Anyone else feel like Kia dealerships are putting them off buying Kia again

Kia Models Forum Kia Niro
1

My girlfriend used to really like her 2017 Kia Niro, but things took a turn. About five months ago, she got her car inspected at Kia of Attleboro. They told her she needed to replace her drive belt.

Just this past week, while driving on the highway, her engine suddenly quit, and she had to get the car towed to Kia of Johnston. They checked it out and found: ‘Seems like during the previous repair, the crank pulley bolt got over-tightened, or maybe the belt wasn’t installed right. This caused the crank pulley bolt to break off and damaged the crankshaft badly.’

Attleboro’s repair messed up the engine, and now it’s going to cost around $9,400 to fix. We tried reaching out to Attleboro, but they deny even touching the crank pulley bolt, which is supposed to be part of the drive belt replacement.

At this point, we’re thinking of just scrapping the car and getting something else. I doubt I’ll ever consider buying a Kia again, no matter what happens with Kia Corporate.

2

Actually, they don’t need to remove the crank pulley to replace the drive belt. Feels like there’s more to this story.

3

NeuralNexusNate said:
Actually, they don’t need to remove the crank pulley to replace the drive belt. Feels like there’s more to this story.

Yep, I’ve done a lot of drive belt replacements on Niros.

4

NeuralNexusNate said:
Actually, they don’t need to remove the crank pulley to replace the drive belt. Feels like there’s more to this story.

True, the crank pulley isn’t involved with the belt replacement. By the way, how old was her car, and what’s the mileage on it?

5

Sounds like your first experience at a car dealership?

6

I’m curious, are you sure it was the HSG belt? That one doesn’t require the crank pulley to be touched. Here’s a video showing it.

Seems like there might be some misunderstanding here.

7

This seems like a dealership issue rather than a Kia problem. If she bought it new, she got a good six years out of it without issues. This is more likely down to a specific mechanic’s mistake than a manufacturer flaw.

8

I’ve been pleased with two Kia dealerships back in Minneapolis, but after moving to Wisconsin, the two here haven’t been great. I’m thinking of taking my Kia back to Minneapolis for service.

9

Brad said:
I’ve been pleased with two Kia dealerships back in Minneapolis, but after moving to Wisconsin, the two here haven’t been great. I’m thinking of taking my Kia back to Minneapolis for service.

I’m in the Twin Cities too! Barnett and Luther have been really solid for me.

10

Brad said:
I’ve been pleased with two Kia dealerships back in Minneapolis, but after moving to Wisconsin, the two here haven’t been great. I’m thinking of taking my Kia back to Minneapolis for service.

Are you close to Illinois? The Waukegan Kia dealership has been amazing for me every time.

11

Brad said:
I’ve been pleased with two Kia dealerships back in Minneapolis, but after moving to Wisconsin, the two here haven’t been great. I’m thinking of taking my Kia back to Minneapolis for service.

Sometimes you just get unlucky with dealerships. I’ve been to Kia of Attleboro too, and I’ll never go back. They’re just out to squeeze every penny they can from customers.

12

@LeeLyam
Exactly. The dealership I go to in Escondido has been fair and straightforward. They even replaced my Kia’s engine for free because of a class action on the engine defect.

13

Kia dealerships only handle Kia vehicles, so reaching out to corporate might be your best bet. Honestly, all car brands have their issues and bad dealers. You might just have gotten a rough deal at that particular dealership.

14

Honestly, every brand has its share of bad dealers. Until you try and reach out to Kia corporate and they refuse to help, it’s more about the dealership than Kia as a whole. Same thing could happen with any car brand if you end up with a dodgy dealer.

15

@Calvine
True, Kia corporate hasn’t been very helpful to me either.

16

DolphGabbana said:
@Calvine
True, Kia corporate hasn’t been very helpful to me either.

Are there any car brands known for actually having good customer service when things go wrong?

17

@Calvine
Lexus actually treated me well back in the day. Shame they don’t have an electric model yet.

18

@Calvine
Subaru Of America has been pretty solid too.

19

The quality of service really depends on the dealership. I’ve had great experiences with mine, but I know others who haven’t been so lucky.

20

Totally get it. I used to drive a Honda, and I always went to the same dealer, never had issues. I got my Kia from a good dealership too, and they’ve been decent so far. I once tried a different one closer to my work, and it was a disaster.