Kia Sorento Maintenance and Repair

jha2 · July 2003

The vibration or shudder that I feel is present at lower speeds but really presents itelf at 75-80 mph. I drive mostly interstate so I feel it pretty constant. I'm wondering if its an axle problem. I remember seeing a post about a rear axle bushing being replaced, but I'm not sure if that corrected that persons problem. I feel this vibration throughout the seat and floorboards.Like I say its almost if the whole vehicle shudders, in a rhythmic pattern.Its an SUV, but it shouldn't feel like its about to fall apart, while your driving down the highway.

lok888 · July 2003

Maybe the driveshaft.

brooklyn1951 · July 2003

lok888- Sounds like you have the same problem with your TOD transfer case that I experienced this past spring. The dealer only noticed it once and then it went away. They returned the Sorento to me and the problem was gone, nor has it resurfaced. Go figure!
BTW- they gave me an '01 Optima while the Sorento was in the shop. I was not overly impressed and considered it equal to a '95 Dodge Neon that my daughter owned for a while. The '03 Optima in the dealer's showroom was much more impressive.

sl0971 · July 2003

I am in the process of researching the Sorento. I want to buy within the next 2 months. After reading some of the issues on this board, I have to ask....is the Sorento worth buying? Other than this board, I have heard nothing but positive things and am going to test drive later today. I absolutely love the body style and price. With this being a KIA and not having heard alot of positives about them in general, I have to admit, I am a little hesitant now about this vehicle. Does the warranty make a differnce with all of the issues coming up?

dbgindy · July 2003

I'm sure you will find problem postings on just about any make or model. I've had my EX 4x4 since early April and have over 5900 miles on it with no problems. All I can say is so far it's been great.

luvmysorento · July 2003

Just remember that even though people are listing their problems, there are alot of us new Sorento owners that have had no problems so far. I have 12,500 miles on my Sorento and am extremely happy with it. I have had mine since Dec 2002. My sister bought one two months after I did and she loves it too.

Have you had the opportunity to test drive the Sorento yet? Try it!

lok888 · July 2003

brooklyn1951 - Just found out from my dealer on Saturday afternoon that they have ordered a new transfer case for my Sorento. They told they simply order a new part rather than taking the thing apart and look for problems. The part is coming from CA and will be here by Tuesday. Hopefully, they will replace it by Tuesday afternoon. Again, I was driving my Sorento (EX 4WD with TOD) in "AUTO" mode. The car drove like in "4Lo" when turning. The "AUTO" and "4Lo" switch wasn't responding. It is unusual at 7500 miles because I only used the "4Lo" mode couple times in the winter. Why me??? So, they didn't find out what's wrong with your car (transfer case) and didn't make any repair. I will be happy if they give me another Sorento (like a demo from the dealer's showroom) for a rental.

Hicaffa - I am trying to think if the thumping feeling and noise from the rear wheels is the first sign of problem. Do you remember we had a discussion about when the car is at the light and you can feel the force from the rear wheels once you are releasing the brake pedal (when the brake pads are leaving the disc rotors)? It began like few months ago and I wasn't unaware of it.

jbrew7 · July 2003

We've had our EX 4x4 all the bells and whistles Sorento since November, with 7100 miles on it. Anyways, no problems other than the LED display on the automatic AC/Heater display seems to be out of whack. Sometimes it's readable, other times it goes in and out. Anyone else having a similar problem? Probably a lose wire or something like that.

Placeman · July 2003

I had an isolated problem with the cruise control about two weeks ago. I was about half way through a 4 hour drive, using the cruise control. I had so slow down, so I cancelled the cruise. After I had wide open space again, I hit the resume, but nothing happened (no "CRUISE" light, no nothing). I turned the cruise control master switch on and off, to no avail. I kept motoring down the highway for about 30 min. (the hard way), playing with the cruise buttons occasionally. Finally it worked. No explanation, after hitting the set button for the up-teenth time, it finally engaged. Anybody else have this happen?

hciaffa · July 2003

luvmysorento.... I remember that at one time either you or your sister had some popping noise issue with the front windshield at one point it was mentioned that it was to be replaced. I wrote in a post that ours was doing the same but having it tested it was thought to be the duct work and or the plastic expanding or contracting when the defroster was on.Seeing that this only happened in the winter. What were the results.
lok888.... I don't really now if the problem related to the thumping is related to the transfer case problem. I'm anxious to see how you make out and see if the thumping continues. different opinion on this some people say its the differentials some say it the rear brakes. We'll see what happens. I do know that (we have TOD as well) when I tried to engage the 4 lo it takes about 10 to 20 seconds for the light to come on and the same when disengaging. I wonder if this in mormal. On my Ranger 4x4 it comes on instantly.
placeman....I haven't had any problems with my cruise but I did notice that it is different than other manufacturers in the ooperation. I have tried this on several cars and trucks... when engaged lets say at 60mph and I step on the brake it will disengage or if I coast for a while in lowering the speed and then hitting the resume button it goes back to 60 mph. On the Sorento it will not do this. If you coast and hit resume it will not increase the speed that it was set to and if you hit the brakes you have to speed up then ingage the set button, strange.
jbrew7... we encontered this once. On a very humid day when we turned the temp on with the Auto button we noticed the LCD display strated to blink and then it cleared itself up. No idea.
One thing I did notice is that all of sudden when you press the passenger side front window button at the drivers arm consol it acts as an express down window I thought cool but it's not supposed to do this and it does it occasionally. Leaves me little baffled. My wife says it UFO's

lok888 · July 2003

Just an update on my Sorento. A new transfer case came in this morning. They just installed in this afternoon. But I still miss my Sorento for two more days because they scratched the front bumper when they did a test drive.

luvmysorento · July 2003

hciaffa ~ that was my sister that was complaining of the popping windshield. First she told me that they were replacing it. When I asked her if they replaced it (several months have gone by) she said that they are looking into it to see if it is coming from the dash. This is after she said they were definitely replacing the windshield. I have not talked to her in a few days so I have no idea what the results were. I will let you know as soon as she gets things straight!

lok888 · July 2003

Is the transfer case a part of the T.O.D. which made by Borg-Warner?

dicky_mint · July 2003

I also have problems with the cruise control. Sometimes the Cruise light won't come on, other times after slowing down I notice that it's gone out. I've had the cruise master switch replaced, but that has made no difference. The only way I can get it back is to stop, switch the ignition off and start again.

Also when I am using cruise it occasionally cancels itself (I know I haven't touched the brake or any of the buttons), and I find myself suddenly slowing down. If this happens I just have to hit Resume and it's fine.

Is anybody else having either of these problems, and could they be related?

lok888 · August 2003

I missed my Sorento for more than a week. And I finally picked her up on Saturday. They replaced the radio antenna mast, horn rely and the transfer case. The service manager told that they are only replaced the antenna but the whole in-dash 6CD changer unit. I tested the horn right after I left the shop. It wasn't working. Then I went back and they replaced the horn. Why don't they just get me a new horn at the first place?

hicaffa - About the thumping feeling from the rear wheels... I feel less thumping after the transfer case replacement. I still don't know if this is related. They told there was an internal failure.

paisan · August 2003

Yes this is made by Borg-Warner.

-mike

lok888 · August 2003

paisan - My dealer replaced the transfer case control module, transfer case and few more items which I am not familiar with like electronic T/F control and T/M & T/F assembly. I am not sure if this early transfer case failure was caused by driving the car with 4Lo at slow speed and few turns when I first got my car and didn't know how the AUTO and 4Lo work.

smithc64 · August 2003

Hi,
I'm new to this site. I was looking for other Sorento owners who have had problems with their windshield. A month and a half ago a crack appeared in our windshield. We assumed a rock had hit it and had to replace the whole thing.

Last week I too heard popping noises that I swore were coming from the windshield (although this is the replacement). Yesterday a stress fracture started to the left of the rear view mirror and by noon was halfway across the glass. Today it was replaced for a 2nd time (no charge).

We're just wondering if there could be some type of structural problem, or if this is just an isolated incident.

Other than that, we absolutely love the SUV.

bushtc · August 2003

I just bought my KIA Sorento 3 weeks ago and so far love it. The only problem that I am experiencing is when the brakes are applied and usually when turning to the right there is a popping noise either from the brakes or steering, I can't seem to figure out which one its coming from. Has anyone else experienced this problem? Thanks!

dried · August 2003

smithc64: I've been following this forum since December and I think you problem is unique. Some people have commented on ticking noises from the windshield with the defroster on, but this sounds different.

bushtc: Again, this is the first I recall on an issue like yours. You might search the forum but I'd suggest a trip to the dealer. Take the service manager a little ride to SHOW him the problem. This is a great way to get them engaged.

I've had my Sorento (4X4, EX) since December and the only problem I had so far is a check engine light that turned out to be a connector problem. Hard to find, easy to fix. I am really enjoying mine, hope you do too!
Dave

hciaffa · August 2003

I had mentioned a few postings ago that our front drivers window was acting up by doing a power open as the driver window does and soemtimes it goes back up the same way. I tried both the drivers switch and passenger switch and it does the same so it leads me to think its the motor. Well today it went down and it stayed down. I shut the Sorento off and sat in the vehicle and listened and I could hear a ticking sound coming from the inside of the door, almost like a relay opening and closing. After a few minutes the window went up and like a fool I had to open it again and it stayed down and again I could hear the ticking sound. first problem with our Sorento I'll be taking it in next week to have it check out. I hopw I don't hear those foamous words " sorry we could not duplicate the problem". I'll post when t is repaired.

lok888 · August 2003

hciaffa - So all you heard is the noise (from driver's side) and the both windows are still working, right? My issue on the driver's side window is some ticking noise when the window is fully closed, like a second after it fully closed. It sounds like the run channel (rubber seal) is being so tight. There is no problem with other windows. I think your problem is different than mine.

hciaffa · August 2003

I think the ticking that you are hearing is the channel as you mentioned. Mine sounds like a relay opening and closing, could even be the window motor. Again the passenger side goes down in an express mode and may go up the same or just stay down until, its as if the motor has over heated and when it cools down it will go up. My wife is dropping it off Tuesday so we'll see.

silverex · August 2003

I'M HAVING A VIBRATION AT 2400RPM IN OR OUT OF GEAR. DEALER SAID IT IS NORMAL,BUT ALL OTHERS I HAVE DRIVING DO NOT HAVE THIS PROBLEM. OTHER THAN THIS ON CONCERN AFTER 9000 MILE TRUCK IS DOING GREAT!!!

benjamin_ng · August 2003

Hi All,

Got my Ivy Green Sorento LX (used, 5000 miles) a little over 3 weeks and it has been in the shop for about 6 days in total and counting. One day is to install the alarm and a couple minor things. 3 days for a steering wheel not straight It turned out that an eccentric bolt is "STRIPPED" and cause the steering wheel off center while the car drives straight. It took two days for the bolt to arrive.

The main (not major) problem I have now is the doom light does not work. By that I mean when I open any door, the doom light (between first and second row) and map lights would not turn on. I can turn it on from the dash using the dash board dimmer switch. The light in the trunk would turn on and off as it supposed to.

The dealer replaced the light fixture (the middle one), not fixed. They replaced the guts (wires inside) not fixed.

I guess while they messed around under the dash, my power lock is messed up somehow. Whichever way I push the power door lock button on the driver side, it would unlock all doors. When I am inside the car, I have to lock using the passenger side door lock. If I am leaving the car, I have the arm the car first and then lock it with a key.

Back to the doom light problem. They ordered a "module" under the dash and I brought it in today hoping it was the cause of all problem. They installed it and same problem.

The service guy said he looked at another Brand New Ivy Green LX in the lot had the same behavior but other color LX would turn on and off as it supposed to.

So far there is no charge to me except I begin to pay the $10 per day for rental.

I searched the forum and could not find similar problems.

At this point, do you have any suggestions. I begin to doubt that the service dept knows what they are doing.

Any ideas, suggestions ? Should I try a differnt KIA dealer.

Thanks for reading.

Benjamin

lok888 · August 2003

benjamin_ng - Definitely a bad dealer with people don't know what to do to your car. And don't pay for the rental! I had my Sorento in the shop for about a week for transfer case replacement plus few minor issues. They offered my a 01 Sephia at no charge, not a penny. Even Kia don't provide rental, dealer should offer you the rental if the repair work is required a minimum of 6 labor hours (I believe this is correct). The dealer will get reimbursement for the expenses. If you have any doubt, call the Kia Consumer Affairs for more details.

benjamin_ng · August 2003

lok888 - Thanks for reply. I finally pikced up my Sorento and they fixed the problem now. They said it was a combination of things. The control unit is bad and there is one "OPEN" wire not shown in the schematics. By replacing the control unit and the OPEN wire, all is working.

About the rental, they waived the rental charge after some accounting error. Anyway, I did not pay any so I am ok.

Hope I don't have to go back except for maintenance.

BTW, Since the car so new, I wonder if I should stick with the dealer for maintenance. I feel that going with someone without any Kia experience is risky . Any concerns if going to Jiffy Lube for oil change ?

Thanks.

lok888 · August 2003

I have a very relation with my dealer which is 3 miles from my home. I prefer my nearest dealer because they take care of everything and the price is reasonable. I wouldn't bring my Sorento to any express oil change places. BTW, I contacted the Kia Consumer Affairs few months ago. They told you can bring your Kia to any shop (ASE certified, I guess) for repair like you are far away from Kia dealer. You need to show them (Kia) the receipts for reimbursement. But they added this is case by case basis.

bigfur · August 2003

Looking at a new vehical for my girlfriend. She like the sorento, but being the type of person i am i have to over analize it. Just wondering how many people are actually having tranfer case problems??? a few people or alot of people? Are there alot of problems in general, or not too bad? Im sure i could find my answers if i looked back thru all the posts, but lets face it i have too much going on. She is looking at an EX 4wd. anything that could help us out would be great.
Thanks, Tom

lok888 · September 2003

I am sure this is a problem yet. But I can hear some rattle when the sunroof is half open/close and when the car hit a small bump or pothole. I first thought it was the cargo cover or some items in my car. But I am pretty much sure it is coming from the sunroof because there is no rattle when it is close and fully open. Anyone hear this?

hciaffa · September 2003

lok888 somewhere on this forum or at another someone else had the exact same problem. Turned out that the channels had worked lose and the service guys were able to tighten them up. See what happens. I have a question for you. When you had the transfer case replaced have you noticed that thumping feeling return. I wondering about it. I dropped off my wife's Sorento today to have the driver side switch console replaced. The switch for the passenger front window was giving us problems. It was acting like the drivers side power down but it also did a power up or it would actually go up and down by itself. Most of the time when it would go down it would stay down then after a few minutes it would work again. He said mine is the third one he has seen.

lok888 · September 2003

I have no problem with the driver's side power window or any windows. It sounds like a bad power window switch/rely. About the thumping feeling, it wasn't noticeable when I first picked up the car from the shop. I think it was couple days later. And it is coming back just like before the replacement. Again, it happens not all the time. It happens when I just about to release the brake pedal and before my foot on the gas pedal. I can feel the force from the rear wheels, like the brake pads are releasing from the disc rotors. Pasian mentioned this is normal for 4WD. I am not sure about it. Anyway, thanks for the tip on sunroof rattle. I think other Sorento EX owners should check the sunroof. We usually have the sunroof fully open or tilt.

lilac0422 · September 2003

It if funny how I can have no idea what someone is talking about and then suddenly I am experiencing things just as they were described. Lok...for me it also doesn't happen all the time but I have started (at 7000 miles) feeling a thump or clunk just as I release the brake but before I have put my foot on the gas pedal. I have not had mine looked at yet. Also my sunroom rattles too. Hope that is an easy fix. Take care

lok888 · September 2003

As you know, I have the transfer case replaced at around 7.5K miles. My car drove like in 4Lo but actually in AUTO. I have 4WD with TOD. I think I first noticed this thumping feeling several months after I picked up car in December, probably after the first oil change. I hope this is not related to the transfer case.

Can anyone tell me when should I have the tires rotate and balance? I have over 9700 miles now. I remember the owner's manual recommends tires rotation with the space tire. Any suggestion?

hciaffa · September 2003

lok888 usually the general rule is front to back and visa versa. If your at a dealer or tire shop have them rebalance them. I usually just leave the spare alone and just rotate the other four tires. I picked up our Sorento last night after the master switch console was replaced and I talked to the service manager about the thumping that we have been feeling. He has no tech info on it or any type of service notification. He beleives its the rear differential releaseing itself and not the transfer case becasue it does happen after the brakes are released. He made note in our service record for future reference. I took a walk over to check out the Sorentos in the lot and boy have the prices increased. Our sticker price for our EX with lux and ABS and Spoiler was 25,800 and change the sticker for regular EX with just abs or with just leather is up around 27,800 pretty steep. i think they just raised the price so that they don't lose out from all the incentives.

lok888 · September 2003

That's what I thought. Even with 4WD, it is usually RWD, like 80%. Rear differential... I recall that you don't have the thumping feeling with your Ranger 4x4. Did the service guy feel the same thing? I agree with you the price increase. It is the same car that we bought 8, 9 months ago. It is reasonable for dest. fee increase because of the gas price hike. But at least the $1000 cash back makes people happy.

jmejias · September 2003

I've being having problems since day one with my Sorento braking performance. I got replaced twice my front disc rotors and I am afraid that the problem will come back again. My first set of rotors were replaced at 4,380 miles and the second ones at 15,662. I purchased my Sorento last October, so there is not even a year. Two sets of rotors in less than a year. Is someone out there with the same problem? Please, reply. Thanks.

hciaffa · September 2003

Usually the pulsations is caused by a warped rotor which is usually caused by the techs over torqing the wheels back after service. After the second time have you been feeling it. Usually, after any tire service, I go home take out my large breaker bar and undo each lug and just torque them back up to spec. No torque wrench? Loosen each bolt them tighten down nice and snug. Do this in a criss cross pattern.

jmejias · September 2003

hciaffa:

I never thought that overtorque can warp rotors. I am going to try that. I already contacted Kia Customer Service about my Sorento problem and it is on file. If out there someone with another idea, please, let me know. I noticed after the rotor replaced that my Sorento rides better and smoother. That is the way it should be. Thanks guys!

ivygrnsorento · September 2003

Yep. I just had mine replaced at 23,000 miles. All four were rotors were warped. I am convinced that it had to do with overtorqing and ironically...so does Kia.

About a week before I took the Sorento in to have it checked, I tried to remove the front wheels to do a visual check of the brakes and do a slight visual "scrape" on the brake pad and rotors...so I could check later if they indeed had been fixed or replaced. Anyway...I could barely get the lugs loose! They were sooooo tight. Why the hell car makers allow airwrenches to be used on lugs is beyond me. Most of the time the are set incorrectly or use too much air pressure...thus...overtightning everything! I don't get it!

Im with hciaffa, check your lugs yourself. Also...I have had a problem with an old Mitsu Montero having rotor warping too...and it always happend when I used the emergency brake often. Just a heads up there with the Sorento. I never use the emergency brake unless its needed.

Hope that helps some.

jmejias · September 2003

Well, I almost injure myself trying to get loose the lug nuts. All of them were so tight that I needed a Torque wrench to loose them up. So, you all guys are right about it. Well, I hope that my problems will not show up again. By the way, I have to take my Sorento to the body shop, of course, under warranty, for some rust on my rear door handle. Check it out guys! It happened to me so could happen to your Sorento. Hope not. Thanks again for your inputs.

dheiron · September 2003

I have been reading the board regarding the Sorrento. My daughter wants to purchase one, but after reading all the data on them I am not sure this would be a good buy. To anyone who owns one - Would you buy another one and do you recommend buying a Kia Sorrento? Thanks

mcoyle · September 2003

I'm now at about 11K miles. I've just had my most concerning issue with the Sorento (have had several small issues, but nothing mechanical to this point.)

My power steering became very hard at low speeds. As it turns out, the speed sensitive steering had an electrical issue where it was sensing high speeds while I was driving at low speeds, thus the hard turning.

They fixed it after having it for a couple of days - my concern is at 11K I shouldn't be having these types of issues with a new vehicle.

stever · September 2003

Remember that you are reading the Problems discussion; people are posting gripes or solutions - not too many people will be posting "it's running fine, nothing to report."

Check out the Kia Sorento discussion too.

Steve, Host

dbgindy · September 2003

I've got over 7k miles with mine and have had zero problems. great value for the money IMHO.

segart · September 2003

Does anyone have a definitive answer to the cause of a distinct clicking noise, which seems to come from the windscreen (shield), especially when the air conditioning is on?
I also notice that when changing from first to second gear, I have to do so very slowly so as not to beat the second gear synchromesh.
PS Very happy with the car at 4000 miles.
Cheers

hciaffa · September 2003

jmejias... please do not us a torque wrench to unloosen any bolts or nuts it is not made for that. Use a breaker bar with a socket or a regular ratchet wrench to unloosen. A torque wrench is just to do what its for. After you tighten the item you use the torque wrench to do the final torque of the bolt or nut. I prefer to use a regular wrench anyway to tighten then use the torque wrench for the final tightening. By trying to unloosen a bolt or nut you can damage the torque mechanism in the wrench.

segart.. as for the ticking or cracking sound this has been discussed on this forum and another one as well, no one can get a straight answer from any techs. It has been noted that it could be the windshield expanding when the deforster is on or if the mode is set for vent it could be the dash or the duct work that is expanding or contracting. If you have not had the Sorento in the winter months yet you will notice it more then, especilly when its in the defrost mode. I has asked my dealer about it and he could not find any breaks in the windshield, but he did hear it and thinks its the dash or duct work expanding

dalancroft · September 2003

A/C compressor coming on & off. My Sportage does that, with sort of a metallic "clink" or "tink." It was very annoying at first but I quickly got used to it and don't even hear it now unless I'm listening closely to it. Evidently most carmakers put the switch in the engine compartment or somewhere else it can't be heard but Kia didn't for the Sportage and, perhaps, with the Sorento.

Since it's summer you're probably running your A/C a lot; try to drive the car without A/C for a while and see if the clinking stops.

ivygrnsorento · September 2003

I know I have posted this a few times. But here it is again...and I hope it helps.

Since the delivery of my Sorento, which happend to be last november, whenever I turned on the heater and directed the airflow to the windshield I could hear ticking noises. I immediatly recognized the sound as being the HIV duct work under the dash. My parents have a 2000 BMW 330i, and their car does the exact same thing...actually its even more pernounced in their car than in my Sorento. To me, its never been the windshield...though the sound would tempt you to think that it is. Its a very distinctive sound....some have said it sounds like ice breaking as it hits water. I have had two seperate Kia service sources look at it. They say that though they know that this has been a problem with the Sorento...there is no current fix. The plastic just simply expands and contracts with the heat and cold.

Anyway...I'm sure that Kia will address this problem in future builds of the Sorento...but from what I understand now, there is no fix from Kia.

jmejias · September 2003

Oops! the torque wrench that I used was an old one as a handle to get the lug nuts loose. Do not worry, my Craftman is safe in my tool box.

The only problem to be fix is the rust on my rear door. As soon as Kia fix it I will let you know.

Kia Sorento Maintenance and Repair

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