Faults:

Engine, 3 complete replacements. 2 partial rebuilds.

Electrical Fault

Check Engine Light.

General Comments:

I started out loving this vehicle. It was reasonably priced, 4WD, and had sufficient room for my needs. In the course of the next several months the dealership replaced the engine 3 times, once under warranty, once KIA Paid, Once I paid. After the third engine I had 2 separate overheating incidents that caused me to have the upper end rebuilt each time, again on my dime. I had intermittent electrical failures that increased the cost of ownership and the check engine light would come on for no apparent reason. I wouldn't spend $10.00 for another KIA if I was walking and it was new!

Faults:

Radiator replaced under warranty twice.

General Comments:

A great cheap SUV.

The 1995 model I have is underpowered - they fixed that in 1996 with the DOHC engine. Tends to overheat on long climbs (eg Mt Palomar near LA).

Need to keep the suspension greased to avoid squeaks.

Clock is hardly visible in sunlight.

Other than that it's been great. I have a Kia dealer/service locally, but getting parts out in the boonies might take a while - so far I haven't needed any.

The radiators both sprung a leak after I had parked in my driveway.

Not too much space in the rear - get the tire carrier.

"Cute" is the word everyone uses to describe this car.

Faults:

Oil sending unit, rear main seal, suspension always squeaked, A/C drained into passenger compartment for quite a while.

General Comments:

Great design, crummy implementation. I love the size of the car, interior room, and it did well the one time I had it offroad. The build quality was lacking, and when the local Kia dealer closed, I took my mechanics advice and traded cars to keep my life simple.