How good is KIA nowadays?

[Zacxaviqer]

To compare reliability.. Just look at the Avante.. a 4 yr old production car sharing the same platform and engine with the Forte..

 

 

So it is good?

[Theoldjaffa]

my first car is a Kia. Kia Sephia.

 

i don't think Kia cars are any bad. My Sephia was comfortable, nice looking, but drinks petrol and *very* noisy and rough at high RPMs.

 

Globally Kias are selling well. Just see how much Kia has grown in the US.

 

Just that in local mindsets, Kia remains a budget brand, high in maintenance and low in quality.

 

My take is, don't bother to defend. You don't own Kia anyway, why bother? They won't pay you anything to help them preach.

 

People will always have something to say. Just read one of the stories in Aesops Fables. The Man, The Boy and the Donkey.

[Tom_kkh]

no need urge la, go ask mechanic can liaoz, i have heard many good things about modern korean cars from mechanics, especially the builds.

 

case close.

 

do u know how many bolts and nuts u need to unsrew just to get a kia bumper down? its 30 close to 40 of them. Japan? less than twenty.

 

so what does that say.

 

To layman, wow so many nuts, must be lousy! To mechanics, parts don get loose easily.

[CH_CO]

The reason why Kia was cheap the past 2 years i because KRW is relatively weak as compared to JPY thus the difference in OMV which in turn would affect prices and the tax payable is different. In the recent months , KRW appreciated quite a fair bit , it would eat into AD's profits and come a couple of months time , KR cars prices might catch up with Jap brands , by that time , we would see if people think it would be worthwhile to buy a KR car given a high coe.

 

If one can buy BMW would he choose Kia? Is BMW more reliable as compared to a Toyota or a KR make , i doubt so. Simple reason why people buy their cars , it is just whether if they think it is worth the money they pay. At the end of the day , not rich can only choose budget cars just admit it. Trying to push other makes down is just simply indirectly admit that you won't/not able to spent that kind of money. At the end of the day , the choice you make is indirectly related to the amounts you make. Simple as that.

 

A plate of chicken rice at the market sells at $3 bucks , that same quality plate of chicken rice sold in a high class restaurant is probably 5 times higher in price. So are you going to say those eating at the high class restarant are stupid? To most , they know the difference in price but they can still choose to eat at the restaurant , why? Cause they can afford it.

 

Why try so hard to justify the buy? Spend the time trying to earn more money and buy better car to get rid of the lesser car ego. If the purpose is just to get from point a to point b , since you have already paid for the car, why bother about justifying your buy. Not happy with the car , sell it and buy other car lor.

Edited July 15, 2010 by CH_CO

[Jiannshan]

i was caught in a situation before last time when im getting my first car.

my gf and i test drove the cerato forte, hyndai i30, lancer ex and altis.

 

to be really honest, both of us were very impressed with the cerato forte. (tat time dun have koup yet if not i will also try). the drive was good and the accessories were wonderful. among all the cars we tried, we like cerato forte best.

 

i then took the KIA brochure back home and told my parents my decision.

 

and they said...

 

'aiyo, korean cars no good la. you see uncle david drive the hyundai matrix, macham like drink water. then my colleague drive KIA cars lagi worse, break down after 2 years nia. '

 

then my gf's father also said the same thing to me. 'aiyo, resale value no good for korean cars lei. breakdown easily oso.'

 

blah blah blah...

 

so to spare myself from all the nagging, i got myself a jap car.

 

my tots are in order to remove the stigma about the reliability of Korean cars, we just have to observe the newer generations like Avante, Forte or even Soul over the next few years.

 

then can we convince pple about their improvements.

 

 

[GoodCar]

Cheaper not neccessary inferior, expensive not necessary is good. Look for value and cost effectiveness.

 

During the old day when people buy Japanese car, people will also comments....."wah, milo tin car".

 

Don't admire people that drive big and branded car, they may be living on a very tight cash flow every month.

Don't look down on people that drive practical, down to earth value for money car, they may be the one that is actually loaded....

 

KIA........ok mah, has been improving all these years, almost like most value added neighbourhood school in local contact.

 

IMHO

[GoodCar]

I like this post. At least I know I did not buy a less inferior car afterall...

 

But seriously, the price of the car is alarming. If like what u say, standard are almost on par, then the difference in the price of the car is a big insult to Korean car. Almost $20k diff.

 

Price plays an important part in protraying the perception on the consumer's minds. Expensive stuff = superior quality. Cheap stuff = Inferior quality. So why Kia still continue to sell their product at the low price?

 

Even though they have Rafael Nadal as their main endorser, but when pple see the price and realised that it is way below the price of a Toyota or Honda of equal range, negative perception will be formed.

 

Look, Toyota or Honda doesn't even need any big celeb to advertise for them and yet, their sales are soaring and price still remain very high despite knowing that Kia is coming into the market with the low price strategy.

 

 

 

People are not happy to pay a lower price for a good car?

People rather pay premium for a car that is make in Tomyum land but charge u at Japan price?

 

Heard ache to see people throwing away their hard earn money this way.

Edited July 15, 2010 by GoodCar

[Carer]

buy car just enjoy la.. why care about what others say. bo liao. u can buy top quality seiko, same price as a submariner. but seiko got more functions, look nicer.

 

just stfu and admit it la, people just cannot look past the brand.

[Tom_kkh]

Cheaper not neccessary inferior, expensive not necessary is good. Look for value and cost effectiveness.

 

During the old day when people buy Japanese car, people will also comments....."wah, milo tin car".

 

Don't admire people that drive big and branded car, they may be living on a very tight cash flow every month.

Don't look down on people that drive practical, down to earth value for money car, they may be the one that is actually loaded....

 

KIA........ok mah, has been improving all these years, almost like most value added neighbourhood school in local contact.

 

IMHO

 

 

singapore is still 3rd world country mentality. good car means rich ppl.

 

better let the car be my slave than me be the slave....

 

each to its own la..

 

I am sure there are contin car owner saying, aiyo y buy jap car, BMW driver say, wow Alfa romeo? u seow ar!, Bentley owner say aiyo BMW can drive one mai?, on and on. no end la.

 

 

 

 

[Carer]

Don't admire people that drive big and branded car, they may be living on a very tight cash flow every month.

Don't look down on people that drive practical, down to earth value for money car, they may be the one that is actually loaded....

 

this one has been discussed many times before. face the fact, if u are driving an evo, most likely u r earning more than the one driving a picanto. end of story.

[Patronic]

Normal mindset from local motorists, once they see MIK rides, the generic comments will come in; can tahan for 10 yrs or not, high maintenace leh, quality lousy compared to Jap even those made from Tomyum.......but when they asked how much and I told them I brought it for 48999, immediately they kept quiet..... Yes, why I buy Korean car, bcos of budget mah....it suit me well end of the day....

 

With regards to debadge, it's personal preferances, but got to agreed some just can't stand the KIA logo....

 

But bro we must also understand $48,999 can buy BMW and Merc in other countries leh...my point is no need to pay that price for Korean cars...might as well pay a little more and buy at least Japanese cars in SGP...no offence just my pov only...

Edited July 15, 2010 by Patronic

[Curahee]

My ICT friend who is a automobile engineer in UK last time, get himself a kia cerato forte last year, base on his engineering background, he say its technology pretty outdated but price cheap and stylish looking. Overall worth it coz one cents one worth.

[GoodCar]

this one has been discussed many times before. face the fact, if u are driving an evo, most likely u r earning more than the one driving a picanto. end of story.

 

 

EVO is a different breed lah But i know of one guy who can easily afford to have a few EVO but travelling around in Picanto

[Tom_kkh]

this one has been discussed many times before. face the fact, if u are driving an evo, most likely u r earning more than the one driving a picanto. end of story.

 

 

some ppl got rich family, some ppl got no commitments, etc. not only salary contributes to buying what kind of car.

 

My buddy is earning 10k per month and he is driving a second hand 2005 1.5 mitsubishi. My kia's price is higher than his, so that means I earn more than him???

 

i am having the same pay with someone in here, he is driving a bmw 525 and yet me a kia, does it matter anyhow? Some ppl will spend more on food because they like to eat, some on drinks and some on interior of their house.

 

So it depends wht is your craz. not necessary so shallow as the biggest car is the highest earner.

 

Don tell me u never see young fellows driving ferrari, posh, GTR before, and u confirm their earning is higher than u? they might not even be working full time.

[Patronic]

this one has been discussed many times before. face the fact, if u are driving an evo, most likely u r earning more than the one driving a picanto. end of story.

 

As you said most likely...but i know of people borrowed money from friends and relatives to pump petrol...and they're driving S350, 335, WRX and EVO etc...I even loan $50 to one friend driving WRX to pump minyak...5 years liao $50 still not back in my wallet...

[Joseph22]

So in your opinions, Kia lose out to Jap car due to which factors?

 

quality, durability, realibility, driveability, road holding, comfort?

 

I tried Jap and Korean car (although my assessment on Korea car is very limited) but so far, I noticed no difference. In fact I thought my current ride is much more comfortable.

 

Japs car is durable. I drove it for almost 3 years (high traveller on the road). No major breakdown except that the batt dies on me once during the 3 years.

 

Realibility - Car starts everytime and also bring me to the destination that I want to go

 

Quality - A bit flimsy. I saw one of the crash test video and I was shocked. I could have died in there if I was involved in a major accident!! (But then again depending on which Toyota model one is driving. I was driving a Vios (new model) back then

 

Drievability - Driveable. No skid, no accident, wheel traction while doing U-Turn is low

 

Road holding - Same assessment as above (same?)

 

Comfort - Not as comfort. Engine sound rather loud. Limited legroom space at the back seat.

 

 

As for my current ride (This cannot be taken as a direct comparison of my assessment on Jap car as they are of different type of cars)

 

Durable - Not known yet. Everything (including all the functions) work perfectly fine

 

Reability - Not known yet too. So far, it has been reliable. Did not stall when there are low fuel

 

Quality - Very sturdy. At least the doors are heavier. My wifey comments that it gives her more security

 

Driveability - Very driveable. With blue tooth fitted in the car, less hassle while answering phone. Slight veered to the left while I drive but the problem was rectified after I went for my first k servcing

 

Road holding - ??

 

Comfort - So much comfortable than my previous ride. Good sound system. More power in the car (of course, Vios was 1.5 and the current is 2.0) No lagging in the pick up while ferring 5 person, smooth ride so far...

 

So... My honest opinion, the current car is better than my previous Jap ride but then again, not a fair comparison because the spec of the car is different

not comparing apple to apple leh. you driving Kia Magentis iszi??

 

that car more nearer to the area of Camry liao.

[Patronic]

EVO is a different breed lah But i know of one guy who can easily afford to have a few EVO but travelling around in Picanto

 

Being humble and low profile is the key to happiness

[Cttan456]

Do you believe in your own judgement or other's?

 

You should have more confidence in yourself and your own decision rather than be affected by what others say or think about your choice of car.

 

Perhaps its the lack of knowledge about the car industry that made you feel this way but it is understandable that many people lack the time and interest to really read up.

 

A confident person doesn't need to depend on his car and other material assets to make him feel good in the eyes of others. If he indeed feel good about his car, it is for himself and not others.

 

Back to your topic and questions.....Bear in mind that my answers to you are based from facts and statistics rather than any bias because I used to hate Korean cars with their old Elantra, Accent, Sonata.

 

Why is Kia making headlines nowadays and more people are buying them?

 

Don't just look at Singapore sales figures, look at their global sales and you will realise that they are going up, up and up year after year.

 

Why? It all started when they hired the ex-Audi designer Peter Schreyer. They paid him an astronamical salary plus a stake in the company. That is why we have great designs on Kia cars now and that certainly attracts a lot of interest. Just like you, you were wowed by its design and bought it although you didn't know how Kia got to where they are now.

 

So they look really good but are they as good as they look. Kia is selling only bread and butter cars and we should compare them to similar Japanese cars. From my comparison and reviews from leading car magazines, they are definitely as good, some are better in some areas, some weaker in some areas but unlike the old days when Japanese cars beat them on everything, it is no longer the case.

 

But magazine reviews do not cover reliability so how do we know if they are reliable?

Once again we look at customer satisfaction polls and we see that the Forte and C'eed rank very highly. I have no time to dig up the articles but it is there. I know many Kia/hyundai owners as well as for other makes and am one myself and parts are cheap. So they are as reliable as Jap cars. Don't worry, they can stand up to harsh use and abuse ( I have witnessed a few cases of my relatives literally driving the cars to M'sia frequently and without proper servicing and maintenence and didn't encounter any breakdown for year after year.

For a long time, Kia has a 10-yr warranty in the US and 7 yr warranty in Europe and it has worked well for them due to the low rate of warranty claims. Its 5-yr in SG. So what do you think of its reliability.

 

Why the low OMV?

Low OMV is due to weak Korean Won as opposed to the strong Jap Yen.

Low OMV is also due to low cost due to efficient production methods and supply chain and NOT cheap production methods. Thay have one of the largest and most advanced production plants in the world. Again I have no time to dig up the article and it is too lenghty for casual reading.

 

Why the low Price?

That is due to the low OMV of course and the lower margins of the AD.

 

Why low AD margins?

Because the quality and design is there but people don't realise it yet so they need to sell them at lower prices so that more people will buy and realise that they as good as Jap cars and trust me when that happens, demand will increase and prices will surely rise just like Samsung Displays. The days of cheap Korean displays are over and one day the same will happen to Korean cars.

 

In case I look like a Kia insider, I tell you my bad opinions about Kia too.

 

1. They make competitive engines but none of them sound good.

2. A lot of hard plastics but they are of good quality though. Many Jap cars are like that too.

3. They have competent but dull handling but can't expect much from a bread and butter car.

 

Hope I have answered most of your questions.