What's going on with Hyundai and Kia in the US?
Posted by PckMan@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 169 comments
When browsing through any automotive forum or discussion you inevitably see tons of people shitting on Hyundai and Kia. The main source of complaints seem to be really bad reliability and bad overall build quality.
I'm not in the US and in Europe these brands have nowhere near as bad a reputation as they do in the US. In fact they're actually considered solid bargains compared to the competition, with lower prices and great reliability.
In the 90s and 2000s, both Hyundai and Kia occupied the same spot on the market. About as cheap as a car could get but solid reliability. In fact it seemed like those cars thrived on abuse and neglect, with the sight of an absolutely battered, but still somehow running, example, being quite common. Plasticky interiors, barebones features, nothing to write home about in terms of performance, but they were reliable and everyone perceived them as such. Hyundai also had many non interference engines back then which meant that even if a belt snapped your only problem was still just the bad belt.
On towards the late 2000s both companies even had some standout offers compared to the rest of their lineup. In some cases buying the top spec flagship model from them meant you were getting a very good deal compared to buying a european or major Japanese brand. More bang for your buck.
It was towards the early to mid 2010s that the brands tried to pivot upmarket, revamp their whole lineups, try to compete with more expensive brands and get out of the budget category, when the complaints started. Reliability complaints, quality complaints, and of course the infamous theft issue. The thing is, in Europe this does not seem to be the case. While the theft thing had definitely gotten people in a panic, their sales remain good, as does their reputation. You don't hear the reliability complaints here that you see coming from the US.
So my question is, are Kias and Hyundais really that much worse in the US, or has their attempt to move upmarket affected all their models and they've just managed to maintain a better reputation in Europe?
Vurrag@reddit
100k warranty. We have a Tucson and love it. It did have a Master brake issue in the 1st month. We got a loaner and they fixed it. Both of these brands rate pretty well with unbiased sources.
Warm-Patience-5002@reddit
Most European cities are walkable and if not small or medium cities with slower speeds and narrower streets, the RPMs in cars stay low for most of their life while cars in America are pushed to the limits we drive our cars from Texas to Miami at full speed , from Boston to San Diego at high rates of speed , the average American does not live in walkable cities , they rely on their cars for everything, they get driven all the time and every day in bumper to bumper traffic, giant potholes , huge loads , long distances and extreme temperatures, from the Arizona heat to Minnesota winters . Toyotas and Hondas seem to be the best at taking a beating, Kia and Hyundai can’t compare but they make up with lower prices , financing and great warranties.
Aussie_5aabi@reddit
Hyundai and Kia are also considered reliable in Australia.
Australia is much harsher on cars than America.
I believe the reason is American made engines are unreliable. The Korean made ones we get in Australia are mostly bulletproof.
SumyungNam@reddit
Not just Kia and Hyndai...Ford, GM, even Toyota and Honda in North America plagued with engine recalls and other stuff. I blame the use of thin oils, extended maintenance intervals, auto start stop, turbo engines, and other eco friendly nonsense for this
fobbyk@reddit
In Europe there are tons of cheaper options than Hyundai. In the US, hyundai is the cheapest. Since the car is “cheap” it attracts cheap customers consequently. They don’t maintain their cars and look for cheaper ways to repair, which of course will cause more problems. Toyota has always been a few grand more than Hyundai’s despite being shit value, so those people care about cars more. Toyota attracts customers who want reliability and will act accordingly, Hyundai attracts cheap customers who will also act accordingly.
espressocycle@reddit
There's a long history of cars that are considered perfectly reliable in Europe being seen as unreliable in the US. There are multiple explanations, but the main one is that the US is just harder on cars. We drive, on average , twice as many miles a year, our roads are often in poor condition and in many places we have greater temperature extremes. We also have more people driving cars they can't afford due to looser credit and the fact that you can't survive without a car in most places, so there's more issues with deferred maintenance.
Ok-Office1370@reddit
Reddit car people act 65yo and still think it's the 1900s back when Kia built cheap econoboxes that college students ran into the ground. Even if the cars had amazing reliability, which they didn't, they fell into a hard use category and never got maintenance. Most anyone who had their dad helping work on their Kia probably nursed it to 200k miles, if it was a half decent model year.
There was a big blowup over a Kia theft problem. But that's also because it was recent and social media is toxic. It's been fixed. Just don't buy or rent those model years if that's a concern. All old cars can be stolen incredibly easy btw. It's just a question of what sells, and where they're operating.
Also a lot of car people are mad racist / nationalist. Lots of American Kias are made in West Point, Georgia. They're only "foreign" cars in terms of the government lobbying tarrifs due to the company's headquarters being overseas. Which is weird when the Big 3 all moved their HQ to Ireland for tax reasons but that's another story.
KIA today is a fine brand. Anyone who actually knows cars has been checking out models like the Stinger. It's a cool brand with good reliability.
because_racecar@reddit
You are ignoring the almost 2 million engines that had to be recalled for excessive oil consumption, metal debris left in the engine from the factory, rattling, and bearings seizing. Thats not something you can blame on the consumer for “hard use” or lack of maintenance.
Moreno636@reddit
You’re wasting your time and energy on these people. They hear the words Hyundai or Kia and start regaling tales of yore and the long winter. 🙄
Meanwhile they’ll tell how amazing Mazda and Honda are while their newer models are absolute garbage (Cx70 PHEV and Civic Si) and have devastating reliability problems.
kritter4life@reddit
Who the fuck is saying Mazda is reliable?
rickhamilton620@reddit
Mazda’s (CX-90 and 70 excepted) are stupid reliable mainly because the 2.5 and 6 speed auto have been unchanged for about a decade.
Recent_Permit2653@reddit
I would. My Ma has owned several Mazdas over the years, being something of a fangirl. Hers have really never had issues.
doug1349@reddit
Its a very commonly pushed narrative in the new car scene.
Upnorth4@reddit
I have a 2022 Kia Forte and it has 82,000 miles with no issues so far. I'd say the Kia sedans and maybe the Carnival are reliable. I don't know much about their SUV models
Legitimate-Type4387@reddit
They’re still selling new EV’s today with the same unresolved ICCU issues they’ve had for years.
They’ve and their customers have learned nothing from their past troubles. Their reputation is well deserved.
not_a_burner0456025@reddit
Fixing the they issues isn't enough to prevent attempts, criminals are generally dumb and will still break your window to get in and try to steal it.
Comfortable-Study-69@reddit
They have some alright models, but I don’t think you can call it a fine brand with reliable cars when the train wrecks of the Theta II, Nu, and Gamma engines are still littering the used car market in the US and the Smartstreams are better but not exactly anything exceptional.
Twistygt@reddit
I’d agree to with this to some extent, but there is no denying the Theta engine has problems and is a huge pile of shit. It’s unfortunately their most widely used mill, and there are definitely valid reliability concerns surrounding it.
Paul721@reddit
I always think its funny that my family in the UK can't seem to understand the idea of a car with > 100,000 miles. Just a combination of driving so much less, and not holding onto vehicles that long.
darklogic85@reddit
I was thinking the same thing. I know it's generally thought of that expressway driving is better for the longevity of a car, in that high "highway miles" doesn't necessarily mean a car is worn out, compared to if a car has the same number of miles, but all city. However, I think something to consider with that, is that if there's a design flaw that's inherent to being more of an issue with expressway driving, and doesn't necessarily occur at low city speeds, it'll become much more obvious in the US for the brand as a whole. We do a lot more high speed, 60-80 mph driving, in more areas of the country than most people in Europe would. I'm not saying that's the case with Hyundai and Kia, but their engine failures could potentially be more prone to when they're regularly driven at sustained high speeds on the expressway.
Difficult_Camel_1119@reddit
when I was still working in the office, I drove daily 200kph with my Kia on my commute. Still the most reliable car I've ever had (and still have)
make-j8@reddit
80mph is the european default highway speed in most of the EU. It is most definitely not a high speed for any modern car. Even a 1L 3 cylinder with 100hp can effortlessly, safely and reliably hold that speed for ... well, for as long as needed.
I guess that the only hardcore US highway thing are the short on-ramps. In most videos I've seen they are either dangerously short or have a stop sign. Mental stuff to have a stop at a enterance.
Heckbound_Heart@reddit
Not as much a matter of speed being “hard on the car.” It relates more to the aggressive nature of driving; hard acceleration, quick braking, or frequent idling at stops.
doug1349@reddit
Effortlessly is a stretch.
make-j8@reddit
I've driven quite a few of those 1L 3cyl cars. From Dacias to Fords to VWs. None had issues. The rpms are quite high is the last gear therefore plenty of power for what I just mentioned.
I didn't say "get up to speed quickly" or "mad accelerations".
Again, normal driving, not sport driving, not fast driving, no high speed overtaking.
doug1349@reddit
Effortless is effortless.
Revving the engine up 3/4 of the way would be quantifiable effort.
Its enough power, but far from effortless.
Sad_Mall_3349@reddit
3k is considered high rpm for 80mph
No modern car does 4,5k to reach 80mph in top gear.
ze_loler@reddit
I've never seen someone claim that maintaining a speed with high rpms is effortless lol
Dan6erbond2@reddit
Not really if you've ever driven a VAG product.
doug1349@reddit
Volkswagen are junk. Your fanboy is showing.
darklogic85@reddit
Right, and I've driven in a number of countries in Europe, so I'm kinda familiar with it. Obviously not as much as someone who lives there, but I feel like I've done enough driving in different countries in Europe to have enough of an experience with it to have a frame of reference for comparison. I've driven in France, Italy, England, and Scotland, and their expressways are as you described, and yeah, the low horsepower cars are actually totally adequate on those expressways, and they're nice to drive. I was honestly impressed with the cars I've rented there that aren't available in the US. On a recent trip to France, I rented a Peugeot 2008 with the 3 cylinder, 100 horsepower engine just like you're describing, and it had a 6 speed manual. It was an SUV, and not a small car, so I was honestly surprised at how quick it was. I wouldn't describe it as fast, but it was much faster than I expected from such a large vehicle being powered by such a tiny, low horsepower engine.
The difference in driving environment though, I think is the amount of miles and time that actually gets spent on the expressway in Europe vs US. Driving an hour on the expressway in Europe isn't something most people who live there do often, as far as I know. One hour on the expressway in Europe is what most people consider a relatively long distance. It's often far enough to get you into another country or at least between two major cities, and isn't something most EU citizens would do regularly. In the US though, that's actually fairly common and we look at an hour on the expressway as basically nothing. I had a job a few years back that was a 90 minute commute on the expressway, one way. A lot of people in the US have commutes that require a decent amount of driving and that's pretty normal. I just did a quick Google search, and if this data is correct, the average US worker has round trip work commute of 37 miles. For England, the average worker has a round trip work commute of 18 miles.
make-j8@reddit
Depends where in Europe 1h is long distance. Where I'm from, anything under 1h is short distance. 2-3h is "medium" trip. Not everyone lives in a small country such as Belgium.
On the other hand, communing is not common in may places due to high fuel costs. It's cheaper to just move.
No_Pool4833@reddit
My commute is more than an hour and no way is it considered long distance
skylin4@reddit
I think the big difference for US vs European highways is the duration and frequency of a 70+ mph drive, not the speed itself. The US northeast and central europe have similar distances between cities, about 1-3 hours, but west of the center of the US youre looking at 4-8 hours between cities. Add in that beyond a few hours I'm under the impression that Europeans will opt to fly or take the train whereas a great many Americans do drives like that monthly or even weekly. Hence why US drivers average 160,000 miles on a car before it gets junked vs 100,000 miles for an average european car.
Source for US Mileage: Junk Car Medics 2023 study
Source for European mileage: RICARDO-AEA 2014 "Improvements to the definition of lifetime mileage..." study
Rare_Floor2293@reddit
Bruh, their point was that cars in the US spend way more time at highway speeds than in Europe, nothing to do with the highway speeds themselves.
Blastoise_613@reddit
I'm going to confidently say 80mph is not the default in most of the EU. Just to start we don't use moles and 124km/h would be a weird speed to choose.
make-j8@reddit
130kmh if you insist on precision. Most countries have it.
It would be silly to say 80.778mph so I approximated.
Shakeyshades@reddit
Europe and us probably have the same or close to average speeds.
But distance and time at those speeds are going to be different. Which is going to make a difference in vehicle wear and tear.
make-j8@reddit
Constant driving for longer is better than same distance over 10 complete heat cycles. US has an advantage.
Shakeyshades@reddit
Not if it's car you are running high rpm the whole trip.
Dan6erbond2@reddit
So it's actually a bit higher in Europe which just further proves their point.
Shakeyshades@reddit
This is a bad take.
make-j8@reddit
How come? What cars have you driven at 80mph/130kmh and wasn't able to keep up with the traffic, like slowing down due to a front wind gust?
Shakeyshades@reddit
2012 Chevy Sonic, I don't remember the year but a Yaris. Mitsubishi mirage when it changed to the tiny hatcbback. Nissan leaf. Mid 2000s Jeep wranglers and earlier. Late 80s Ford broncos. All of those were 4 cylinder, 6 or 8.
Fo3 cylinders. A Hyundai bongo, various versions of the small kei trucks and vans. Those couldn't even hit 100kph and the one-time I got one over that was because I was 3 inches from a Mitsubishi Montero being stupid as shit. And I ended up over heating that engine running it at redline for 20 minutes at that speed lmao.
But see you said effortless at 80mph. The first set of cars can reach 80 but maintaining it effortlessly for as long as necessary? Not gonna happen, except maybe the bigger ford and jeep engines.
The small cars absolutely are a nightmare in windy and mountainous areas. A headwind will absolutely slow these things down. And the majority of those have like ~150hp much more than your 100hp 3cylinders.
Also you clearly have never driven in America if you think the majority of our on ramps are too short or built for city traffic.
3dprintedthingies@reddit
Well the particular problem with the Germans and most europooreons is they won't build out their parts network. German cars could be seen like chevies but the OEMs make so much more margin selling lower trims as upper trims here for higher margin they have no incentive. When a valve cover gasket for a Chevy is 10 bucks but for a beamer it's 100 bucks you can't really blame the consumer at that point.
Europe and arguably Japan has never produced an engine as reliable as the Chevy LS. They all have gotten beaten by GM by random cars. The sonic/Cruze are imported European designs that were successful because of their expanded parts network and robust design. They're a better car than any Toyota or Honda as far as reliability and cost of ownership as reported by independent agencies.
Reddit hates that second paragraph but the civic/Camry/Corolla aren't what they used to be.
Radiant_Pudding5133@reddit
Hahahaha. There’s a reason no other countries drive yank cars. Because they’re fucking shite
mmconno@reddit
Rented a 2024 Corolla with <3000 miles on it and was shocked by its overall crappiness. Seats felt like cardboard. Doors were tinny. No pickup, fuzzy handling. That thing was dogsh*t.
doug1349@reddit
Lmfao. Chevys are tin can pieces of garbage that will barely hold up to 3 winters where I live.
Finace one over four or five years, by the time its paid off its a rusty piece of junk falling apart.
Purrchil@reddit
Older MB engines and VW 1.9 TDI do not agree with your opinion.
ridebikes365@reddit
Also consider the frame of reference. BMW and Mercedes are the reference point for domestic automobiles in Europe, they’re not considered reliable in America either.
I worked for KTM and Yamaha at the same time on the dealer level as a tech. The Europeans and Japanese have very different mindsets on what’s “reliable” and what’s “maintenance” European things can be reliable if you do a lot of “maintenance”. Japanese and American things are designed to work with much less maintenance.
squirrel9000@reddit
The maintenance one is the big one, the German cars need meticulous maintenance (and BMW in particular does not like shadetrees) but if you do that they're pretty decent. They do not have the lenience towards neglect that "more reliable" brands do.
Because they only sell high end vehicles you get a lot of customers who have no intent on hanging onto them long term - gotta keep up appearances - , and maintenance suffers as a result in the exact vehicles that you can't get away with that in.
ridebikes365@reddit
KTM’s can be really good with maintenance as well, seen plenty of adv’s with 100,000km. However, you HAVE to do the maintenance and there’s plenty of opportunity to damage the machine in doing “maintenance”
I saw R1’s with 150k that they’d done nothing but change oil. Not even a valve adjustment. I had a Honda at almost 100, also very minimal maintenance. Never opened the motor, other than on the ground crashing it. Jb weld for 10 plus more years of enjoyment.
So here’s a glimpse of the mindset I’m talking about. Ktm considers your fuel filter to be a maintenance item, as they probably should. However, in thinking you’ll replace it they made it a finer filter - also better, you’d think - but it can clog easily with dirty gas in the middle of a trip. They actually had an “update” to fix this at one point, I’d sell it to customers going on long trips to keep with them. Further more, the filter is in the same plastic housing as the pump. People love to crack the pump housing when replacing the filter, it snaps together. They don’t notice and reassemble, now the bike misfires under WOT, but fuel pressure tests fine on the bench. Customer is PISSED. They’ve done their maintenance, bike runs like crap, down to the dealer we go to complain.
Yamaha doesn’t care that the fact you’re pissed is actually 110% your fault, the reality of the situation is that you’re still mad at their product they had 110% control over. Their answer is “fuel pump assembly” cuz you can’t be trusted to do the maintenance properly. No filter. Not an option. Not a maintenance thing. Just buy a $800 fuel pump when you have problems cuz they can be confident that will solve the problem. You might be frustrated about the price, but you’ll never say that their equipment didnt work well (is the goal)
The European mind is willing to accept fault and perform maintenance. Americans, not so much on either front.
Eastern_Yam@reddit
In Canada add all of the above and then add insane quantities of road salt for two-thirds of the population. Ten years on and the wheat is still on the road and the chaff has disappeared to the junk yards.
Two that stood out to me were the Fiesta and 500. Very cute, fun little cars that Canadians (at least in my province) didn't turn their nose up in the 2010s. I understand that these are popular, loved models in Europe. Ten years later and the number still on the roads here is quite low, while Yarises and Fits from the same period soldier on and command outrageous used prices.
The first time I drove a 10+ year old cheap little car in Europe I couldn't believe how straight it tracked at highway speeds. I guess that's the difference between being driven over heaved, cratered, undulating roads for 10 years vs. nice flat French highways.
cormack_gv@reddit
My 2016 Accent is in perfect condition. Southern Ontario.
eeldude_88@reddit
My ‘22 Telluride - made in the US, has been rock solid. No issues. Great value!
Formal_Evidence_4094@reddit
KIAs in Europe are made in a different factory to those from the US (Slovakia vs US/Mexico) , so there are noticeable build quality differences. Also true for those models made in China/India
Difficult_Camel_1119@reddit
not only built but also designed and engineered (for Europe in Germany)
jaehaerys48@reddit
Hyundai and Kia have been very successful in the US so to an extent I think this is just an internet car community thing. They finished 8th and 12th in last year's Consumer Reports quality rankings, which is not the best but not terrible either. Granted I don't think CR ratings tell a full story, but still, it's a decent source that isn't just Reddit/YT comments.
SkeletorsAlt@reddit
Yeah, while there’s a kernel of truth here, this is primarily an internet echo chamber thing.
Over the years, as Reddit has grown, there are fewer commenters with hands-on knowledge of the subject in question, and more commenters who merely parrot the popular sentiments they’ve read in other Reddit comments.
Agreed on CR, too. It’s an imperfect source, but it’s certainly a lot better than anonymous social media users.
Wigberht_Eadweard@reddit
Yup. Just bring up Nissan anywhere on Reddit and you’ll be told it’s a ticking timebomb CVT. Doesn’t matter if you’re talking about a 2003 Sentra or a 2026 Z. Nobody knows what they’re talking about.
CoachOpen1977@reddit
It’s not just on the internet though. As a mechanic of 20 years I can tell you that If you mention any of these common “shit” brands in nearly any mechanic shop you’ll hear all the same shit.
StJe1637@reddit
Honestly I think a lot of mechanics are stupid lazy and have no idea what they are talking about. Met one last week who said he'd never used distilled water with coolant and just used tap water and had never had any issues. Or so many of them you see talk about how they never use a torque wrench because they can "just feel it bro"
CoachOpen1977@reddit
Can confirm, I worked with many of those techs. No shop that I worked for big, small, or dealership, used distilled water with coolant. Every single one had us cutting coolant with hose water. I’ve only ever used distilled water in my own vehicles. Torque wrench use depends on the application for me. Some things will always be fine with “just feel it bro” and some things I’d never leave to chance.
SkeletorsAlt@reddit
Another great example!
supern8ural@reddit
It is most definitely not an "internet echo chamber" thing.
Surveys like JD Power and Consumer Reports don't capture things like engines running dry of oil and eating themselves at <100k miles - which is primarily where Hyundai's shit reputation in the US comes from. Sure, they're cheap and actually quite good for the first year or two of ownership - but enough people have been burned by them that they have ruined their reputation here.
SkeletorsAlt@reddit
That’s exactly what CR’s surveys capture:
https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-reliability-owner-satisfaction/consumer-reports-car-reliability-faq-a1099917197/
supern8ural@reddit
They reach back 12 months - so a last year's model car could get glowing ratings, but end up turning out to be a pile of shit 2-3 years down the road.
That's exactly what happened with Hyundai.
SkeletorsAlt@reddit
Difficult_Camel_1119@reddit
They have three main markets (NA, EU and Asia) and design and produce most of their cars separately. E.g. the European models are designed and engineered in Germany and built in Slovakia. Therefore most cars are not really comparable between the markets. There are only few models that are sold in multiple markets (and I don't know if the dame rule applies there)
Practical_Note9366@reddit
Americans also are not great at routine car maintenance. Unfortunately, that often means the cars don’t last as well as they could/should. My impression is that Europeans are more particular about proper maintenance.
PckMan@reddit (OP)
Maintenance is also generally cheaper in Europe. People prioritise being able to actually afford the car they're buying and consider future maintenance costs into this. While costs can vary wildly between each country I generally have not heard prices anything close to US prices for even basic maintenance. No one's paying 300 bucks for an oil change on a regular car.
Practical_Note9366@reddit
FYI, BMW dealers in my neighborhood are charging anywhere from $550 to $775 for an oil change. I swear. Outrageous.
Many-Pomegranate-33@reddit
It all depends on personal experiences.
Im in cental US(plains midwest) Cold winters and hot summers.
Hyundai I believe finally started gaining real traction back in the mid 2010s only to have the 4 cylinder crankshaft issue bog them back down. Specifically the 2.0 liter.
Now I never owned any of them, and if I were a betting person I about guarantee every one of them that done it had a low oil issue at one given point or another. Or add longer than should oil change interval.
Nonetheless this tarnished their good will they built back up.
Hyundai/Kia from working on them for many years, as from working from an indy shop perspective, you always had to watch for their curve balls. One example is under dash fuse panel with fuses and relays. Relay I needed to access was hidden on the rear side and had to drop it to access. Easy for me to figure out but the regular person would be on a struggle bus with something like that.
My personal opinion on them was that they always seemed cheaper. The warranty offered was good, but thats also dependent on customers hitting all their marks too(oil changes, other plus recommends).
IseeWhereILook@reddit
Chiming in from South America here, but reading through this makes me believe either there is a large difference in what cars are sold where or we're all insane.
For us, Hyundai and Kia are not the most reliable cars (that'd be Toyota or Renault), but they're rugged, you can treat them badly and they'll survive, the older models you could fix with a hammer and wrench but lately they're getting fuller with more and more electronics that bring them closer to US brands that you need a degree in electrical engineering to even open the hood (they're not as bad as the Germans yet, that's a whole other level).
But the thing I did notice is many people lump together "European" cars as if they all have similar levels of engineering, reliability or whatever. There is an enormous difference between, say a Seat and an Audi (I know, I chose them specifically), while they may be "the same underneath", the difference in quality, tuning, materials, even paint, is huge.
I'm essence, for South America, we see it as:
Japanese Cars: relatively cheap and indestructible Korean Cars: cheap and relatively reliable French Cars: not cheap but very reliable German Cars: expensive and extremely reliable US Cars: expensive and not reliable Italian Cars: cheap and not reliable Chinese Cars: very cheap and very unreliable
There are others, but that list covers I think 80% of all vehicles.
shredlikebutter@reddit
Their engines explode left and right. Ya ya ya there's the occasional customer that gets a couple hundred thou out of them but it's a big gamble. I'd buy a U.S. big 3 brand before I'd buy buy a Korean car, and that's really saying something
musicpeoplehate@reddit
I haven't heard that much about Hyundai, but Kias are poorly regarded with good reason. The first sportages that came here were junk. Front end failures were commonplace. More recently Souls and a few other cars with the same engine were breaking connecting rods. I guy I worked with had that problem and when his car was towed to the dealership they told him a new motor takes three days. When he asked the service guy how he could be so sure on such a big job he said "because that guy over there does nothing but put engines in these."
My understanding is that the connecting rod problem was because the swarf wasn't being cleaned out of the cranshaft before the engine was assembled.
milesdriven@reddit
They made most ofbthem without immobilizers until 2021. Everyone I know that had one had theirs stolen. Also many were on their second engine before 100k miles.
Chaos1357@reddit
And yet here I am at 130k miles on my engine, still going strong.
probiothicc@reddit
bro doesn't understand statistics
squirrel9000@reddit
Canada requires immobilizers so we avoided the Kia Boys, but the brand still has an awful reputation. The Theta is what did them in.
Ok-Office1370@reddit
Lol Reddit parroting garbage.
The theft scandal broke very recently. The cars weren't stolen as often in era. No moreso than other cars, because pretty much any modern car can be easily stolen if you know what to do. If the theft happened, it was likely recent and due to copycats who saw it on the news.
Social contagion is a different issue. Like media overreporting on mass shooters always directly leads to copycats, because most shooters do it to be remembered. If you don't make the shooter famous, you get less copycats. If you don't show live on the news how to boost Kias, less Kias get boosted.
Upbeat_Shame9349@reddit
How are personal anecdotes "Reddit parroting garbage"?
ThePlatinumPaul@reddit
My wife owned a new 2011 Sonata. It had a recall due to a manufacturing defect in the engine where they would suddenly just die. Took it to a dealership who said they did the work. About a month later, the engine did have issues. They tried to blame my wife "because woman" that she didn't change the oil and it had none. They wanted us to buy a new engine at $6,000.
Here's the thing, my wife took the car in for service every 3,000 miles for oil changes, either to a dealership near her office or I'd take it to this one. In fact, I brought it in a month prior. So I had to scream at corporate over this threatening to sue them. While she was eventually given a new engine for free, the car also had issues with the brake and tail lights not working even after replacing bulbs every couple of months. The radio stopped working too. We ended up buying her a CPO Lexus which is amazing.
Hyundai/Kia have for years known their security systems are lacking and the cars are very easy to steal. Yet they refused for a long time to offer a fix to owners, preferring to change them for what should be a recall.
Point is, garbage company with cars that need the 100,000 mile warranty because they are that bad.
ShitMcClit@reddit
There was the pallisade that crushed a kid to death in the auto folding seats reccently...
ThirdSunRising@reddit
They were considered solid bargains and very good quality until they had a batch of bad engines. With the longer mileages we do in countries like the US, Canada, Australia etc, those are the places the bad engines really made themselves known. Everything was fine for the first, say, 80-140k miles and then the engine is toast. Anything under 200k miles is considered a premature failure here, and a couple soecific engine models had a near 100% failure rate in that time frame
Bulepotann@reddit
Basically, millennials and older remember a time when Kias and Hyundais were extremely unreliable econobox cars. That reputations follows them to today where the only news they would’ve seen is how easy they are to break into and steal.
A lot of people are starting to realize they’re some of the best deals on the market , but then again, the kiaboys stuff has made people question them again since basically every car left these vulnerabilities way in the past.
jkostelni1@reddit
Well I have no idea as I’ve never driven either but I did pass a Kia completely engulfed in flames yesterday
tomcat91709@reddit
As a former Hyundai employee, let me share that the '90s were a very bad time for Hyundai. Hyundai. Hyundai sales dipped below 100,000 units, and HMC, Hyundai motor corporation in South Korea, was actively considering pulling out of the US market
There was a reason for this. The cars were absolute junk. Fit and finish, exhaust system issues, reliability issues, sheet metal quality, the list goes on. It turns out that there was an employee within Hyundai motor America, the US headquarters, who is not conveying information to HMC. HMC had placed an employee at HMA, and his job was to live on South Korea's time schedule and convey information about product quality issues and stuff like that.
The only problem is that South Korea's culture was basically shoot the messenger. So if he had bad news, you would expect to be fired, but he liked it in the United States. So he kept saying there was nothing wrong. So HMC is pumping out all these crappy vehicles that nobody wanted to buy. Finally, a couple of executives in the national service department started asking questions directly and that's where the communications started to get re-established.
There was actually a meeting where US executives flew to South Korea with a bunch of failed parts and other information and gave it all to the South Koreans. It was a very eye-opening set of meetings. The individual that was stationed at HMA was recalled, and the word is he was summarily fired on the spot. No surprise there. But HMC realized there was a problem and so they dove in head first to fix them. Product quality started to skyrocket starting in about 1999. By 2001, they had done an amazing job but they were still having problems selling the product because of the reputation. So they came out with what they turned. Turned America's best warranty. 10 years 100,000 mile powertrain. That's pretty good stuff. 5-year 60,000 mile warranty for basic coverage, which included things like radios,wiring, non-power train items and stuff like that.
Add the new warranty, vastly improved product, and sales incentives to both the dealership and the customer, and sales skyrocketed for at least 10 years until they're at the position they're at today.
Source: I worked there.
dermatofibrosarcoma@reddit
And that warranty is complete pile of shit denied across the board. And so is existing quality in 2026
ashishvp@reddit
Since when? Ive had 3 Hyundai’s that had 2 electrical problems. Both fully covered.
dermatofibrosarcoma@reddit
While individual experience is important cursory review will tell you that Kia/Hyundai made it their mission to deny warranty, especially to second owner.
supern8ural@reddit
I'm guessing you left before the issues with the Theta 2 and Nu engines.
I agree with what you say above and prior to 2011 I would have had a positive opinion of Hyundai. Now, they're back on the never buy list. It's amazing how they legit turned their image around and then pissed it all away again.
tomcat91709@reddit
Yeah, 2008. I got out before the company internally turned to crap.
PckMan@reddit (OP)
It's really crazy and not something I've heard before. Was it literally just one guy or in practice a bunch of people on that post? It's insane to think about the whole US market hinging on the word of one guy playing kiss ass.
tomcat91709@reddit
It was literally one guy. He came in around 3 PM and worked until midnight, and he had the place pretty much to himself, along with security. Because of him, HMC created a policy to rotate staff every 6 months. It was actually normal to have HMC employees come over for their 6 month "tour" and then resign rather than go back. This way they and their family got to stay in the US. Citizenship was their problem, then.
Odd-Page-7866@reddit
We got an Elantra the 1st year Hyundai started selling in the US. Several of the "standard" options were dealer installed and the dealerships had no parts inventory so everything had to be ordered and installed after the sale. Our "standard " AC took 3 visits to order the right system and get it installed. Several engine parts were made of cheap white plastic. There was no knowledge base for repairs so every time we had an issue it took 2 to 4 visits to get something repaired. We kept ours less than a year and traded it in.
Warm-Patience-5002@reddit
Thank you for sharing your great insight .
evilr2@reddit
They have always been and still are budget vehicles in that they're cheaper than other brands. They've gained more popularity because they started to include more interior features as standard. So they appeal to buyers who generally have less money because they feel they can get more bang for their buck. And these are the same type of people who put off maintenance due to financial constraints. In America at least, their engines are notorious for burning through a lot of oil. That means they require oil changes more often than other brands. So you combine the fact that they need more regular maintenance with the fact that their buyers are the type to put off maintenance longer and you end up with a lot of engine failures.
Then you add things like the company being cheap on components and making them easy to steal and that became a viral trend on social media and it gives them a worse reputation. Even after the company fixed that issue many of the cars still get their windows smashed by teenagers looking for a quick thrill then realizing they can't steal it. So insurance rates are also more expensive for drivers of the brand.
Derwin0@reddit
The whole engine fiasco in the last decade pretty much destroyed their reputation.
UpbeatPhilosophySJ@reddit
I can’t speak for now, but I bought a Hyundai Sonata 15 years ago, the engine literally blew and had to be replaced, the airbags broke, the electronics for the buttons in the dash broke, the brake lights broke in a weird way in that they stayed on even when the car was driving and turned off (some mechanical part above the pedal broke), one seatbelt sometime wouldn’t click in.
The biggest piece of shit car I ever owned, and I I’ve bought 6 cars new between me and my wife over the years.
“But it’s got a great warranty!” That doesn’t matter at all considering all the fucking time I spent getting it fixed. They never did fix the dash issues.
No_Pen_376@reddit
They are great cars, they have great reliability, better than most. That is the actual data, online forums are not data points, they are places for people with issues, bigotry and biases to complain about a brand.
Greater_Goose@reddit
Show us the data. Those are pretty bold claims.
Easy-Tradition-7483@reddit
Less expensive cars attract people who can’t actually afford a new car, and therefore can’t afford to maintain the car. I’ve taken multiple hyundais over 200k miles
PckMan@reddit (OP)
That's a good observation. Though as I said, I've seen many older models be neglected in the worst possible way and still somehow keep going.
Easy-Tradition-7483@reddit
I’ve also seen people on reddit say that the quality control at kia/hyunday factories in US isnt as good. Not sure if thats true
supern8ural@reddit
I've heard two different stories about their engine issues but they both had to do with the Huntsville, AL plant. One was that there was a problem with the rings used where they'd lose tension and another was that there was machining debris left in the engines. Don't know whether either was true but the fact is that they did have an unacceptable rate of engine failures and many of them seemed to be Theta 2 and Nu engines that were built in that plant. That may explain why their rep in Europe isn't as bad as it is here.
supern8ural@reddit
I'm willing to bet you that none of them had the Theta 2 or Nu engine. If they did, you got exceptionally lucky.
Melinoe2016@reddit
Hyundai was considered unreliable like 20-30 years ago. I thought they were mostly considered reliable once they started the super long warranty thing?
Mysterious_Donut_702@reddit
The Kiaboyz scandal is part of it.
Also, Hyundai and Kia launched here in the 1980s, with a notoriously awful start. 40 years later, they're offering a much better line-up, but the stigma stuck.
In the 2010s, some of their Theta 2 engines had machining defects and failed prematurely (90-150K miles).
That would seem high mileage in a less car-centric place. Over here, we drive much longer distances and have an expectation that cars must last 200K with routine maintenance.
Not every model was impacted, and my coworkers 2013 Elantra made it to 280,000 miles.
Other than that, these two brands are very popular and have a pretty strong reputation. Their haters are just unusually outspoken.
Chair_luger@reddit
An additional problem in the US is their dealerships have a bad reputation for being hard to get them to do some valid warranty repairs.
kaasenappeltaart@reddit
This pretty much. The 2.0 and 2.4 were horribly unreliable, and it doesn't help that they don't have as many options for models engines as they do in Europe, so a lot of huyndais and kias sold in north america came with these engines. From what I can tell the v6 didn't suffer the same issues.
A lot of north Americans would as argue Volkswagens are unreliable. Again very limited options compared to Europe. Different expectations when it comes to maintenance up keep. And depending on the year/model the manufacturer location may matter. It seems that the German and Japanese cars build in plants in japan/Germany had better QC than the ones of the same make build in north american factories
crookedledder@reddit
Europe is a more forgiving environment for vehicles. Lower speeds, fewer miles, mild weather.
A mediocre car may do fine in Europe, but can be inadequate for the duty cycle seen in the U.S.
lcannard87@reddit
Australia has very similar driving conditions to the US, and Kia and Hyundai have well deserved reputations for reliability.
Ours come from Korea though, maybe they’re just made shit in America.
Gunk_Olgidar@reddit
The Korean made vehicles are indeed much higher quality than those made in America. I owned three of the former and one of the latter.
Same as the Japan made Hondas, Mazdas, and Toyotas vs. American made. Owned enough of these to learn the same as well.
samit2heck@reddit
Our hyundai mostly drives at 130km/h avg. 20k a year. I think that's just under 85miles per hour. On salted snow in winter because we have alps.
Purrchil@reddit
Autobahn would like to have a word with you. Just like climate in Spain/ Portugal/ Alps/ Scandinavian countries.
Gunk_Olgidar@reddit
Two reasons:
One: 0w20 oil (instead of 5w30) and 10k+ mile oil change intervals instead of 5k miles, combined with never checking the dipstick.
Two: lesser-educated classes of Americans have greater access to automobile financing debt (unlike in the EU), so they defer maintenance to their own financial detriment, and the detriment of the vehicle.
... and then blame the auto maker when our neglected vehicles fail.
Those of us who do regular 5k mile oil changes on our Hyundai/Kia vehicles (even the Theta II cars) don't have these problems. But this also means we're smart enough to ignore Hyundai/Kia's recommendations for 10k mile oil changes and 0w20 out of warranty.
Source: Owned four different Hyundais with zero drivetrain problems from 2011 through 2024. All four had powertrains as reliable as any Toyota I've ever owned (including a 2SELC Camry, 3VZE 4runner, and 3MZFE Solara).
wolfpack_57@reddit
American here. Hyundais trade ride quality for interior features in some cases, but this is only a car guy quibble. More significantly, the Theta II engine has had significant failures. The Kia Boys theft trend was due to the fact that Kia skipped immobilizers on their cars through the mid-2010s, long after they were industry standard. This engendered personal resentment (I certainly didn’t like jumping behind fences because Kia Boys were swerving on the sidewalk) and speculation on other corners cut. Personally, I feel that I’ve seen recurring reports of child labor in their Deep South suppliers as well, but that’s anecdotal.
Cold_Specialist_3656@reddit
Hyundai had several generations of unreliable motors. Theta II engines were notorious for the sheer number of problems. All typically ending with rod knock and implosion. They didn't fix these issues till ~2020 and some people are still unsure they're completely fixed today.
Hyundai is also notorious for not honoring their warranty.
Their newest cars have a better reputation. It will take some years before they're fully trusted. We need to see how these cars behave at higher mileage.
Zee216@reddit
They were unreliable and poorly built 20-30 years ago. Car company reputations are remarkably difficult to change.
red18wrx@reddit
Cars built in America are not equal to those built outside of it. That being said, the Theta II 4cyl engine that was the entry level engine option for the Hyundai/Kia lineup for the past 15 years had manufacturing and design defects that resulted in a class action lawsuit because of premature engine failure. That coupled with a string of thefts of Kias as someone managed to disseminate a quick method of bypassing the cars security features, or exposed the lack of them, led to a reputation of cars that breakdown or get stolen easily. Seems they were a victim of they're own success within a society collapsing under late-stage capitalism with extreme income inequality. That being said, they are extremely easy to work on compared to other vehicle brands, they contain decent technology, and offer a competitive product at a good price.
Budsygus@reddit
Products with long life cycles and large price tags take an even longer time to change public opinion about them.
Vizio started as a bargain basement Chinese TV brand you bought at Walmart based purely on the price tag. They're now a solid middle-ground option for consumer TVs, but it took years and years to turn that perception around. And that's for a $500-800 TV. It takes an even longer time for something people are dropping tens of thousands on because negative perceptions get amplified online.
PckMan@reddit (OP)
That is true. It's often the case that I know people with cars that get constantly shat on and they've had no problems with them. Sure lemons are a thing, different circumstances are a thing. Hell no two cars are truly ever identical. Someone may not do as much as they should and get away with it and someone else may get a catastrophic failure even if they were keeping up with the maintenance. Too many variables.
Reputation is king, and I think that's in large part due to the attempt to try to simplify down the fact that there are too many variables.
HomeOrificeSupplies@reddit
You will still have mouth breathers who swear Toyota, Lexus, and Honda are all junk when basically every stat proves the exact opposite.
I think Kia and Hyundai are getting that same treatment. There’s a lot of reasons for the attitude, including some serious problems in the past. I think time will show that they’ve made incredible strides forward, particularly in the last decade. Every company has quality struggles of some sort, particularly on new product releases. It’s the ones that work on correcting them that I pay more attention to. And that typically means Asian manufacturers.
Helpful_Bar4596@reddit
Big sweeping generalization. But experienced life on both sides.
Europeans tend to see cars as tools to get a task or job done.
Many North Americans tend to see cars (trucks) as their identify or tribe or way of life.
PckMan@reddit (OP)
I think a big part is just that in Europe getting up to your neck in debt is hard to do and generally frowned upon and avoided whereas in the US it's normalised and rarely questioned. If everyone sees everyone else around them getting cars they really can't afford with really bad loans, they'll think it's fine for them to do the same.
Then when the time for maintenance comes, they just ignore it because they can't afford it, so they only roll into the shop when something's really wrong. Sensibility is a huge focus when it comes to cars in most European countries.
BellendicusMax@reddit
Americans can't maintain cars properly. Their oil and petrol is of lower quality in general.
f700es@reddit
Our ‘23 Sportage X Pro Prestige has been great.
PckMan@reddit (OP)
A friend's dad has a 20+ year old Sportage and it's still going strong. Hasn't really given him any problems ever since he bought it. He is the first owner and keeps up with maintenance. It's got the various bell and whistles which were available at the time and honestly aside from some under the hood differences it's not much different from the equivalent RAV4 from that time. And he gets some extra space and engine power over the RAV.
While I get the RAV has some definitive advantages they don't matter much to a very bog standard owner like him. He just wanted it to get from A to B, take the family on trips and not get stuck on mud or snow. It's been doing that all this time and doesn't seem to be having any major issues.
f700es@reddit
We also have a ‘12 Kia Soul for 14 years. Such a tank!
sammymvpknight@reddit
Owned a Hyundai tiburon that was junk by 40k miles in spite of meticulously following maintenance recommendations. Didn’t learn my lesson and got a Genesis G80 that was definitely a nice car until both the radiator and transmission began to fail around 50k miles…and then Genesis service department broke my car while making fixes on two different occasions. I had no confidence in the longterm reliability of the brand…and no confidence that the service department is competent…so I moved on.
Comfortable-Study-69@reddit
1) Engine problems. The Theta II engine in the Sonatas and K4s had manufacturing debris in the engines and subsequent serious oil burning issues and premature failures. The Nu and Gamma engines also had severe oil burning problems and premature injector failures on the GDI models.
2) Kia boys car thefts. You can bypass the anti-theft steering lock and hotwire a Kia by smashing a USB stick into the ignition, which happened to quite a few Kia owners and Kia didn’t fix the issue for a full decade.
3) Abuse due to the market segment targeted. They’re about on par with Nissan with their sedan and crossover offerings and that means they tend to be treated poorly, which tends to translate to oil starvation when so many Hyundais and Kias have existing oil consumption issues.
4) 80s and 90s Hyundais and Kias having notoriously poor construction quality and rust issues, although this doesn’t affect how they’re seen in the modern fay very much.
5) For why it’s different compared to Europe, it probably has to do with different factories making them and therefore different QC, different vehicles and engines/transmissions being offered (to my knowledge, the Theta II never made its way to the EDM), and wildly different driving habits and expectations between European and American consumers. Cars in the US are driven far longer, have different standards of care, and often operate in more extreme conditions.
ImamTrump@reddit
American car lobby. That’s all.
You also have to remember that these hardline positions are from old folk. Anyone under 40 knows they’ve been improving, like any other brand.
twoiseight@reddit
Stigma. They used to be unreliable, and Americans who haven't owned one ever or since just kinda ran with it for decades. It's a side effect of how many Americans put feelings over facts.
Mountain_Tear8608@reddit
We're a couple years into our Kia Telluride. Love the vehicle, zero issues. The fit and finish is far better than what we saw with Honda and Toyota when test driving. The tech and features on the Kia are also superior... not perfect, but overall very usable and easy to learn and feels natural. We've been a Toyota family for many years, but really did not like driving the Grand Highlander. The small turbo felt under powered and the transmission too harsh, and the interior felt cheap and plasticy compared to the Telluride. The Japanese brands command a premium for their long-term reliability, but at least in the case of Toyota I'm not sure that's still justified when you look at their recent recalls. Competition in the vehicle market is a good thing, and the Korean companies are forcing other car markers to up their game. That's good for everyone.
Tree_Weasel@reddit
I had a Hyundai Kona and it wasn’t a bad car. But I also live in South Texas, where it’s hot 8 months out of the year. And it hotter climates the little 1.6L Hyundai Turbo would consume oil like that was its job. No leaks, but I changed oil every 3K miles and it was almost at a quart low by then. I just didn’t feel it was built for the heat I live in and I didn’t get good confidence that it would be a long term reliable vehicle for me.
Now, living where I do, I do maintenance more often than the recommended intervals because the heat affects every vehicle. But none of my Honda, Mazda, nor Ford vehicles (turbo or not) have ever consumed oil at the rate the Hyundai did.
supern8ural@reddit
They actually pretty much overcame their initial bad rep in the US, but starting in \~2011, they had issues with engines drinking oil and subsequently shitting the bed (at 100k miles or less), particularly the Theta 2 and Nu engines although that isn't even limited just to those.
Thing is, most if not all of those engines sold in the US market were/are made at their facility in Montgomery, AL - so that may be the difference.
I've personally seen similar issues on a Smartstream engine as well and I believe that particular vehicle was made in Korea so unfortunately I can't say these issues are localized, although the notoriously bad ones were in fact made in Alabama.
In any case, they're SO bad that Hyundai and Kia are now off my list of any consideration for purchase.
Sore_Wa_Himitsu_Desu@reddit
Dunno. My Kia’s have been nothing but reliable. Standard wear and tear of course, but my 2012 Sorento has been a boring daily driver. People love to shit on Nissan too, but my beat to hell 2004 XTerra still refuses to quit. Don’t drive like an idiot and do the maintenance, and barring the occasional lemon they’re fine.
Bug_406@reddit
Those Xterra are the unsung heroes of Nissans lineup.
Trickam@reddit
I had a 2005 Spectra that had 250k on it when I sold it. Alternator and consumable parts were the only things done to it while I had it. Best sedan for reliability i ever owned.
Sore_Wa_Himitsu_Desu@reddit
I literally picked up the Sorento yesterday afternoon after having new tires and struts put on. Stuff wears out. But it still runs fine.
Bug_406@reddit
Anecdotal: Rented a 2017 Elantra, had it for 2 months, and it was fantastic. This is not the same company that brought us the 90s Excel. That rental is why a couple years ago i bought a 2016 Accent for commuting. It'll hit 170k miles this week. It's been a champion for the last 50k miles. I'll 100% buy another Hyundai/Kia when this one has a major issue, or a deer takes it out on the hiway. Kia Soul maybe? Veloster N perhaps.
SnowDucks1985@reddit
The cars are killing children (Hyundai Palisade), still blowing up on fire and getting stolen. Not to mention the complete battery failures with the ICCU issues with their EVs. They are lipstick on a pig kind of cars
twoiseight@reddit
Stigma. They used to be unreliable, and Americans who haven't owned one ever or since just kinda ran with it for decades. Just kind of a side effect of how many Americans put feelings over facts.
samit2heck@reddit
Are they manufactured in the US for the US market maybe? Could make a difference. I'm Australian, moved to Austria and bought a Hyundai for our family because they have a decent rep in both places. We've been going 5+ years with basic maintenance on our 15 year old ix35 and it's taken us all over on roadtrips and such.
Available-Coconut-86@reddit
I’ve had two Korean built Hyundais. An Elantra Touring and an Azera. Both were superb. They came loaded and 30% cheaper with warranties three times as long as competition. I think popping up US factories in areas with no lineage of skilled workers or auto culture has really knocked down their quality. Besides the engine issues they lots of their vehicles running around here with the paint falling off.
Dedward5@reddit
As I understand it there was a specific engine that was in a lot of the us models that we diddnt have in Europe and that engine had a design issue whereby it burned oil like mad. It had a recall and lawsuits. This trashed thier reputation, also the ICCU issue on EVs isn’t helping.
LifeRound2@reddit
They've always been entry level cars with lower reliabilit here. People in the entry level car market don't do the maintenance as regularly. Then there is tge issue that some of major components have just been garbage. Engine and CVT failures on a massive scale. That'll give companies a bad reputation thats hard to shed.
Background-Job-3629@reddit
I owned a Genesis (Hyundai Luxury)for a couple years and the car was ok but every dealership was evil. I got rid of it as soon as the 60mile bumper to bumper was up because the writing was on the wall that Hyundai hates pesky customers that expect respect.
AwesomnusRadicus@reddit
There is the whole kiaboys thing. Then the rows of failed gdi engines that was caused by manufacturing cleaning procedures... That kia/Hyundai decided to blame on customers. A lawsuit was needed for the companies to address that issue... The general shittiness of the dealers for the cars. The ICCU issues for their e-gmp platform which have been going on for years with no actual fix even with multiple models years and a generally messy recall process. There are reports of 2026 ioniq 5s being at the dealer for replacement 3 times with under 10000 miles. Hyundai says only 1 percent of cars are effected, the actual estimate might be closer to 30%... Parts availability for any of the cars with some sitting at the dealers for months.... The tendency to deny warranty claims multiple times even with proof or trends such as multiple cars having the same issue.... It just goes on and on.
Ok-Associate-5368@reddit
We had a bad experience with a 2006 Hyundai. It was great for 50K miles and then things started going downhill. Between 40K and 90K miles the car needed 3 sets of rotors and pads, a new exhaust system, and all 4 struts twice.
I was a maintenance officer in the military and I always keep my vehicles current on their maintenance but I think I’m a rare breed in the US. Most Americans have a hard time remembering to change their engine oil and filter on schedule. They seem to think that because Hyundai/Kia offer a 10 year/100K mile warranty, they don’t have to take care of them. Even so, I would never buy one of these cars because of the experience we had with a Hyundai.
Nstraclassic@reddit
Mechanical reliability is overblown for any brand. Kia and Hyundai get it a lot worse because on top of average mechanical issues a 12 year old with a USB stick can steal your car thus causing insurance rates for any Kia or Hyundai to skyrocket
GuessWhoItsJosh@reddit
From own personal experience, I had two engines that needed to be replaced from burning oil. I babied the hell out of those engines too and was on top on maintenance with records to show. They made it such a struggle and hassle even though there were lawsuits about it. I felt like I was living at the dealership at one point with how much I was there.
Then, during all that bs, The kia boys trend started up and my insurance shot up $100/month more. I was just so done with Hyundai at this point. Yes, they are priced well enough and look quite sharp but damn, it was not worth the headache for me.
This was mainly a 2010s Hyundai issue with 3 of their engines they used at that time. Mine were a 2013 that only made it 60k miles & 2017 that made it to 90k. My friends 2016 did make it to 100k before his also kicked the bucket. Believe these problems have been rectified finally in the 2020s but a decade of selling shit like that will take time to clean up.
Herbisretired@reddit
I have 3 neighbors that own a Kia/Hyundai vehicles and they are always in the shop for something and one has electronic gremlins and one just had an engine replacement and it is now drinking coolant. We all have basically one vehicle each so there are no backup vehicles to use so the time in the shop is definitely noticeable
PckMan@reddit (OP)
Do you know if they otherwise keep up with maintenance as they should or do they only go in when there's something obviously wrong.
Herbisretired@reddit
They seem to maintain them regularly and they frequently use my air compressor to add air to the tires.
PutPuzzleheaded5337@reddit
About four years ago, I built a big concrete retaining wall at Kia dealership in western Canada. At the time, they were easy to steal and there was an enormous recall on defective engines. The techs were changing engines under warranty everyday and it typically took eight hours. I remember the piles of defective engines in the recycling bin. My sister has owned a Kia Soul manual transmission car for about ten years and it has been reliable. The Hyundai and Kia brands are still very popular here and the Genesis brand looks cool!
motorboather@reddit
They’re attracting a driver that wants all the expensive tech that comes with their lower priced vehicles. But that clientele does not properly maintain their cars.
DifficultIsopod4472@reddit
People seem to have either the best luck with these vehicles or the absolute worst luck with these vehicles. I worked for Hyundai as a technician for a few years and our dealership was honest ( Believe it or not) and tried to take care of the customers the best they could, especially with warranty issues. We had at least 60 or so engines in crates sitting out side the shop that had been replaced under warranty. The one tech I worked with could replace 2 engines a day and was making some serious money. I can say that these 2 companies do stand behind their warranty in most cases, but it still sucks to have a brand new vehicle sit while making payments on it for a repair.
PlasticSpend3462@reddit
Many US drivers do not stay up on maintenance. Engines burn oil after miles have accumulated. Owners don't check. Sump runs dry. Rod bearings fail.
MycologistAny1151@reddit
The Genesis brand has some beautiful vehicles. I see quite a bit of the brands (Hyundai,Kia and Genesis. I am in Richmond, Virginia US
Kent89052@reddit
There are few vocal guys on her who have an axe to grind, probably because 20 years ago they bought a used Kia and had trouble with it because the 3 prior owners mistreated the car. So they make up stories, claim to be mechanics, and criticize respected publications that give 2026 Kia's a great report. Other people repeat these stories
GreenEggplant16@reddit
In the US, both Hyundai and Kia are very aggressive with marketing their cars to lower income people with poor credit. Likewise, these vehicles are more likely to be poorly maintained and driven hard.
dinosaurkiller@reddit
It really depends on the model and year. For many years they used GFI engines which had “Intense engine knocking, excessive oil consumption, stalling, engine seizure, and in some cases, catastrophic engine fires” and led to class action lawsuits and loss of reputation.
The GFI and other manufacturing issues continue to plague them and are seen as an overall lack of quality control for both manufacturers.
TXtogo@reddit
I would be embarrassed to drive one, to me it’s like a knock off car you buy on canal street.
Master_Spinach_2294@reddit
Before it was known that you could steal vast numbers of cars with a USB cable and a flat head screwdriver, they had their powertrain warranty because they're known to blow up motors here. I think they actually make very good vehicles by and large but because of the conditions of American driving (temps, road quality, often long sustained speed drives) they may be under more stress here.
TROGDOR_X69@reddit
we have a brain
rustbucket_enjoyer@reddit
Their engines burn oil until they don’t have any left, then all the various bearings inside the engine cook themselves in short order.
Meanwhile the manufacturers(all of them) are pushing longer and longer service intervals. Combine that with drivers who know less about maintaining their vehicles than they ever have before, and you have an easily repeatable scenario where all oil is gone before a scheduled service comes up, and that’s if the person is actually doing service on time. They’ll say they had no idea anything was wrong, until it’s too late.
You can blame customers for being dumb to an extent but oil consumption in new cars on that level should have ended ages ago. Customers are not used to the idea that a modern car burns litres of oil between oil changes. Hyundai knowingly sold this garbage and then denied warranty claims
deltatux@reddit
My 2012 Hyundai Accent was nothing but issues. It lasted until about 150,000 km or so, it was not worth fixing anymore. It had many parts replaced under warranty, including an engine replacement. What did the car in was speedometer and catalytic converter failure.
When the car was getting the engine replaced, my local dealer had a long line of Accents and Elantras also due for engine replacement, was told that engine replacements were not rare by the dealer.
Even amongst friends who owned a Hyundai or Kia during this period had engine troubles so a lot of us replaced them with something else, mostly Japanese makes.