Overview & Reviews

User Reviews:

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  not worth it - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By John C - May 24 - 12:30 am

  the gas mileage was disappointing.. The Spectra stared to fall apart in a year.. the service department was horrible.. I was hoping it would hold up and the dealership would honor the warranty but after taking it in three times for the door on the gas cap, they said it was a poor design and only cleaned it again.. and were so rude! they said I must have broken it and the seat belt that wouldnt retract.. the side door wouldnt always close.. and I always smelt something burning.. I wasnt planning to sell it in a year after buying new but lost confidence in this car and the warranty.. it is very top heavy and not a good car to drive in the real world.. I took a huge loss with Kia..

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  BEWARE!!! Engine dies - Steering wheel locks! - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By C.B. Dunlevy - January 19 - 6:07 pm

  ■ 2016 April 23 I brought my car in for the regular “The Works” package maintenance to Kia of Dayton. Thereafter, my car ran a little rough. I did not think much of it until my car began “pausing/hesitating” as I drove it. ■ 2016 May 25 I was driving to an interview and thought the car was going to die on the highway. My car has never behaved like this; and, again, this was after the most recent routine maintenance on April 23, 2016. In addition, sometimes when I put on the brakes, the car stops and then lunges forward. This does not happen all the time; it happens intermittently. ■ 2016 June 10 I had my two twin granddaughters in the car. We met my husband for lunch and then went to Kettering Hospital to visit a relative. While driving in city traffic (going approximately 35 MPH), I gradually applied the brakes to stop at a stop light. When the light turned green, I realized that the engine had died. This concerned me as this has never happened. ■ 2016 June 13 I brought my car in to the dealership and described what was occurring. A diagnostics was performed and the car was driven. The Tech advised that nothing showed on the diagnostics and that when the car was driven, no issues occurred. ■ 2016 June 18 I drove from my house to the local grocery and back to my home. As I went to make a right-hand turn from, I gradually braked, made the turn and then realized the engine had died because my steering wheel locked! I had the air conditioner on, the radio on and was singing to it, so I did not hear the engine die. Further, because I could not steer, I went into the other lane and thankfully, no one was in the lane or I would have hit them. In addition, if someone would have been behind me, they would have hit me as they would not have expected me to turn and suddenly stop—especially since I did not have my foot on the brake after I turned. ■ 2016 June 20 I took my car back in to Kia of Dayton and reported the June 18, 2016 incident. I told the tech that I was very concerned about these incidents and relayed that I considered these to be very dangerous and life-threatening. I also called the Fixed Operations Director, and relayed that my car has been running rough since I got it back on 4/23/2016, feels like it is pausing/hesitating when I drive it; died while I was driving it without warning on 6/10/2016. (I had put on the brake for a stop light and did not know it had died until I tried to accelerate.) I advised that the diagnostics done on 6/13/2016 did not produce anything and that I thought maybe all of this was just an odd happening, so I continued to drive the car. On 6/18/2016, when I was right turning, the car died and the steering wheel locked and that I considered these incidents to be extremely dangerous and life threatening. I called the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and provided information regarding this issue. I wrote the Fixed Operations Director a letter documenting the incidents and my concerns and noted that I had copied the NHTSA. 2016 June 22 the tech called and said that they ran another electronic diagnostic and have driven the car over 50 miles and nothing shows up on the diagnostic and they cannot reproduce the incidents. I reiterated that I do not feel safe driving the car. I asked if any of the incidents were recorded in the car’s memory. No. I asked if the sensors in the car were able to record things like this. No. So, the sensors are not sensitive enough to record such incidents. I asked him what might cause the car to pause/hesitate while I am driving and he said that it might be the spark plugs. I asked if he checked these and he said no as that would mean that they need to tear apart the car to check these. I also asked about the fuel filter and the same thing applies. He said that tearing apart the car and looking at it will cost me. 2016 June 23 I called and left a message with the Fixed Opertions Director around 12:30 pm advising that I would like to speak to him regarding my car. Since I did not hear back from him, I called Kia of Dayton and asked for the corporate office # and was given 1.270.783.8080. I called and spoke with a woman named Tricia. I explained to her what was going on with my vehicle and she suggested that I call and speak with the General Manager of Kia of Dayton. I called Kia of Dayton and spoke with the General Manager and conveyed my concerns about how serious these incidents are. He offered to do a trade in with me. Unbelievable. I advised that I am the only owner of this vehicle, that she has run fine until 4/23/2016. I am currently waiting for Kia Corporate to look into all of this as an internet search documents that the issue of Kias suddenly dying while being driven goes back to at least the 2001 models. Query as to how many "accidents" have occurred that were attributed to a driver when it was a product failure! BEWARE!!! And, I love my car.... :-(

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  Disgusted - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By Tony - December 21 - 10:00 am

  Do not believe any favorable since they must be written by all of the useless salesmen who cannot sell the Kia Brand. Tires horrible, front end struts and steering arm, water sloshing, bad paint job, rear end noise. Never again. Buying Chevrolet.

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  Great car and a great value - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By qcspectra - October 23 - 5:23 am

  Bought new last summer. Great build quality and materials, especially at this price. Have previously owned 8 Hondas and 2 Mazdas, and this Spectra easily compares to them. My EX w/manual transmission has averaged 31 in mixed driving (65/35 city/hwy), well over the 23/30 EPA rating. Shopped the 08 Civic, Mazda3, Corolla, Elantra, and Cobalt.

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  Great Band For Your Buck! - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By williamkreth - October 11 - 10:33 pm

  i have owned 2 kias besides this one, and once again kia has surprised me, with their great cars they manufacture! i have been a long time kia owner, and that is not going to change, i drive alot usually 25,000 miles a year! and the kias hold up just fine! and i love their basic yet stylish designs and layouts!

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  The Kias are Alright - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By Sam/Hain - August 29 - 10:23 pm

  As of this writing, the Kia is a good little car. A smooth ride, and cheaper than the competitors. (Learn to love that word folks, its great.) As a commuter, I give a thumbs up.

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  Will never buy a Kia again!! - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By Heather - July 10 - 9:50 am

  I do enjoy by Kia. I got it with 12 miles on it in May 08. I dont drive it very much, just to work. But Ive had it in the shop 3 time. My kia is a manual and I think thats the problem. the 1st 2 times it was in the shop was 4 months after I got it. It would not go into reverse.Well a new transmission and cluch later the service department said it was "Fixed". WRONG at 11months old sure enough its doing it again so i take it to the delership and they say nothing is wrong. Am I the only person having trouble???

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  Crushed Spectra replaced with a Spectra - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By BJM - July 7 - 10:40 pm

  I originally bought a Spectra in 2004 and really like it. I never had a problem with it until the day an SUV coming at me in the opposite lane was hit by a car that ran a stop sign, lost control, came into my lane and wiped me out. My Spectra was totaled. Although I was happy with my Spectra, I went to CarMax to see what else was out there. I drove a half a dozen cars or so, and nothing was better than what I had. I purchased another Spectra and have been very happy with it. I must have gotten a good one because I routinely get just over 40 miles to the gal. The comment I get most when people get in my car is "This is a KIA?" in an unbelieving tone.

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  Bargain Small Car - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By Rob - May 19 - 6:30 pm

  This is a fine small car that has all of the features you need at a price considerably less than the Japanese makes. Quality of the major Korean brands has improved markedly over the last 15 to 20 years and they are almost on par with the major Japanese brands. The ride is surprisingly smooth and quiet. Engine power is adequate but no "ball of fire". Handling is ok but this is no sports car. This is a great first car for a teen or a second car for getting around town. With rebates the selling price of this car was $14,200 + TTL vs. a list price of $16,700. That is a strong price vs. what late model used cars are selling for without the strong factory warranty.

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  Nice little car for the money - 2008 Kia Spectra
  By KYPhoenix - April 15 - 7:23 am

  I have just recently purchased this vehicle. After looking at other vehicles in this class (Dodge Caliber/ Avenger, Ford Focus, etc) I believe this to be the best value, by far. The 2.0 with a manual is peppy, the engine is all but unnoticeable until 4k rpm (About 80+ in 5th), and with all the convenience features I got, makes me feel like I got a great deal. Gas mileage has been 22ish (city) thus far, but I only have about 150mi on her right now, and by all accounts mpg gets much better as it breaks in. Overall a great car for a person who needs affordable transportation, but likes a car to have a bit of pep and personality.