22nd Jun 2007, 23:36

For those of you who are having a problem with the KIA Sedona 2002's - specifically the Alternator.

After 2 1/2 yrs the first alternator went, KIA towed it to the shop and it was replaced under warranty. Then less than 1 yr later the alternator went again. Again the dealership replaced it under warranty. To add insult to injury KIA also advises me that the battery is shot on the van, but of course it had nothing to do with the 2 fried alternators, so I had to pay the $150.00 for a new one. I picked up the van on my lunch hour drove back to work, went home got all three kids in the van and head off to my sons baseball game. Let me tell you there is nothing like the feeling of travelling down the road and having the alternator go, you loose everything, steering, lights everything. Managed to get pulled over to the side of the road without getting into an accident call KIA and have the car towed there. Amazingly in less than 4 hours of picking up the van it had blown another alternator.

After a few harsh words in the service department with manager, they agreed there "MUST" be something more to what was going on. Sure enough the entire wiring harness that connects to the alternator was rusted through, there by causing a short in the system, thank god no fires. So yet another Alternator and a new wiring harness this time - all covered under warranty.

I would suggest that next time you have the alternator go on you have the service department throughly check the wiring harness.

My big concern is that the service department should of been checking the entire system including the wiring when they were replacing the alternator, how could they have missed that and I really don't like the feeling that my life and the lives of my children can be taken so lightly.