Problems with 1999 Kia Sportage POWER TRAIN

Tl* the contact owns a 1999 kia sportage. the contact stated that the vehicle emitted strong fuel fumes on the exterior and the interior. the dealer was notified of the failure and stated that the vehicle was not included in a manufacturer's recall and the vehicle was not diagnosed. the contact also stated that the timing belt failed three times and was replaced by a mechanic. the drive train failed once and was replaced by a mechanic. the crank shaft was also replaced once. the contact also was experiencing a transmission failure in which the gears slipped randomly and were slow to change over. the vehicle was taken to the dealer more than three times and they were not able to remedy the failure. the contact replaced the seals due to the transmission failure. the fuel leak continued and was not repaired. the vin was not available. the manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided no remedy. the failure mileage was 333,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 1999 kia sportage. the contact stated while driving approximately 10 mph, the transmission slipped gears without warning. the failure recurred sporadically. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnosis, who stated that the transmission would need to be replaced. the vehicle had not been repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the defect. the approximate failure mileage was 127,000.

Rear frame of my 1999 kia sportage rotted, and causing the whole rearend to shift severely. at 30mph. causing me to park my sportage. rest of the frame in good shape. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 1999 kia sportage. the contact stated that the vehicle would hesitate when accelerating. when accelerating from a complete stop, there was a delay in the vehicle accelerating and when it would, the transmission would exhibit an abnormal noise. the vehicle was not inspected. the failure mileage was unknown.

4wd failure, will engage for a few seconds and then slip out . on third trip to my mechanic for this problem, he discovered a recall for the exact same issue regarding the 4wd hubs. upon talking to the kia rep he was told my vehicle was not included. year and model of car were mentioned in the recall. the rep gave him no satisfaction on my behalf. i will be calling kia as well, but would like to activate this service before the fact as i do not expect any satisfaction. *tr

99 kia sportage timing belt snapped because of a freezing valve, cause head to warp, the vehicle stopped working with no warning and stalled on the freeway.*cn

Dt*: the contact stated the fuel tank assembly developed a hole causing a fuel leak. the dealer replaced the fuel tank and determined the storage assembly also had a leak which could no longer be seen. gas totally covered that area where the hole was located. the contact also stated when the front passenger side door was locked, the door could not be opened from the outside with the key. the vehicle has been taken to the dealer regarding the lock. updated 10/4/2006 - the dealer failed to fix the door while it was there for service. the four wheel drive was not activated although the four wheel drive light was illuminated on the dash. the dealer replaced the vacuum lines. *nm

I have a 1999 kia sportage with less than 35,000 miles on it as of july 5, 2006. in november of 2005 i started noticing a really strong fuel smell. shortly thereafter i noticed fluid leaking from the rear of my vehicle. i took it in around thanksgiving to find out that the gas tank had to be replaced. i had to pay almost $1,000 for this repair. also, in may of 2006 power steering fluid leaked all over my garage while the car was in summer storage. upon further investigation it is due to the power steering pressure hose damping pipe rusting out. this car has also already have to get new front brake rotors (rusted/warped) as well as a new exhaust pipe since the previously one rusted off the muffler. within the first couple years one of the bearings went bad and they ended up replacing the whole front axle unit. this car has had many problems and with less than 35,000 miles on it basically makes me sick to my stomach. i am reporting this to you after reading on www.kia.com technical/owners section about a "service campaign" for the leaking fuel tanks in may 2006. nobody has notified me and i just happened to run into myself as i was researching information related to the power steering system since that started leaking in may 2006. *jb

4 wheel drive hubs won't engage although the engine strains as if it is in 4 wheel drive, and the display shows it is engaged.*ak

The automatic locking hubs on my '99 kia sportage have failed again. this is 4 times in 4 years. i have had a vacuum line replaced and the entire front assembly replaced. last year they would not work during a snow storm , causing me to almost get stuck in a snow drift. had the vehicle to the dealer a week later---and they were working. temperatures were warmer when the dealer looked at them. during recent snow storm (12/5/03) hubs once again would not engage. indicator light is on, but the rear wheels spin in the snow. don't know what to do. would like kia to replace with manual locking hubs. any help would be appreciated. *la

When attempting to engage 4-wheel drive, the light illuminates, but 4-wheel drive is not engage. ph

While trying to engage four wheel it did not work. vehicle was sliding in snow. also, only back wheels were turning. *ak

Vehicle had driveshaft replaced every 20,000 miles due to wear. consumer believed that when the vehicle is driven on wet road condition, water is getting into the seal. dealer was notified. please provide any further information. *la

Was driving up a small hill when the car suddenly loss power...and speed dropped.*ak

While driving heard a noise, then steering was very hard to turn, and brakes went to the floor. consumer had to use transmission to slow vehicledown.*ak 4 wheel drive failed. wife of this vehicle's owner also has exact same vehicle, vin [xxx] with 4 wheel drive failure, also consumer experienced power window failure and has experienced electrical problems ever since. *slc information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Front bearings were disentergrated, causing tires to wobble while driving. dealer has replaced bearings and hub. *ak *jb

Consumer states that muffler is noisy, gas tank and fuel pump are being replaced. *tt

4 wheel drive does not engage. *ak

4 wheel drive went out. vehicle has been at dealer since then. according to dealer,part is on backorder, not known when will be available. *ak the dealer denied the vehcile was on recall but fixed the problem after long delay. *yh

Ever since first day of ownership when going from 2 wheel drive to 4 wheel drive there is a grinding noise coming from front end, and will continue during normal operation. when consumer applies brakes, noise will randomly disappear. dealership cannot determine what causes defect. *ak

Front hub will not lock up, causing four wheel drive to become inoperable. dealer can not correct the problem. *ak

4-wd not working, hubs not locking. engine is straining as if in 4wd, indicator light is lit, leading you to believe you are safely in 4wd, but the back tires are spinning and the front tires are not turning. the dealer has checked the truck and ordered parts...that was 2 weeks ago, and dealer has no idea when the parts will be in. kia has not responded to the dealer's inquiry. the wire harness that was replaced took a week because kia sent a faulty harness as a replacement and the part had to be reordered.*ak

4-wheel drive gets stuck which causes consumer to pull over and turn off vehicle. there is a recall for this problem. please provide further information. *ak

Was driving in snow when 4wd light came to indicate it was engaged, but 4wd was not working. took to dealership twice, and had it repaired. mechanic is refusing to repair it for a third time.*ak consumer states vehicle was all over the road due to 4wd not working. *slc

While driving twice in light snow 4-wheel drive unit kick out of gear spontaenously. *ak the 4 wheel drive kick out forced the vehicle to spin 180 degrees. after the third failure, the consumer rented a vehicle, but had a serious accident in which the rental vehicle was totaled. *yh

No lights on dashboard came on .this is one time engine check light did not come on. oil all over motor. around area of dip stick.pressure from motor blew out dip stick has anyone else had to replace motor on these cars? also have had brakes replaced 5 times. wiper assembly replaced. fourwheel drive hose replaced. windsheild replaced. emissons replaced. rotors 5 times. seats front and back 1 time each. soft top replaced 3 times need replaced again.smells like sulfur all the time. will never buy one again . first i have to pay 3000.00 for a new motor and pay this one off.asked for help from kia they said no.they will not replace motor. i bought extended warrenty . don't buy it doesn't cover brakes or rotors or hubs.had headlight switch by motor replaced no headlights they would go off when i put them from high beam to low beam or low to high. then they stopped working alltogether had to hold switch to see to get home.

Four-wheel drive unit seals went bad. consumer tried to put in 4-wheel drive, and vehicle did not respond. took vehicle to dealer, and dealer repaired. but, claimed thatseals will go bad again. *ak

4-wheel drive does not always engage, both front hubs were replaced and pass operation cable adjusted, dealer claims the problems is fixed, however consumer states there is no difference once vehicle is repaired. check engine light illuminated. power window inoperable, dealer replaced window motor. *slc

While driving front passenger's wheel bearing broke off, causing wheel to bent inwards/ sparks flying, and fire started. driver stopped vehicle and found that wheel almost fell off from the axle. please provide further information.*ak

While driving 65mph in rain driver's side windshield wiper stopped. then, passenger's side windshield wiper stopped as well. dealer found driver's side windshield wiper had broken. replaced both windshield wipers. on january 10, 2001 while snowing, very same thing happened again. had windshield wipers replaced again. while driving to dealer's lot driver's windshield wiper arm flew off. *ak the complete 4 wheel drive kit was replaced by the dealer but the 4 wheel drive did not engage resulting in bumping, grinding noise and no traction. the consumer stated that the vehicle was unsafe to drive. *yh 4 wheel drive was never in working order in vehicle, consumer put vehicle in 4 wheel drive and got stuck. there was a loud grinding sound. light indicating this option was working had been on. dealer found 4 wheel drive had not been working in vehicle since purchase. dealer replaced 4 wheel drive. now same problem with 4 wheel drive, same grinding sound back.

The heat shield on my catalytic converter rusted off,the manifold cracked,the muffler rusted through within a year,the widshield wiper transmission broke and was replaced,while the kia sportage is engaged in 4wd it pops out into two wheel drive and causes the driver to lose control of the vehicle.this has happened to me numerous times this winter and the recalled parts have now failed again causing kia to put in manual hubs from 1997 into my 1999 suv.i feel this is a danger to all who own a kia sportage and i have contacted a lawyer to look into possible litigation against kia.i have found a recall on a previouse modle from 1998 but the components seals are failing in the replacment parts hubs .thank in advance for your time and letting me inform you of this dangerouse situation...ed geisler. *ak

Vehicle was leaking gasoline, and fuel line was defective. there was a trail of gasoline miles away, and vehicle just stopped without prior warning. also, speedometer didn't work, and she didn't know how fast she was going. consumer felt that vehicle was very unsafe to drive.*ak

The driver side wiper arm broke off during a rainstorm. (attorney for client) *yh

Vehicle experienced the following problems: 1.) dealer replaced passenger's air bag due to an electrical short; 2.) front axle failed, causing vehicle to jerk while making a full left turn/ replaced by dealer, and 3.) front right tire was replaced because of a bubble on tire. *ak

On two occasions while driving transmission has downshifted at highway speed of 65 mph, causing vehicle to go out of control. dealer notified and informed consumer that nothing could be found. *ak

While driving vehicle will stall., and gear will go into overdrive, and then vehicle will begin to accelerate. *ak

We bought a 1999 kia in november of 1999. since then we have had nothing but trouble with it. every six months there is something gone wrong with it.

Transmission won't kick into gear. when driving of speeds of 70 it stays in first gear . rpm's go up to 6 and won't kick into gear.

Fan belt failed. nlm

Defective front hub assembly will not allow driver to shift into 4 wheel drive "on the fly". nlm

While pulling out of the garage vehicle stalled, and the garage door fell down onto the roof of the vehicle. also, alternator and the battery went completely out. engine check light was on for a week. in addition, when shifting gears, transmission wasn't shifting properly. passenger's side window was jammed and stuck half way up. finally, when applying the gas pedal there was a pounding noise, and no power within the vehicle. *ak