2001 Sportage - Should I buy one?

What's the consensus on these vehicles? Are they a good value or are they duds? Lots or maintenance or pretty maintenance free?

I've checked epinions.com and there are about as many 'hate' reviews as there are 'love' reviews. Of course, I realize that people are generally a lot more vocal about things that disappoint them or make them mad than they are about things that work well and make them satisfied.

So I am appealing to the experts? Is this a good car for my 20 year old daughter?

Thanks!

What's the consensus on these vehicles? Are they a good value or are they duds? Lots or maintenance or pretty maintenance free?

I've checked epinions.com and there are about as many 'hate' reviews as there are 'love' reviews. Of course, I realize that people are generally a lot more vocal about things that disappoint them or make them mad than they are about things that work well and make them satisfied.

So I am appealing to the experts? Is this a good car for my 20 year old daughter?

Thanks!
by all means go for one. I have 2, a 2001 and a 2000. the only major maintenance that is STRONGLY suggested is change the timing belt and water pump at around 60k. Aside from that I've had absolutly no problems in either one. The 2000 I rolled the dice and bought on eBay, I did very well with it. I change the oil every 30 days, and make sure the 4wd hubs are inspected and maintained. I also have my ham radio equipment installed in it. It has a perfect spot on the left of the dash. I see you are also a ham, if you need a nice diagram for a 2 meter antenna that costs pennies to make, and fits the Sportage with no modes to the car look me up on e-ham.net (WA2UBY) I'll send you a photo. My daughter drives the 2000 in cold country at college. I have very little doubt about the reliability. Runs like a swiss watch. The only change I made to hers is I lube the rubber gaskets on the window with mil-spec untra-low temperature grease for the winter, and use luber-plate on the spare tire release mechanism.

Well if I get it maybe I'll trade her the Rodeo and keep the Sportage for myself. I've never figured out where to mount a rig in it.

I was about 50/50 on buying the thing (it's the EX Limited with leather and such) until I went to carreview.com. There, the reviews across all years and models of the Sportage are mostly negative. Lots of complaints about the 4WD, the power windows, alternators, and especially brakes. From what I understand these things eat brakes.

You change the oil every 30 days? Either you rack up a lot of miles or you are very conservative.

Thanks for the reply. I'd really like to see a few more votes of confidence.

Thanks for the reply. I'd really like to see a few more votes of confidence.

Hopefully a response from a new forum member is worth at least two cents, because this is my first post...

I bought my 2001 Sportage 4WD new. I'm just coming up on 60K miles, and not being mechanically inclined, will be talking to my Kia dealer's service department about the timing belt and water pump as is suggested so often. I compared the Sportage to other small SUVs and still think I made the right choice in buying it.

So far, the issues I've encountered with my Kia have been relatively minor. The locking hubs have been problematic, although in retrospect, the initial problem probably was due to some unavoidable driving through deep water! My first winter driving it, there were no problems at all, and things have gone well so far this winter. During the winters in between, I had the hubs replaced three times, although once was due to an installation screw-up and once due to a (supposedly) known issue with the replacement hub kit. This is covered under the powertrain warranty.

Twice, I've had my exhaust system replaced because a heat shield warped over time and started to rattle. It has been suggested to me that I just remove the shield, but since it was covered under the bumper-to-bumper warranty, why not fix it? Got a new muffler and all new exhaust out of that.

Twice, the anti-theft system's connection to the driver's side door lock flaked out, causing the alarm to go off whenever I unlocked the door with the key. Again, repaired under warranty.

I have experienced quite a bit of brake wear. I had new rotors and pads installed by the dealer a couple years ago, and had to do so again recently due to warped rotors - I went to Tires Plus this time, to see if maybe I get a bit more mileage out of their parts than what Kia installed.

Does any of that seem excessive? Compared to previous vehicles I've owned, the problems have been minor and infrequent. My wife's 2002 Chevy Prizm (aka Toyota Corolla) has been in the shop less often but with far more severe problems, and the Nissan 200SX SE I owned previously never had a mechanical problem...but started rusting through after two winters. My Sportage has been a great vehicle, and my Kia dealer has never given me any grief over warranty work. I can't say the same for Chevy or Nissan in my limited experience.

What's the consensus on these vehicles? Are they a good value or are they duds? Lots or maintenance or pretty maintenance free?

I've checked epinions.com and there are about as many 'hate' reviews as there are 'love' reviews. Of course, I realize that people are generally a lot more vocal about things that disappoint them or make them mad than they are about things that work well and make them satisfied.

So I am appealing to the experts? Is this a good car for my 20 year old daughter?

Thanks!


This comes from a technician of nearly 20 years and 6 with Kia.

Its a good little truck as long as it is maintained, pretty much like anything else.

We have several that come in with well over 100k miles on them.

The 01 and 02 are much better than the 98-99s which were problematic. Most problems are minor. I have seen few problems that are major.

I recommend changing the Timing belt at 60k and flushing the coolant and trans every 30.

The 4x4 system can be a problem if it is not taken care of.

most who are happy don't say much. when they are unhappy they speak volumes. I would venture that there are more happy then unhappy, they just don't post anything anyplace. Hey, I'm happy, I have 2 Sportages. they run like swiss watches.
The 2 meter equipment (ham radio) works just fine and fits in the little opening on the left of the dash. The antenna was a modified 5/8th wave 2 meter Larsen "Kool-rod" that clamped on the spare tire rack, via the use of 2-1"" galvinized pipe clamps Home depot sells for 56 cents each, painted black.
The brake pad problem was solved by switching to Bendix Titanium pads, and adding a vented dust shield to the front. The black stuff on the mags has all but been eliminated, plus I found McGuires makes a red foam ball that goes on your drill, used with a small amount of light compound, you can clean the mags to new conditionion, and I use wheelwax (http://www.wheelwax.com/) to keep them clean.