sportage

what do you want to do with it exactly? What do you expect from it?

Calling Gary.. Call for Gary...

Not the highest ground clearance but otherwise they will go almost anywhere. I have two, 1996 short wheel base and 2000 Grand Wagon. I have had water over the bonnet on both and regularly run in soft sand but you need to keep the revs up to get best torque. They have heaps more room in them then my Pajero and are great for a long haul drive. I have fitted a steel bash plate and slide rails on the 96 and regularly drive rough river beds and very steep rocky hills. Most people are very suprised at how well they go off road, ground clearance the only problem.

While the old models are proper 4wds - the new models are softroaders only like RAVs, X trails etc

damn near bullet proof. nearly as good as a lada. Good around small true 4WD.
From the times I drove my work one that it was as good as my old Rocky and a lot smoother.

shadow

Hi Bri,

I just got back from Moreton Island, and saw a few on the island.

I followed one along the beach, and on the Cowan bypass track.

I am guessing his was an auto, but he went everywhere with ease.

I was quite impressed.

Only comment I would make is I was talking to a fleet sales manager at a car yard that sells both Mitsubishi and Kia.

He commented they had been having a lot of warranty issues with the Kia. I did not elaborate to find out what the issues were.

TonyG

I cant comment on the sportage. But from a slightly different viewpoint, I wouldnt touch another Kia with a ten foot pole. Why not? We have a Kia carnival van that only a few days ago, crapped itself bigtime. 2001 model. Only 56K on the clock. Its used at our childcare centre to pick up and drop off school children. The seals went, and the radiator very suddenly filled up with engine oil. 1 motor dead.

The vehicle is just out of warranty, but a quick scan of Kia Forums, showed up an alarming, almost ridiculous number of identical cases. The problem has been known to Kia since 1999. They have never issued a recall. Fixing only those that fell within warranty, and have wiped the rest. We always had the van serviced by a Kia dealer, never once any mention or checks for signs of trouble. I've heard the costs that MANY MANY people have been left to shoulder range between $6500-$14000. The trade valuation was only $12,000. It may not even be worth fixing !!! Try come to terms with that when it you have really looked after a car, since new, for only 4 years !!!

In our case, to make things worse, we were due to trade the Van on a brand new Toyota Commuter which we pick up this Thursday !!! We no longer have a trade...

I realise this has very little to getting back into 4WD'ing, however, I just want to point out one very important, potentially VERY expensive consideration. If there are any issues like this, I've heard of other manufactures coming to the party in some way. What I am learning about Kia is, YOURE ON YOUR OWN PAL !!!

I know of other Kia owners, 1st hand waiting over 3 months to get parts for their Brand new cars. Dealers taking 6 weeks to eventually supply them a courtesy vehicle.

Bri, I might cop some stick about this post, but honeslty mate, there are plenty of other good fourbies out there, a lot better than Sportage too I might add. Give Kia a wide berth.

try this site;

http://www.kia-forums.com/

you will need to join to add a post. It's free. At least there you will get a better idea of some of the issues which you may need to know about, to make an informed choice.

Hope this helps.

Here I am..............

Generally good if you buy the later longbody versions (2000+).

I have had some issues, have totalled 2 front diffs, but these are not known to be a weak spot, it was me being foolish, likewise trashed one aftermarket hub for the same reason (attempting the impossible with nothing...).

I would have to say that when I did the damage one time it was on a track that a Lux on 35's with lockers front and rear had quite a bit of trouble going up. The other time was in the company of several Cruisers/Patrols/Hiluxes, all modified to a moderate to extreme amount on a day trip.

Keep in mind that I was also running 31x10.5R15 tyres with a 2.5" spring lift, and drive it like I rent it.

There are several minor issues with the vehicles. Firstly the front hubs are vacuum operated and WILL fail at some time. Invest in a set of Warn hubs, and pull the originals apart and place the spring on the other side of the sliding cam to force them to be permanantly locked (self evident when you open them up), and keep them for spares.

Secondly the electrical connectors under the bonnet are a bit dodgy, especially along the intake tract (MAF, TPS, IAC running from the air filter to the engine). Periodically disconnect and reconnect with some contact cleaning solution to stop any corrosion on the joints.

If you are looking at an automatic, there is a splice in the loom between the ECU and TCM that gets a bit of corrosion. Best bet is to bypass theat part of the loom.

For more information, try

http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?Cat=&C=25

Lots of tech, and help when needed.