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Comments
Ours has the Hankook RA07 tires. I check the tire pressure pretty often and keep it close to 35 psi.
Overall, I'm pretty much impressed by the feeling of the van.
Air Conditioning: Now that things are heating up quick in the Ozarks I can now say that the system in my van is disappointing. It's ability to produce cool air is the equivalent of my '94 Plymouth Voyager in desperate need of freon. Is there anything that can be done? Thanks signed Sweltering.
Austin: It sounds as though there is a distinct difference in your cold air output and mine. If you had mine you definitely would now it. There's no cool air unless you are in a front seat with the vents directed to your face. We've had unseasonably cool weather for this country, but this last week we've had high 80's with high humidity. Air conditioning is vital since the back windows can't be rolled down. I wonder what could be wrong since some of you have perfect air and others don't?
Seems there are some differences in A/C performance from Sedona to Sedona.
Didn't someone suggest that his/her dealer said the ratio of water to coolant was different than in most new vehicles, and that might explain the weak performance of the A/C? Or was that to explain the weak performance of the heater? Sorry, I guess that isn't much help!
My experience has been that it works extremely well when the vehicle starts out cool inside (after being in garage, for instance), as the AC will do a great job of keeping the inside cool.
However, when the van has sat outside in the sun for a long period of time, such that the inside is sweltering hot (especially the dash), the AC takes forever to cool the inside. This can obviously be mitigated with a cheap, reflective windshield shade/visor, and a dash cover which can be removed easily. A slightly open window or sunroof also helps slightly.
As for the 20 degree theory, I believe that to be correct. It is exactly how the central air unit in my house was "checked"...ie: 20 degree difference = proper operation.
Last summer, we had 6 people in the van (including my Mother in law), with outside temp at 100 degrees. I can tell you that the trip was quite uncomfortable, since the inside only cooled to about 85 degrees.
I am not certain, however, if the discomfort was caused by the heat, the nauseating smell of my Mother in Law's perfume, or just the presence of my Mother in Law in general.
No offense to anyone intended. She was here ALL SUMMER (64 days, and 13 hours......seriously!) Every man has his limit! (mine is about 45 minutes with her...)
RGDS to all
Hok
Of course, if you have the unfortunate circumstance of Hokum and have to deal with nauseating perfume, you may be better off turning off the AC altogether and opening up all the windows.
Just my $.02
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
We live in Houston also. We're going to do a second test drive of a Sedona this Friday. (This time w/o the 3 carseats) We'll do it in the Houston heat in the middle of the afternoon and check out how well the A/C works. We'll probably purchase ours in about 4 weeks. Then we're driving to Illinois to visit my In-Laws!
(No perfume included...)
Bluedevils: when I go back I'll throw the ratio to water line at them...that might get the wheels moving. good idea, thanks
3carseats1: I'll try the 20 degree trick what's, the best type of thermometer to use?
hokum: sorry about the long trip with M-I-L. I hope I get to feel cool during the summer months with my wife & kids when we go on a trip. Thank goodness my M-I-L drives her own car :-)
Heard that the new R134A freon nowadays isn't like the old freon years back, not as strong due to the EPA guidelines Think that could be the case with me. weird how some sedona have cold and others don't. could it be a production thing or a compressor defect?
I wanted to go to another dealer, Kia said stay with the one I'm at..."the mechanic knows your van best" I said ..."if that's true why don't I have cold air he's changed everything" :-)
Happy motoring to all of you that 's trying to help me out with ideas about the A/C your the best. this is a great site area.
I'll keep in touch on my ongoing problem.
If I had to do it all over again, I would try and get a van with a tan interior, instead of the dark gray. That dark gray gets seriously hot!
As for "Jungle Gardenia"...it seems if our host has some (bad) experience with nauseating perfumes. It was called "Ceasars Woman", and it was so strong, I could taste it. Heck, it took us nearly 3 weeks (after she FINALLY left) just to get that smell out of our house! OK, don't get me started. My MIL is a character though.....trust me (her hair is currently maroon!). For those who will understand, she is "Springer material". I think we all must have relatives like that.
Anyway, the Sedona suits us well in Houston. We got some strange looks in our neighborhood when we first brought it (both) new vehicles home....since it wasn't a Honda or a Toyota. But I still think we made the right choice. 17k miles, and all is well.
Lastly, for those MIL's who read this thread, please understand I mean no offense. I have good reason to say what I have. Trust me.
RGDS to all (including all the MILs)
Hok
On the subject of the A/C, this test vehicle was fine. It is a sunny, hot and humid day here in St. Louis. Not a cloud in the sky and temp in the upper 80's. I took a van that was out in the lot so that I could see how the A/C worked in a hot van. We had to turn the fan switch down after a few minutes, the van was nice and comfortable. Looks to me like a hit and miss problem.
We will be going back tomorrow or Saturday so that my wife can look at colors. Who knows, we may be owners of a loaded EX by the weekend.
This dealer has no haggle pricing of $1,000 off sticker and than the rebate on top of that. Before the rebate, the EX with every option is $23,100. That looks to be about 7% profit for the dealer. We'll see how that goes when we go back and how well they do on our trade.
Thank you for MIL's.
PS. This board seems to be more valuable concentrating on the MIL Sedona issues then any reference to the ODY. Which IMHO I find discussing the sedona so much better since it ROCKS compared to all other mini vans!!
Hok
Our current car (1995 Camry) doesn't have room for an MIL. Maybe we shouldn't buy a van
The Sedona drives and handles very well. We saw what previous posts mentioned about the 3rd row headrests blocking the view. We also will remove them when we buy ours. We're looking forward to our purchase!
We love the Sedona!!! We have been looking at them since they came out and I have been on this board since the beginning. So far everyone that has seen the van absolutely loves the color and look. What a great ride compared to our 6 year old Chrysler.
Let's hope it is reliable, it has to be better than our Chrysler.
I want to thank everyone for the great input on this board and wish all Happy Motoring!
I tend to use a heavier oil in my cars anyway so I won't have a problem using 10w40 year round. Has anyone else noticed this?
I really hope that I have not opened a can of worms that I am not hungry enough to finish by starting an oil question!!!
I'd go by what your manual says (5w30 seems more common these days). My .02...
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
I suppose I should call my local dealer and see what they say.
EX with Homelink $18998
LX with CD and roof rack $16997
The latter especially is one HECK of a great deal for a family on a budget. The only other van anywhere near this price range is base Caravan with wimpy 2.4 liter engine (or stripped Windstar - yuck). That's $5000 less than base Sienna after current big discounts, $9000 less than an Odyssey LX with extended warranty, and closing in on half the price of an Odyssey EX-L. I'd say, at that price at least, depreciation vs. Honda or Toyota is absolutely NOT a concern.
Our sale person was very knowledgeable (hard to believe) and he had experience with unsuccessfully attempting to program 2 remotes in the past. He assured me that the second remote was a running Kia change and not something the dealer had done. Unfortunately, I did not ask if they could. People had posted previously that Kia was going to offer a software upgrade so that previous vans could get the second remote added. I don't know if that ever happened.
I had forgotten about this feature of the Sedona. Just another pleasant surprise from our new 3 day old toy.
We have had our Sedona for over 10 months now and are still trying to find a reason to take it back to the dealer before the 1-yr "squeeks & rattles" warranty expires. So far our only minor annoyance is the passenger-side rear door occasionally rubs on something when we close it.
Regarding auto-on lights, I believe that we established a number of posts ago that in the US-delivered vans all of the exterior/dash lights are automatically activated. In the Canadian-spec vans only the headlights and taillights come on automatically. A bit strange.
Still trying to make the rear interior lights behave rationally. I followed the recommendations in this discussion previously to make the lights come on when any door is opened. I had it working at one point a few weeks ago, but now they again only come on with the dash switch or when pushed. Will have to spend some more time playing with them. The gradual dimming feature of the interior lights is novel.
At just over 4000 miles our keyless remote started acting up. It intermittently won't lock or unlock doors. Even holding in the button for a few seconds doesn't help. And, of course, it worked fine at the dealer. From earlier posts, I see that several other folks are/were also having the same problem. Has anyone had this repaired and if so, what did the dealer do? I'm thinking about looking into an aftermarket dual remote system.
Last weekend we took a round trip drive of about 500 miles. I drove about 72-73 MPH in strickly interstate driving. I had the front and rear A/C going the whole way (90 degrees outside) but not much on recirculate. I was truly disappointed with the 18.0 MPG we got. The highway was fairly flat with some hills. The only thing that I think could have caused this lower mileage is that there was a very strong southern crosswind (we were driving east, then west). The only other trip we've taken with it was about 70 miles and we got 22 MPG. I guess crosswinds have a big effect on gas mileage.
My service manager said brakes are very expensive on the Sedonas (from them) and are not available in the aftermarket. I called a couple of brake shops and they don't have them yet. They think its just a matter of time before they get them in. I hope so 'cause the I think I was quoted from Kia about $170 for a front brake job. We have never used the parking brake very much on any of our cars but my wife and I are now trying to remember to do so. Every time the parking brake (the rear brakes) is applied, it adjusts itself so the front brakes don't do as much work, extending their life. I understand brakes are not adjusted by backing the vehicle and stopping anymore.
Question:
Hi,
I'm seeing users posting messages at the Edmunds website regarding new
customers now getting a 2nd Key FOB with their new vehicle purchase.
Will this be available for current Sedona owners by "reprogramming" to
allow 2 remotes ?
Any information regarding this would be appreciated.
Reply:
Thank you for your correspondence. If your vehicles production date was on
or after February 17, 2002, then your vehicle will be sold with two Keyless
entry transmitters. Please keep in mind the only vehicle we install the
Keyless entry system on, is the Sedona EX model.
Thank you
Kia Motors America
hope this helps... the honeymoon continues ....:>)
Thanks, Paul.
BTW, my dad used to repair a/c's as part of his garage business. Themometers available at any good parts house...should read below 40 (really good ones closer to 32) with van parked, in the shade, engine running and recirculate setting on. Stick the thermometer IN the vent...you will get readings all over the chart outside as radiated heat from the interior affects it. That is why the bulbous (flat) head on most car a/c thermometers. Shouldn't be different for different cars/vans. You should always use a/c at least every couple of weeks (yes, winter too...use it to heat up car on hot setting, and it will also warm up your water temp faster (more demand...makes engine work harder) to keep freon and oils circulating to lube seals. Might get by for a couple of years without doing this, but eventually, long term you'll have a seal go out and expensive repairs.
Regards to all.
Fly Navy, the best always have! JC