Kia Rio and Antioch , TN. dealership has been a nightmare

They should be able to produce the contaminated gas. If not, they're full of you know what.

If they do, then there's an issue of whether the contaminants were there to begin with. The more miles on the car, the worse your chances are. Call Kia consumer assistance and ask to get the factory rep involved. If they think you could be right, they will have the dealer fix the car.

re: issue of contaminated gasoline

you should not be out-of-pocket for somebody else's snafu

if that dealer will put in a signed statement that he found contaminated fuel in your vehicle's tank, then...

it's maybe an insurance claim against the gasolene store, or a claim in small claims court, or a bbb complaint or...

it (apparently) hasn't happened to me yet, but we once had a vw convertible that only ran (without sputter) on starvin marvin/speedway unleaded regular

in georgia, believe it oir not, it's the province of the state dept of agriculture that checks the pumps at the gas stations so far as purity and accuracy in volume

my next door neighbor apparently did get some contaminated gas at a very well known/extremely busy place (in a ford vic), which supposedly "guarantees" their gas' purity

they apparently had many complaints

so, check to see if your gas station has had complaints & at the appropriuate state or local agency

the reason i peruse this n.g. sometimes:

i was thinking of buying a sedonna; and am holding-off until i really have to (when my '98 daewoo dies of "daewoo bankruptcy complications")

partly because of the fear of getting another lemon and bad dealer

the hyundai/kia company seems to me to be good people, and they will probably get better, while hyundai has a new factory in greeneville, alabama, opening soon

Thanks for your comments, I will take your advice .

well the gas station of course denies the gas was contaminated, my insurance won't cover the damages. I can't agree with your statement that the Kia company are "good people", I feel so far that their practices are deceitful (at least at this Tanner Kia in Antioch, TN.) This makes me feel that there are all similar. I know if I ever get rid of this one, I'll never buy another!

Don't confuse the dealer's personnel with Kia's. The employees at the dealer work for the dealer alone and not for Kia.

Exactly, whereas my dealer (LaFontaine Toyota/Honda/Kia?Hyundai/Suzuki) is the best dealer I have ever been to period for any make of car. Well except Varsity Ford in Ann Arbor. But I have never had a problem with them or Corporate Kia. I would gladly buy another Kia after this one, and as far as the car is concerned 20 months and 53k miles later it runs like its still brand new. To generalize a company by one dealer is a quite rash. I wouldn't necesarily trust any dealer, I would go back to the one that has treated me well. I would suggest locating a new dealer and making a complaint against your current one to the corporate office.

I'm very glad you had a wonderful relationship with your Kia dealer and like your Kia. You don't know what I have been through with this dealership, and I did contact "Corporate Kia" and they were no help , so I don't feel great about them either. Whem people ask me about this Kia, I tell them my experience, and simply tell them I would never, ever buy a Kia again!

I have a 97 sephia and I have been happy with the car overall, but I also had horrible dealer experiences and would never go back. I vowed to never buy another car from that dealer again, and apparently I was not alone because they no longer carry the kia brand. But then a new kia dealer opened up down the street and I have visited their parts department a few times and I have had wonderful service both times.

Corporate Kia..what a joke. I had to replace the front rotors on my sephia at 38,000 miles. I wrote the corporate folks a letter and asked for reimbursement because 38,000 is just too early for the rotors to go. I never heard a word, not even a "get lost" letter.

I guess you win some and you lose some. But I can tell you it pays to learn how to do at least some of the work on your vehicle yourself. Oil changes, belts, spark plugs, etc. It's not hard, and it will save you money.

As a side note, I rode in a sedona the other day and was pleasantly surprised at how 'tight' it was. I think Kia has come a long way from the mid 90's days when the sephia and sportage were their only offerings.

Chris