The security system is an engine immobilizer and audible alarm. The alarm will go off anytime a door, trunk, or hood is opened while it is set. As far as I know, it does not detect glass breakage.
Someone recently stated that he had to purchase floor mats at target to protect the Amanti mats. I too was very careful not to soil my mats, and I found clear plastic mats (similar to those found under office chairs)--they are custom-fit for the Amanti. They don't slide around, and the Amanti logo is "clearly" visible. They're about half the cost that the dealer sells them for if ordered online: http://www.ajusa.com/cgi-bin/lloyd/start?new=y&year=2004&- make=KIA
When the rental car agent handed me the key fob that said Kia on it, I was anticipating something as terrible as the Sportage that was so bad that I returned it within 20 minutes of renting one. When I saw the keys were for a gleaming black Amanti I decided it might worth a day and half to check it out.
I was impressed as soon as I opened the door and saw the smooth black leather which was offset by the very realistic wood trim. As soon as I sat down, I liked the feel of the seats and steering wheel and the look of the dashboard and console. The fit and finish were all high quality. No rattles and the car already had 11,000 miles in its rental life.
I liked the quiet ride and solid, though light, feel of the steering. The acceleration is fine for the car's purpose in life. I thought the transmission could have been a bit smoother but nothing objectionable. The backseat and trunk were enormous.
You would think they could put radio station controls on the steering wheel since they already have volume controls there.
The only real objection I had to the car was the window sill ledges. The ones in this car were hard molded plastic that had a sharp corner on it. The door's armrests were too low for me so I rested my arms on the sill and that hard edge really dug into my elbow and hurt. Are they all like that? The armrests are nicely shaped and padded so I don't see why they can't do the same at the top.
I am not buying right now, but in a year or two I can definitely see considering this car over a lot other cars costing more. I am glad the writers here all seem to enjoy their cars.
where did you rent it? I've ben looking to rent one and havent been able to find one in buffalo ny. I have test drove one but i would like to take it for a longer ride and dont want to feel obligated to the dealer/salesperson.
Well, I really gave my charcoal Amanti a workout this weekend. I live in Sarasota FL., and drove to Daytona Beach and then on to St Augustine. The ride was so wonderful! I know you've heard it all before, but she was so comfortable, powerful and QUIET! We cruised at 85 mph and had normal conversations without having to raise our voices. A few days later, we drove to Anniston, Alabama from Sarasota. We attended a graduation, and then came back the next day - a pretty long haul. But, I felt fresh after arriving home and I'm anxious to go somewhere again. I am very impressed with my car and although it's a KIA, I'm proud to own it, (remember ...they used to snicker at those little Japanese cars like Toyota and Datsun). It was fun passing most other cars. Just one little problem though...a stone cracked my windshield. Tomorrow I will find out how much, etc. I hope they do a good job with the replacement! Just thought I'd share my great trip with ya'll! TopGear
I just discovered this place, after months of looking for info about the Amanti.
My wife and I bought a new Sedona in April to replace our dying Dodge Grand Caravan, and got our first glimpse of an Amanti at that time. About a month later, we bought an Amanti as well.
I evidently got the world's best deal on an Amanti - $18,995 plus tax, title, and license. That was for a base Amanti in carbon gray, with cloth interior (leather is painful in an Arizona summer!). The dealer gave us all kinds of incentives, and even gave us both the "loyalty" rebate and the "competitive" rebate, even though we were supposed to be able to only use one or the other. (We have an old full-sized Ford, plus the Kia Sedona).
We actually traded a '95 Mercedes E320 on the Amanti, which would probably be considered a mortal sin by Mercedes loyalists.
I like the Amanti very much. So far my only warranty work has been to fix the power lumbar support, which didn't ever work. I've put about 1900 miles on the car, and will post more at a later date.
Oh - I forgot to mention: The dealer that gave us the ridiculously good deal was "Avondale Kia", just off the I-10 on the west side of Phoenix, Arizona. I did all of my negotiating (except for trade-in value) over the Internet, and was very happy with it.
After all the crap like "market adjustment" was added in, the price on the sticker was about $27700, so you can imagine how happy I was to walk out of there for $18995 plus tax and stuff. Any way I add it up, I am left with the conclusion that my Amanti didn't DEpreciate, but actually APpreciated when I drove it off the lot.
Come to think of it, the same thing can probably be said for the Sedona I bought a month earlier for $13452 plus tax.
Ridiculous deals. I don't see how Kia managed it. In 1995 I paid $17000 (1995 dollars) for a Chrysler Cirrus. In 2004, I paid $19000 (2004 dollars) for a Kia Amanti. Amazing.
My fuel mileage has been "ok". It's ranged from 17.0 to 19.5 so far, using 87 octace gas. I know that's not bad for a V6, but I guess I got used to getting 22-29 out of my 6-cylinder Cirrus. I know the Cirrus had a lot less weight to pull around, though.
I might also point out that since my new Amanti and my new Sedona have the same engine, I won't have to shop for as many different kinds of repair/maintenance parts (assuming these engines use the same plugs, filters, etc).
Not to belittle your dealings, but you are obviously giving us the price you paid for both vehicles MINUS the trade-in. Since you don't tell us how much you were able to deduct off the sticker for the trade-ins, the prices you give are not quite what others should expect.
Your statement "the Sedona I bought a month earlier for $13452 plus tax", certainly alludes to an "after trade and applicable discounts" price. Can you tell us what the discounted prices were before you received a trade-in credit?
One typo - I believe the Sedona was $14452 plus tax, title, and whatever goodies the dealership could stick us for. At the time we negotiated that price, we were not even planning to do a trade, so that's the "walk in and write Kia a check" price. My trade-in allowance, as subtracted from that $14452, was fair, in my opinion.
On the Amanti, $18995 WAS my sales price, NOT the price after subtracting the trade. This was a base Amanti - the car has none of the three option packages, because I didn't want them. We turned down most of the dealer extras, being smarter this time. We were given a trade-in allowance for the E320 that was reasonable, and in line with my research.
Yes, my Amanti was $18995. Honest to God. That's the price I wheezled out of Russ and Mitch at Avondale Kia before we ever got around to talking trade-ins, because my plan had been to sell my old car myself and buy the Amanti without a trade-in.
The dealership I visited is also, they tell me, one of the largest Kia dealerships in the world, by volume. I don't know if that's true or not, but they certainly move a lot of vehicles, and SOMETHING has to explain how they offered me such deals.
Stacey, I'm interested in knowing what your "out the door" price was, because my deal may have been as good or better. You said "plus tax and 'stuff'". There's tax, doc.fees, license and many other goodies they can attach. I had the dealer add pin-striping to my car; install the darkest legal window tinting, apply their special paint protection (our desert sun is intense); etch the inside door panels and trunk with the serial number(in case of theft)and I bought the leather package. My out the door cost was $23,600. The actual price I negotiated for my car was $21252.77. Taxes were $1657.71; license was 440.52; doc fees were 249.00. I went to four different dealers in the Phoenix area, including Avondale Kia. I negotiated "out the door" price(including the add-ons I wanted) at all four, but Avondale Kia didn't make the best deal. Still can't figure out why there aren't more Amantis on the streets, but maybe that's good....I'd rather NOT be driving a car that is everywhere you look, like that new Chrysler 300. In the Phoenix area, they're all over the place! Nothing special about that!
and much more car overall than Chrysler's 300. Even with the 300's "bold" new blocky front to it. Amanti has a much more appealing look to it. That was a great deal you got on your Amanti. You got out of there without buying any kind of "super-duper-gotta-have-the-extra-protection" warranty, too? Good job!
My "out the door" price, prior to trade allowance, including absolutely everything I bought, was $21355. Looks like the same stuff as you got with two exceptions - no pinstripe on mine, and no leather package. If you add those in, it looks like we both basically got the same smokin' deal.
I got the Cobalt Blue. Love the car. This month I'll be going in for my first oil change--three months is up on the 21st. I've only driven the car 2100 miles so far. Got one little warranty thing to do--the computer on the dash is giving faulty information--
Hertz has them. I got mine in Greenville, SC but I know that at least one other person in the company got an Amanti at another location.
Actually, that is something great about Hertz; big variety of cars, not just Fords and Mercurys. Had a Volvo V70 wagon which was nice; needed a little more power. Lincoln Navigator was nice (free upgrade). Mustang was interesting. They tried to give me an Excursion but I didn't feel like dealing with the effort to get it out of the spot. Still want to drive the Mazda 6.
The cost of a two day rental would be worth it for any car; you'd get to try it on all roads, day and night.
I'll chime in. We were also impressed with this car. I've been meaning to check out this forum to see what others were saying about the Amanti. We rented it from the San Diego Hertz airport last April. If it hadn't been for the review in the weekend WSF, I wouldn't have known what an "Amanti" was. My husband and I were both impressed with the car. I especially liked the side view mirrors that tipped downward when you put the car in reverse. Comfortable, nice interior and fun to drive though we didn't have enough time to really take it through its paces.
Sorry for the skepticism, but it looked too good to be true! I did do some research and it appears you finagled a fleet price on the Amanti. Invoice less both cash discounts = $19K, so it's believeable. In both cases, you scored big time!! Congratulations on your deals.
I was thinking that I got a good price on my base Amanti, which was 19,900 plus tax, tag, etc. My Amanti had 7,450 miles a (Demo) when I got it, so for a new one for 19,000 is a great deal. I get between 15 to 26 miles per gallon and love to drive it. Great car. The 26 mpg was a trip form Deltona, Florida to Savannah Georgia driving at 65 to 80 miles per hour. I did not have a trade in for the Amanti, and sold my other car to some one else.
I had my Amanti in the shop today to get the lumbar support fixed. They ordered a whole new seat back, which did fix the problem. Unfortunately, now the driver's headrest doesn't go down all the way. Something in the seat back is interfering, they said, so now they've ordered ANOTHER new seatback. That means in two more weeks I'll get to go back to the shop again (this will be the third seat-related visit), and hope they fix the headrest problem without creating a NEW problem.
While waiting on my car this morning, I checked out the lot. They had TWENTY Amantis on the lot. Eighteen of them were either silver or pearl white. Then they had one in cobalt blue and one in cream gold, both with leather - very nice, both of them. I noticed that on two of the Amantis, they had painted in the window "$19,495 plus options and tax, title, license". That's just $500 above the deal they worked out with me, and that was WRITTEN ON THE WINDSHIELD today. So much for my negotiating skills...
They also had a silver Amanti (#21) inside the showroom, decked out with just about everything they could imagine - all three option packages, plus heavy-duty window tinting and some gaudy $2500 wheels. They had a price on the window of over $33k - I got a good laugh out of that. It looked horrible with those wheels, IMHO. And the Stability Package, or whatever they call it, doesn't make much sense to me in Arizona.
My other least-favorite dealer option was gone this time, but I saw it last time I was there. They had a black Amanti that had been fitted with a padded leather top that covered the rear half of the roof. I thought it looked poorly installed, and I didn't like the effect. I would have been interested in seeing what an Amanti with a FULL padded leather top looked like, because I think I might have liked that better. The half-top looked a little too much like a badly-receding hairline, IMHO.
That cobalt blue sure was nice, though. If they'd had a non-leather cobalt blue Amanti when I was buying, I might have gotten it. But that day the only blue one was in leather, and it also sold just before I bought my gray one.
One last question - anybody know how I can find out what cool little "extras" Kia has for the Amanti? I noticed a whole range of accessories for the Sorento today, but nothing for the Amanti.
I just talked to my salesman today and he wouldn't give me either but the dealer is offering 3K back to the customer on top of the 2 just mentioned. I'm going to try and wait for 05's to come to see if they go down in price. Oh, i did take it for a drive today & was not impressed as the 1st time I drove it (bouncy and a lot of tire noise/feel) I forgot about the tire inflation i'm sure that was it.
Drove the Kia Amanti just loved the car, I was in a hurry but I did notice that the passenger seat in the front was kinda low. Can you adjust the seat the lady told me that it did not have an adjustment to raise it up, is that correct. Thanks in advance. Buff
just received a call from the sales person and I went to check out the amanti's out back before I went in to the dealership, didn't see one. There was 1 out front and the one in the showroom. That's 2 I wonder where the other's went? Anyway, he called to tell me about the incentives on the amanti. Dealer is offering 3K in addition to the regular 2K loyalty or 2K competition incentives plus 1K marketing. I dont have a competitive vehicle (regal) or a kia so he said i cant use it. I think I saw in this board somewhere that one said they got both incentives(loyalty & competitive). I'm hoping for a drop when the new model year comes out it's a little out of my reach even if i could use the incentives. Looking forward to renting one but haven't been able to find them here yet. checked, no payless here either. I did take the car for couple of hours and was not impressed with the ride I forgot about the tire pressure and didn't check it I'll bet that is what the problem was.
Great discussion on the Amanti. I rented one for the first time through Hertz and fell in love with it. In fact, I request it each time I rent a car which is frequently. Now looking to buy. Since it is approaching the end of the season am wondering if $18,995 is still a good out the door price? The one I am looking at has the leather package, is pearl white..
I also am wondering what kind of price I could get just want the leather interior. I live in Maryland. Do you think Carly and I are dreaming. I would love to get it for 18,900 on the road. Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks in advance Buff
but are you talking used or new? For a new Amanti that price is nearly unbeatable. It's a good time to buy a 2004 Amanti. Rebate time, eh? Even if it's slightly used $18,995 is a great price for what you get. These Kia's only get more appealing with time. They really do! They rock the house much like Foghat! Drivin' Wheel for ya!
I would think $18,900 out the door would be unbeatable to the point of being almost impossible. Even with the great deal I got, that wasn't my "out the door" price - that was my price before tax, title, and license. And mine doesn't have leather. If you could get a pearl white Amanti with leather out the door for $18900, I'd say go ahead and buy two or three!
I still love the car. Today, on the third try, they finally seem to have fixed my driver's seat. When I got the car, the lumbar support didn't work. I took it in for them to fix it, but they had to order a new seat back. That fixed the lumbar problems, but it had a manufacturing defect that kept the headrest from going down all the way, so they ordered ANOTHER new seatback. My second new seatback seems much better. The power tile adjustment seems louder than my original seat did, but I'll keep an eye on it and see what happens.
Still haven't gotten to 3,000 miles yet, after almost three months. At this rate, the car might last me forever.
Stacey, what in the world is a "power tile" adjustment? By the way, I don't have quite three thousand miles yet either (2600) but my three months were almost up so I went in for my first oil change. I think I forgot to mention that as part of my negotiations for my purchase (see post #275) I also talked my dealer into free oil changes for a year. I think I may have you beat!
Hmmm... As I read my last post, I can't figure out what I was trying to say when I typed "power tile", either! Maybe I meant "tilt", or something. Anyway, what I was referring to was the "reclining" function of the seat. Also, I notice that it is already a lot quieter than it was yesterday, so maybe it just needed to "settle in" a little (to use the highly technical term).
If my car had a power tile function, I would use it on my kitchen floor! LOL
Yes, free oil changes for a year might have me beat, although at the rate I'm going, a year's worth of oil changes will only run me about $70. Plus, my dealership is 42 miles from home, so going there for oil changes would cost me more than it would save me, even if they were free.
and loved the interior. Does anyone know if it will get Nav for 2005? Or an updated engine? Bluetooth for wireless cell connect? I was very impressed with my walk around. It is going on my short list come time to shop. Has anyone cross shopped this with the Hyundai XG350? They both seem to be excellent values. The Avalon will be updated early next year and I feel that it too will be an excellent value for additional money. Perhaps the best deal will be a slightly used Amanti seeing how Kia's do depreciate more than a Toyota/Honda. Look forward to your responses!
I took the Hyundai XG350 for a test drive before buying the Amanti and was very much impressed with the car. The ride seemed tighter than the Amanti and many of the interior features were identical to the Amanti (no surprise there). The XG350 has been around for a few years and has proved to be dependable, which could be one of the reasons the dealers in my area were not so willing to meet my price. I am extremely pleased with my Amanti so far and am glad I chose to buy it over the other cars I looked at. The list of equipment that comes standard on the Amanti is superior to any other car I've looked at (even at higher prices). As for your suggestion they update Amanti's engine, I have found this engine has all the power I need, but the gas mileage could stand some improvement. Does anyone know if this is the same engine that's in the XG350? I have been told that this particular engine has proved itself to be extremely durable and trouble-free.
I have 2k on my new Amanti,there is a knocking sound from front when going over small bumps @ about 20-35 mph.Brought car back to dealer,they are now ordering LINkS&BUSHINGS for front end.I hope this works? Also after about 1k car over heated ,towed to dealer ,they had to tighten a flange that houses stat. Now have slight whine when car shifts from 1st to 2nd gear& engine sounds louder when accelarating.Before I bought this car took it for a test drive & car was smooth & quiet.Now after 2k I am disappointed ,will post again soon.
I love my Amanti, I've had it about 6 weeks and it has about 1400 miles on it. I'm not happy with what I payed though, 24K sounds high compared to what others here say they paid. I do have a question on the weight.
I read a couple of reviews that mentioned the weight of the Amanti being about 4000lbs.
I checked the weight of several other cars about the same size as the Amanti or bigger and all were lighter.
Did they intentionally make it heaver for some reason, like smoother ride, safety, etc?
Kia vehicles are notoriously heavier than other makes. Even my '99 Sephia outweighed the Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic. The Sportage outweighs the CRV and RAV4, etc. I have heard several explanations for this, ranging from heavier sheetmetal(though the Kia sheetmetal is not exempt from door dings, be careful for those)to heavier engines. I don't mind the heavier weight...I still get 25 mpg on the highway in my Sportage 4x4. The little SUV is solid as a rock.
An interesting sidenote on Kia vehicle sturdiness...a lady in an '01 Kia Optima was scrunched between two big rigs on a Chicago expressway in 2002. She survived even though the top of her rig was shaved off! She certainly had praise for her Kia after that ordeal for it's sturdiness...the big rigs were literally squished on both sides of her Optima!! If you are really adamant about getting better gas mileage you might want to check into aftermarket air filters for your Amanti(K&H is one possibility)to improve performance. Otherwise enjoy your Amanti..it's a beautiful rig with a lot going for it for the price IMO. Even paying $24,000 is a bargain for what you get. Study the list of amenities on your Amanti..they are aplenty.
baseballbernie: I think your price was okay. Most of the low end prices cited here seem to be base model quotes. I saw one of those last week inside a mall and was aghast at its stripped down look, e.g., outdated analog clock in the middle of the dash, etc. Was disappointed they chose to show that model to thousands of mall goers who probably believed they were looking at the quintessential Amanti. Last Jan I paid $24.9K for one with everything but the ESP package. In the subsequent 6 months or so I only saw one other Amanti on the road but just within the last few weeks have seen 4 more. Glad to see all the "newbuyers," that seem increasingly to be posting on this discussion board, out on the road. Sorry to hear of bong1's problems--I'm thinking that's probably the exception.
boa - That's funny to read your comments about the clock. I really like the clock, and one of my complaints about the Amanti was that you lose that clock when you add the first option package! I guess it takes all types of us... LOL
Yes, the super-low prices were for the base Amanti. If I lived anywhere but in the blazing heat of Arizona, I would have gotten the leather package, but that's just too darned hot on the backside here in the desert! So I got the base model.
The clock is one of my few annoyances on our new Sedona: I look at the stereo display, I look at the instrument cluster, I look all over the dash, and then I FINALLY remember to look up to where the clock really is, in the overhead console.
I finally saw another Amanti on the road, but it wasn't here in AZ. It was on a business trip to California. I drove beside it for several miles on the freeway, admiring the way it looks on the road (since I never see mine from the outside, as I'm always behind the wheel...).
Hi. This is my first Kia, but about the 10th car I've owned, including European cars. I paid 25 with all options. I love the styling, inside and out, and I think the interior and exterior/body is on par or equal to just about anything else.
I am keeping my fingers crossed regarding reliability, problems, etc.
Though I realize this is no sports sedan I'm thinking of changing tire brands in order to firm up the ride. Anybody here ever do this ?
I just love the car. When I tell my friends I am looking they really dog it. Telling me that I am crazy to purchase a Kia. Has anyone had any major problems with there car. Thanks in advance Buff
I just got it so no idea of reliability. But reading about the Hyudai xg350 reliability in CR gives me a generally decent feeling about this. Amantis are used as rental cars so a rental car company fleet manager would have some idea about reliability. That's the big question with this car. Everything else is obviously wonderful.
Hi, intheway... Don't know if you'll be able to firm up the ride by changing tire brands. I asked my dealer if they could put in a stiffer suspension, but that would be costly. By the way, what is the electronic stability program package? You said you got all the options, so what does that do? I asked my service advisor, and he didn't know anything about it because it is so seldom purchased.
Comments
I was impressed as soon as I opened the door and saw the smooth black leather which was offset by the very realistic wood trim. As soon as I sat down, I liked the feel of the seats and steering wheel and the look of the dashboard and console. The fit and finish were all high quality. No rattles and the car already had 11,000 miles in its rental life.
I liked the quiet ride and solid, though light, feel of the steering. The acceleration is fine for the car's purpose in life. I thought the transmission could have been a bit smoother but nothing objectionable. The backseat and trunk were enormous.
You would think they could put radio station controls on the steering wheel since they already have volume controls there.
The only real objection I had to the car was the window sill ledges. The ones in this car were hard molded plastic that had a sharp corner on it. The door's armrests were too low for me so I rested my arms on the sill and that hard edge really dug into my elbow and hurt. Are they all like that? The armrests are nicely shaped and padded so I don't see why they can't do the same at the top.
I am not buying right now, but in a year or two I can definitely see considering this car over a lot other cars costing more. I am glad the writers here all seem to enjoy their cars.
I am very impressed with my car and although it's a KIA, I'm proud to own it, (remember ...they used to snicker at those little Japanese cars like Toyota and Datsun). It was fun passing most other cars. Just one little problem though...a stone cracked my windshield. Tomorrow I will find out how much, etc. I hope they do a good job with the replacement! Just thought I'd share my great trip with ya'll!
TopGear
-juice
My wife and I bought a new Sedona in April to replace our dying Dodge Grand Caravan, and got our first glimpse of an Amanti at that time. About a month later, we bought an Amanti as well.
I evidently got the world's best deal on an Amanti - $18,995 plus tax, title, and license. That was for a base Amanti in carbon gray, with cloth interior (leather is painful in an Arizona summer!). The dealer gave us all kinds of incentives, and even gave us both the "loyalty" rebate and the "competitive" rebate, even though we were supposed to be able to only use one or the other. (We have an old full-sized Ford, plus the Kia Sedona).
We actually traded a '95 Mercedes E320 on the Amanti, which would probably be considered a mortal sin by Mercedes loyalists.
I like the Amanti very much. So far my only warranty work has been to fix the power lumbar support, which didn't ever work. I've put about 1900 miles on the car, and will post more at a later date.
After all the crap like "market adjustment" was added in, the price on the sticker was about $27700, so you can imagine how happy I was to walk out of there for $18995 plus tax and stuff. Any way I add it up, I am left with the conclusion that my Amanti didn't DEpreciate, but actually APpreciated when I drove it off the lot.
Come to think of it, the same thing can probably be said for the Sedona I bought a month earlier for $13452 plus tax.
Ridiculous deals. I don't see how Kia managed it. In 1995 I paid $17000 (1995 dollars) for a Chrysler Cirrus. In 2004, I paid $19000 (2004 dollars) for a Kia Amanti. Amazing.
My fuel mileage has been "ok". It's ranged from 17.0 to 19.5 so far, using 87 octace gas. I know that's not bad for a V6, but I guess I got used to getting 22-29 out of my 6-cylinder Cirrus. I know the Cirrus had a lot less weight to pull around, though.
I might also point out that since my new Amanti and my new Sedona have the same engine, I won't have to shop for as many different kinds of repair/maintenance parts (assuming these engines use the same plugs, filters, etc).
Stacey
Not to belittle your dealings, but you are obviously giving us the price you paid for both vehicles MINUS the trade-in. Since you don't tell us how much you were able to deduct off the sticker for the trade-ins, the prices you give are not quite what others should expect.
Your statement "the Sedona I bought a month earlier for $13452 plus tax", certainly alludes to an "after trade and applicable discounts" price. Can you tell us what the discounted prices were before you received a trade-in credit?
One typo - I believe the Sedona was $14452 plus tax, title, and whatever goodies the dealership could stick us for. At the time we negotiated that price, we were not even planning to do a trade, so that's the "walk in and write Kia a check" price. My trade-in allowance, as subtracted from that $14452, was fair, in my opinion.
On the Amanti, $18995 WAS my sales price, NOT the price after subtracting the trade. This was a base Amanti - the car has none of the three option packages, because I didn't want them. We turned down most of the dealer extras, being smarter this time. We were given a trade-in allowance for the E320 that was reasonable, and in line with my research.
Yes, my Amanti was $18995. Honest to God. That's the price I wheezled out of Russ and Mitch at Avondale Kia before we ever got around to talking trade-ins, because my plan had been to sell my old car myself and buy the Amanti without a trade-in.
The dealership I visited is also, they tell me, one of the largest Kia dealerships in the world, by volume. I don't know if that's true or not, but they certainly move a lot of vehicles, and SOMETHING has to explain how they offered me such deals.
I'm interested in knowing what your "out the door" price was, because my deal may have been as good or better. You said "plus tax and 'stuff'". There's tax, doc.fees, license and many other goodies they can attach. I had the dealer add pin-striping to my car; install the darkest legal window tinting, apply their special paint protection (our desert sun is intense); etch the inside door panels and trunk with the serial number(in case of theft)and I bought the leather package. My out the door cost was $23,600. The actual price I negotiated for my car was $21252.77. Taxes were $1657.71; license was 440.52; doc fees were 249.00. I went to four different dealers in the Phoenix area, including Avondale Kia. I negotiated "out the door" price(including the add-ons I wanted) at all four, but Avondale Kia didn't make the best deal.
Still can't figure out why there aren't more Amantis on the streets, but maybe that's good....I'd rather NOT be driving a car that is everywhere you look, like that new Chrysler 300. In the Phoenix area, they're all over the place! Nothing special about that!
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
My "out the door" price, prior to trade allowance, including absolutely everything I bought, was $21355. Looks like the same stuff as you got with two exceptions - no pinstripe on mine, and no leather package. If you add those in, it looks like we both basically got the same smokin' deal.
I hope you like yours as much as I like mine!!!
What color did you get?
Stacey
Actually, that is something great about Hertz; big variety of cars, not just Fords and Mercurys. Had a Volvo V70 wagon which was nice; needed a little more power. Lincoln Navigator was nice (free upgrade). Mustang was interesting. They tried to give me an Excursion but I didn't feel like dealing with the effort to get it out of the spot. Still want to drive the Mazda 6.
The cost of a two day rental would be worth it for any car; you'd get to try it on all roads, day and night.
-juice
Sorry for the skepticism, but it looked too good to be true! I did do some research and it appears you finagled a fleet price on the Amanti. Invoice less both cash discounts = $19K, so it's believeable. In both cases, you scored big time!!
Congratulations on your deals.
While waiting on my car this morning, I checked out the lot. They had TWENTY Amantis on the lot. Eighteen of them were either silver or pearl white. Then they had one in cobalt blue and one in cream gold, both with leather - very nice, both of them. I noticed that on two of the Amantis, they had painted in the window "$19,495 plus options and tax, title, license". That's just $500 above the deal they worked out with me, and that was WRITTEN ON THE WINDSHIELD today. So much for my negotiating skills...
They also had a silver Amanti (#21) inside the showroom, decked out with just about everything they could imagine - all three option packages, plus heavy-duty window tinting and some gaudy $2500 wheels. They had a price on the window of over $33k - I got a good laugh out of that. It looked horrible with those wheels, IMHO. And the Stability Package, or whatever they call it, doesn't make much sense to me in Arizona.
My other least-favorite dealer option was gone this time, but I saw it last time I was there. They had a black Amanti that had been fitted with a padded leather top that covered the rear half of the roof. I thought it looked poorly installed, and I didn't like the effect. I would have been interested in seeing what an Amanti with a FULL padded leather top looked like, because I think I might have liked that better. The half-top looked a little too much like a badly-receding hairline, IMHO.
That cobalt blue sure was nice, though. If they'd had a non-leather cobalt blue Amanti when I was buying, I might have gotten it. But that day the only blue one was in leather, and it also sold just before I bought my gray one.
One last question - anybody know how I can find out what cool little "extras" Kia has for the Amanti? I noticed a whole range of accessories for the Sorento today, but nothing for the Amanti.
Stacey
-juice
I'm hoping for a drop when the new model year comes out it's a little out of my reach even if i could use the incentives.
Looking forward to renting one but haven't been able to find them here yet. checked, no payless here either.
I did take the car for couple of hours and was not impressed with the ride I forgot about the tire pressure and didn't check it I'll bet that is what the problem was.
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
I still love the car. Today, on the third try, they finally seem to have fixed my driver's seat. When I got the car, the lumbar support didn't work. I took it in for them to fix it, but they had to order a new seat back. That fixed the lumbar problems, but it had a manufacturing defect that kept the headrest from going down all the way, so they ordered ANOTHER new seatback. My second new seatback seems much better. The power tile adjustment seems louder than my original seat did, but I'll keep an eye on it and see what happens.
Still haven't gotten to 3,000 miles yet, after almost three months. At this rate, the car might last me forever.
By the way, I don't have quite three thousand miles yet either (2600) but my three months were almost up so I went in for my first oil change. I think I forgot to mention that as part of my negotiations for my purchase (see post #275) I also talked my dealer into free oil changes for a year. I think I may have you beat!
Hmmm... As I read my last post, I can't figure out what I was trying to say when I typed "power tile", either! Maybe I meant "tilt", or something. Anyway, what I was referring to was the "reclining" function of the seat. Also, I notice that it is already a lot quieter than it was yesterday, so maybe it just needed to "settle in" a little (to use the highly technical term).
If my car had a power tile function, I would use it on my kitchen floor! LOL
Yes, free oil changes for a year might have me beat, although at the rate I'm going, a year's worth of oil changes will only run me about $70. Plus, my dealership is 42 miles from home, so going there for oil changes would cost me more than it would save me, even if they were free.
Stacey
As for your suggestion they update Amanti's engine, I have found this engine has all the power I need, but the gas mileage could stand some improvement. Does anyone know if this is the same engine that's in the XG350? I have been told that this particular engine has proved itself to be extremely durable and trouble-free.
I read a couple of reviews that mentioned the weight of the Amanti being about 4000lbs.
I checked the weight of several other cars about the same size as the Amanti or bigger and all were lighter.
Did they intentionally make it heaver for some reason, like smoother ride, safety, etc?
Was it a matter of cost savings?
Does anyone know?
An interesting sidenote on Kia vehicle sturdiness...a lady in an '01 Kia Optima was scrunched between two big rigs on a Chicago expressway in 2002. She survived even though the top of her rig was shaved off! She certainly had praise for her Kia after that ordeal for it's sturdiness...the big rigs were literally squished on both sides of her Optima!! If you are really adamant about getting better gas mileage you might want to check into aftermarket air filters for your Amanti(K&H is one possibility)to improve performance. Otherwise enjoy your Amanti..it's a beautiful rig with a lot going for it for the price IMO. Even paying $24,000 is a bargain for what you get. Study the list of amenities on your Amanti..they are aplenty.
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
Last Jan I paid $24.9K for one with everything but the ESP package. In the subsequent 6 months or so I only saw one other Amanti on the road but just within the last few weeks have seen 4 more. Glad to see all the "newbuyers," that seem increasingly to be posting on this discussion board, out on the road.
Sorry to hear of bong1's problems--I'm thinking that's probably the exception.
Yes, the super-low prices were for the base Amanti. If I lived anywhere but in the blazing heat of Arizona, I would have gotten the leather package, but that's just too darned hot on the backside here in the desert! So I got the base model.
The clock is one of my few annoyances on our new Sedona: I look at the stereo display, I look at the instrument cluster, I look all over the dash, and then I FINALLY remember to look up to where the clock really is, in the overhead console.
I finally saw another Amanti on the road, but it wasn't here in AZ. It was on a business trip to California. I drove beside it for several miles on the freeway, admiring the way it looks on the road (since I never see mine from the outside, as I'm always behind the wheel...).
-juice
I am keeping my fingers crossed regarding reliability, problems, etc.
Though I realize this is no sports sedan I'm thinking of changing tire brands in order to firm up the ride. Anybody here ever do this ?
-thanks.
Buff
I just got it so no idea of reliability. But reading about the Hyudai xg350 reliability in CR gives me a generally decent feeling about this.
Amantis are used as rental cars so a rental car company fleet manager would have some idea about reliability. That's the big question with this car. Everything else is obviously wonderful.
Don't know if you'll be able to firm up the ride by changing tire brands. I asked my dealer if they could put in a stiffer suspension, but that would be costly.
By the way, what is the electronic stability program package? You said you got all the options, so what does that do? I asked my service advisor, and he didn't know anything about it because it is so seldom purchased.