Front end noise

Yes, my sedona is a 2004 lx and I hear noises when I go over bumps to sometimes It all depends on how the road is but I notice it. I had the same sort of problem with the car I traded in before getting the van and they always told me that it was nothing and that everything is ok Im sure its nothing to be worried about but you never know it drives your nuts.

I have a 2005 LX Sedona with the same symptoms.

While having an oil change at 2500 miles, I asked the Service Manager to look into the problem. Here's what's printed out on my invoice:

"This condition is considered to be a charactoristic (sic) of this vehicle. KIA is aware of this condition. It is not a safety issue."

The SM also told me (I'm not making this up) that KIA doesn't know how to fix this problem. It's hard to believe that KIA's engineers can't put the Sedona on a dyno, simulate a bumpy road, and use a directional sound detector to determine where the noise is coming from.......... and then eliminate it.

Otherwise my Sedona, at 2500 miles, seems OK.

OK. Here's another thing:

The damn van takes a long time to warm up in cold weather. What can i do to get it to warm up faster? The drive is about 15 or so miles and it takes almost half of that to get it warm. Is there a higher rated thermostat or something?

You didn't mention the ambient temperature nor the time in minutes it take for yo

Sorry about the pervious post........ hit a wrong key and out it went.

You didn't mention the ambient temperature nor the time in minutes it takes your Sedona to warm up. At 10 to 15 degrees F, it takes my Sedona about 15 minutes of idling in the driveway to warm up to the point where I don't need to wear a coat when driving.

I wouldn't change the temperature rating of your thermostat without checking first with a dealer; however, it is possible that the thermostat is stuck in the open position.

Well, heree in NY, it gets cold. Anything below 30 or so and it takes a while. The van has to go into the dealer soon to get an oli change and the tires rotated, so I will be asking them about it. I will also be asking about the thump. At least getting it registered again

When yo

Let us know what the dealer says about the "thump", will ya? Thanks, Marty

On Fri, 31 Dec 2004 01:48:55 GMT, someone posing as No One chisled in the wall:

Hmm, not sure what you mean by that. I haven't noticed it at all. I'm at

40K miles on my '02. What kind of noise is it? Does it sound like something's shifting around in the engine compartment or that something is bumping another item?

Wierd - hadn't even noticed. Now I'm gonna have to listen.

Drive in low gear? :) I notice it takes a minute or two to heat up inside, but then I drive only with the brake pedal on for about a mile, until I get to the freeway.

Also use your rear heater - that is electric, AFAIK, and doesn't require the engine to warm.

You might also switch on the AC. That works for me - today it was freezing. I think it was in the mid-50's and I turned on all the heating I could. I had the AC on with the dial set to red and it heated up pretty quickly.

Let's see... the thump sounds like a loose shock or steering/suspension part. It happens when the wheels travel over a vertical imperfection in the road. I checked everything from the lugnuts to the steering linkages....nothing loose. Waiting to get it in to the dealer, hopefully this week

Interesting. I'll keep my ears open. I live in southern california, so there's plenty of road hazards (our road taxes go for anything BUT roads) to test with.

Okay, it has been raining consistently for about three days now - I've driven over some seriously nasty potholes.

I notice no 'thump' at all other than what I'd expect hitting a pothole.

HTH

Tell the mechanic to look at the hanger bracket. it costs $42.50. there is a bearing suspended in a rubber bushing. when they made them, they didn't properly seal the from of the bearing on some, and salt or water gets into the supposidly sealed bearing, and the bearing rusts and seazes and tears away from the rubber retainer. what you hear is the spyder or universal bearing hitting the top of the hanger bracker. the noise transmits all over the place, doesn't seem to come from one place, or the hanger bracket bolts are loose, as they left off the lock washers also on some.

What I've experienced on all Sedonas I've driven is a muffled thump noise, especially over small bumps and washboard type pavement. I agree that it's a characteristic of the vehicle and that it's unbelievable that Kia's engineers can't correct it. I'd wager that it's coming from the upper strut mount and is characteristic of the design of the mount.

If you're trying to make it happen by driving over large bumps or into potholes, you probably won't hear it.

You provide an excellent description of the problem.

My 2005 Sedona has the exact same symptoms (see previous post in this thread). The SM at the KIA shop said it was normal, not a safety issue (aka problem) and that KIA didn't know how to fix it. It may be "normal" and it may not be a safety "issue", but to say that KIA doesn't know how to fix it really doesn't pass the Laugh Test. I suspect that KAI has a fundamental design error here; that they know exactly how to fix it; and that doing so would cost them a small fortune under their warranty program.

It's probably more likely that they haven't put enough effort into finding the fix. It's pretty darned simple to introduce new parts for a newer vehicle and supersede the old ones to be replaced by the newer ones. The fact that this noise has been occurring since 2001 when the Sedona was introduced and is still present in 2005 models indicates to me that they haven't yet found a fix. They don't even need to tell anyone that the new parts can be put on older models (if this is possible) to fix the noise. My experience is that very few customers found this noise disturbing and only a small percentage of those seemed concerned when they were told it was normal. For that reason, there may be an issue where Kia doesn't perceive the noise as a problem because it doesn't have enough complaints.

I get the same with my 2002 Spectra. I figured it was a bad Strut. It only seems to happen on the passenger side.

I do not drive a Sedona but rather an 04 Amanti with a front end (passenger side) squeak/groan. Not a thump as is mentioned here and it does not make the noise when going over bumps, rough roads, washboard roads but only when coming to a stop at a slow speed the squeak is very pronounced. So far the dealer has replaced the front strut and the ball joint to no avail. It is now determined by the dealer after confiring with KIA that the culprit is most likely the upper arm bushings which are on order (almost 2 wks now). Hopefully this can fix the annoying squeak. I am sure on on some cars you would never be aware of the noise but in the Amanti the cabin is SO SO QUIET that the sqeak is noticeable.Well we'll see........regards....God Bless our troops and may they come soon safe and sound...........buzzardbreath

There Is a fix...you go to the dealer, get new updated spring seats, and upper strut bearing housings installed.. it has cured about a dozen complaints so far for me.......this is not a diy job however...and it may still be covered under warranty. Bob List, Baltimore