> I've owned a kia and a civic and find the kia to have more
> space and more reliable in the engine department. also kia is
> way cheaper, the model I have has mazda running gear which
> makes it easy for parts. it uses the same cheap oil filter as
> the mazda 626. the honda had corrosion troubles everywhere and
> electrical faults which were a bitch to have.
That’s interesting about the problems concerning the Honda.
Previous to my purchase of an ’05 Spectra, I had a ’99 Honda Civic Si
(bought new). The car had never failed and no serious problem with the
engine. Check Engine did come on a couple times due to poor fuel and
bad O2 sensor but no problems with performance. The B16 being quite
popular, the Si was stolen after 6½ years with me. Only mod I had on
it were 17" wheel for significantly better handling, particularly
compared to those crappy Michelin Energy tires.
It’s also interesting how older generations always denigrate the newer
ones for what they do, what they listen to, what they wear, etc. And
no, I’m not a hip hop listening gansta being in my late 30s when I had
the Si.
IMO, Kia still has a ways to go in terms of engine performance. Having
driven non-B16s, even the Ds seemed peppier. My ’05 Spec hits its wall
at ~4500 rpm. The Hondas kept pulling (with what little horsepower
they had) all the way to the line.
In other areas, I think the Kia, at least the Spectra, is the equal in
fit and finish as the current model (gen 7) Civics. Only shortcommings
noticable to me are the lower grade looking (and feeling) panels that
cover optional switches and buttons, The plastic covered sun visors,
smaller outboard mirrors. The Kia even surpasses the Civic in a couple
of areas like heated mirrors (none in the gen 6 US civics, but present
in the Can Civics), remote (key fob) trunk release (can’t recall if
the current Civic has this now when I test drove one), grab handle on
the driver side. A minor annoyance that irked me with the Civic was
the small area of untinted windshield above the inside rear vew
mirror. The sun also found a way to locate itself right there. On both
the Civic and the Spectra, the visor does not cover the small area
between it and the A-pillar which is also a sore point for me.
In short, Kia is still about a generation behind under the hood and
about ½ generations behind in interior design (but not fitment). They
do surpass Honda in standard equipment though (for the same price).
IMO, that and the warranties are the only way that will help propel
them to Honda/Toyota levels. Kia and Hyundai have a bad history to
recover from and this latest generation (in all of models) has gotten
them close, IMO. They are just about 1 generation behind.
WILLIAM AND CYNDI GARDNER - 01 Dec 2005 04:51 GMT
Now that Hyundai and Kia are owned DiamleChrysler, quality has improved a
substantial amount. The Amarti is basically a MB in Kia clothing.
> > I've owned a kia and a civic and find the kia to have more
> > space and more reliable in the engine department. also kia is
[quoted text clipped - 44 lines]
> recover from and this latest generation (in all of models) has gotten
> them close, IMO. They are just about 1 generation behind.
nothermark - 02 Dec 2005 02:29 GMT
I would not cal a 10% share ownership. It's more like club dues. If
you want to do jint ventures then hold some stock so you will feel it
if the deal goes sour.
>Now that Hyundai and Kia are owned DiamleChrysler, quality has improved a
>substantial amount. The Amarti is basically a MB in Kia clothing.
[quoted text clipped - 47 lines]
>> recover from and this latest generation (in all of models) has gotten
>> them close, IMO. They are just about 1 generation behind.