are fastened because the front seat belts sure don't stay latched. My dash peeled off and my airbag light comes on when I push down on the brake pedal. I have replaced rotors twice in 6 months, even with routine maintenance, this car has some weird bugs about it. CV joints have gone out three times in a year and a half. Parts are expensive and service is BAD. Kia dealers are always booked up because so many people have trouble with them. Salespeople won't even let you trade them. They are worth NOTHING. I paid 12K in Feb of 96 and 6 months later, the dealer I bought it from told me it wasn't worth $5,000. I agree, look online. It isn't a coincidence that people would have bad things to say about these cars. If you buy one, you're asking for it.

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This car doesn't compare to a bike with a flat tire and no handlebars.

I love the looks. At first it seemed plain when I looked at the Sephia my friend bought. Upon closer examination it looked extremely cute. I'm very happy with the handling, though I'm planning on getting some new tires and wheels next month that will probably handle better than the Kumho's on it from the factory. I'm getting around 30mpg(can't complain) and everything that's needed fixing has either been free(2 recalls-fuel pump wiring kit and On-Board Fuel Recovery Valve) or covered under warranty. The warranty item that broke was an airbag electronic module that was fixed for free. All I've paid for have been oil changes and one light bulb replacement. I've read about people having trouble with their Sephia's brakes but mine have worked fine. I have around 50,000 miles on mine(mostly freeway)and absolutely love it!

I didn't get power steering(I do have power brakes)and steering can be an arm-builder at times. This would probably not be a problem if a person springs for the power steering option. Not nearly a good enough reason to dislike this car though.

I would recommend this car to anyone who doesn't want to throw money away. It's not perfect but it's a better car than my late-model Ford Escort was and it looks way better than the Japanese models. Mechanically it hasn't let me down once. I'm a Kia man for good because of this car!

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'97 Ford Escort. The comparison between these would be the Escort went through lightbulbs faster. The Sephia handles better and engine pep is similar except I feel that the Sephia is peppier because my Escort was an automatic and my Sephia is a 5-speed. The 5-speed coupled with the Sephia's 1.8 liter DOHC 125-horsepower I-4 cylinder gives the get up and go award to the Sephia over the slightly-sluggish Escort with the automatic tranny. The overall nod goes to the Kia Sephia without thinking too hard about it.