I bought a Rio in 2001...I know you should never buy the first model year of anything, but at the time it seemed like a great deal. Sold it in 2005, after having two major transmission repairs...The 13in wheels were way too small and it would never hold an alignment. On top of that, had to replace the spark plugs every 10-12 mos...It almost deterred me from buying Korean again...That and my friend had a 2003 Spectra that went through 4 transmissions, all under warranty...They do seem MUCH better now...

I am tossing up between a 2007 Kia Rio or 2007 Hyundai Getz. Which would you go for? I know this is a Hyundai site but please dont be biased . Thanks :)

Im not a big fan of Kia as i used to be....reason being is that I had an Amanti before I traded it in for the Sonata....nice car..but it was a boat...poor gas mileage, suspension was horrible, bringing it to the dealer every other week...I havent drove a new one yet ..but id rather get an Azera

I agree with you, the suspension was horrible on the Amanti and the handling was very light i guess you could say. It seems they have fixed that problem on the newer ones along with a better interior and shrinking that horrible looking grille. I have driven them and the owner at dealer I work at had one as his demo for the summer, he usually takes a stang convertible.

The Kia dealer near home has two 2006 Amanti's still brand new on their lot! Discounted $10,000 off MSRP on the windshield. :grin: Guess they're not having much luck selling them!

I sat in one at a used car lot once and liked the interior... Haven't driven one though. Too big of a car for me! I wonder if Kia is going to get a replacement Amanti based off the Azera?

Amanti's don't exactly fly off of the lot where I work either. We still have one of the first 07's we got in. They added sidewindow deflectors, mudguards and a snazzy "AMANTI" license frame and put it in the showroom. The car now has about 200 miles on it because one of the lot guys likes using it. The 07's are definitely an improvment. The guage cluster is nicer than the Azera in my opinion.

My friend got a 2007 Optima rental when his Elantra was in getting some minor warranty work taken care of. He said he was very impressed with it. I think they've come a long way.

Just ten years ago they were averaging something like 580 problems per 100 new vehicles on JD Power... :blink:

This post has been edited by lovemysantafe: Feb 26 2008, 02:43 AM

I think the old Kias were crap. Just like the old hyundais were crap(mitsu based 94 and down). Now hyundai builts excellent motors and cars. Hyundai bought out Kia and now puts good motors in them so yeah i think they are good cars. I do like hyundais styling better though

My dad and I have only driven GM products our whole life. In the summer of 2004 he asks me to go check out a new Kia
he was thinking of buying,I thought he was going insane(by the way he's an auto mechanic)...not that has anything to do
with being insane, I knew Kia & Hyundai were related and the first thing that flashed in my mind was the Hyundai Pony.
Anyway I was totally impressed with the style and quality of this car,he bought it the next day and still has it five years
later with no issues.

There are no differences in the Hyundai or Kia power trains. They are exactly the same. Parts are interchangeable. I own a 2003 Sedona and Rio Cinco, 2006 Spectra 5, 2007 Rondo. If you know your car well you can get parts at either dealership. They will fit. As an example: 2003 Tibby rear say bar will bolt up to the 2004.5 thru 2006 (and maybe 2007) Spectra's. No moddifcation needed. Also the Tibby disk brake calipers and rotors will fit the Spectra's. The automatic transmissions are supplied by Mitsubishi, they just have Hyundai badging. You can take a Mitsu racing torque converter and put it into the Kia Spectra auto tranny. The Ford Aspire and Festiva were built by Kia. Just like the Chevy Aveo is built by Daiwoo. I'm looking forward to the new Theta engine. It is replacing the Beta II. I know of a man in Cali that has a 2005 Spectra 5 that is a full drag race car. He runs in the 10 second bracket and hasn't been beat in 4 years. He built and patented his own ECU and built and patented the unit that shifts his automatic tranny. He is running 20psi turbo with a 200 wetshot of NOS. I'd post the link to him if I was at my computer but I'm not home right now. I like the Kia and the Hyundai brands. I was in Korea 3 months ago and got to see the V8 Genesis Coupe run. Awesome car! Too bad it will not be imported to the U.S. It is not legal for our streets because it doesn't meet EPA requirements. But I bet you will see some of them on the drifting scene. Bringing them over for racing purposes is the only way they will let the V8 in the country. At least that is what is being said now. Who knows, it all may change. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Last August I flew out to Pennsylvania to take my sister back to school. When the rental lady asked me if I wanted a Ford Escape or a Kia Sportage, I didn't hesitate to show my Korean car pride. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy.gif)

I drove the car for five days including 250 miles on the PA Turnpike and tooling around Philadelphia. The console lid was WAY too low to double as an arm rest (major snafu for me) and the road noise was a bit prominent (I blame the crappy tires) but other than that the car was great. I think I calculated my mileage but don't remember exactly what I got. All I recall is that it didn't royally suck.

I wouldn't mind having one.