I drive a 2005 Kia Sedona wiht under 40,000 miles. It is a piece. The dealership is a very large one and supposedly has a good reputation for service and help. Not in my book. I do my own vehicle maintenance except for the items under warranty. Which for a KIA pretty much everything is under warranty so it seemed like a great deal.
The alternator went out and caused my battery to die. The service manger told me that the throttle position sensor needed to be replaced and that the alternator was fine. The TPS is under warranty but the battery would cost almost $200. I refused the battery as I could purchase one and replace for less than half their price.
Two days later guess what... The battery was dead. I was not surprised as a bad alternator will draw off the battery. Once again back to KIA. The service manager needed three days to tell me that the alternator needed to be replaced. WOW! In the meantime, I was without a vehicle. Sure they would rent one out to me but I would not pay them.
The alternator was replaced. The service manager tried pressuring me to buy their battery. Nope. My battery was fine - just needed to be charged. One month later the vehicle would not start. Nothing. Not even a click.
Back to the dealership. Four days later the Service Manager tried telling me that the Cold Cranking Amps on my battery was too low at 625. Supposedly a stock KIA minivan requires over 800 CCA's to work since it has so much electrical. Whatever!
I did a bit of my own research and found out that the 2005 Sedona is known to be wired improperly causing everything from blown headlights to engine issues.
I again refused to purchase the $200 battery. The Service Manager finally found the problem... An interior light that was left on.
Do they think that people are stupid? The Van is wired wrong and they won't confess. No wonder KIA's are cheap... HUGE headaches.
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