Second hand KIA Sportage: a return to troubled roots
Unlike the first generation model, which did not differ in technical health and longevity, the second generation Kia Sportage has become a truly standard of reliability, replacing the frame and rear axle-beam with a load-bearing body and independent suspension of all wheels. All the more surprising is the fact that in the third reincarnation, without much structural change, the crossover again turned out to be quite problematic and costly to operate.
The first signs of illness can be found directly on the body of a used third-generation Sportage, produced since 2010. The chrome coating of the exterior decor details swells and lags behind after the first winter season.
The durability of the paintwork also leaves much to be desired. The front part of the body, especially the hood, is covered with numerous chips and scratches with enviable speed. This is most typical for cars painted with ordinary enamel - practice shows that instances with metallic are more resistant to external influences. True, the body metal itself is protected quite reliably - rust does not appear in places of damage even in cars of the first years of production.
The doors, even on relatively fresh Sportages, close with a decent effort and by no means a respectable rumble. In fairness, we note that on the new crossovers, the doors slam shut with difficulty. Annoying rattling on the move of the trunk lid - and, over time, the musical accompaniment, unpleasant for hearing, only intensifies. To cure this minor but annoying ailment, it is enough to adjust the lock of the fifth door.
At the same time, it would be useful to glue pieces of sealant around the armrest lock, which is the main source of “crickets” in the cabin.
When buying a used Sportage, carefully inspect the front seats and, with particular care, the driver's. The fact is that the seat cushion is very frail, it is quickly rubbed to holes. Dealers even tried to install a special gasket between the frame and seat upholstery. However, it didn't last long either. The seats became truly “assiduate” only on restyled cars that appeared by the fall of 2013.
Do not ignore the electric sunroof, which has a bad habit of getting stuck in the guides due to the fragility of the structure. According to the law of meanness, it most often gets stuck in the open position and in the cold season. A new node is quite expensive - from 58 rubles, not counting the cost of installation work.
Windshields do not differ in strength (from 18 to 000 rubles). They often burst in the cold season, and more often this happens with those that are equipped with heated brushes in the rest zone of the wipers.
All Sportage officially sold in Russia were equipped exclusively with two-liter "fours": 150-horsepower gasoline and turbodiesels with a capacity of 136 and 184 liters. from. The lion's share of used crossovers from KIA in our market falls on modifications with a gasoline engine. Derived from the old and reliable Mitsubishi unit with the 4B11 index, the Tetha II engine differs from its predecessor primarily in an aluminum block - this solution is used on almost all modern engines. However, the maintainability of the Korean "four" as a result has significantly decreased - with scuffing on the cylinder mirror, the block simply changes entirely. At the same time, cast iron can be bored to repair dimensions, and more than once.
By 70-000 km, you honestly have to change the worn-out hydraulic clutches of the phase shifters - there are two of them, each costs 80 rubles. True, at the beginning of 000, the part was modernized, thereby increasing its service life.
But all these are flowers, berries will be ahead: the engine is extremely demanding on the quality and level of engine oil. I must say that it does not have outstanding characteristics, and it has to be actively untwisted in order to get more or less normal acceleration. And at 3500-4000 rpm and above, the “four” begins to intensively devour oil. Long driving in this mode leads to engine oil starvation, which is fraught with protracted repairs or even replacement of the unit. Therefore, the Koreans in 2011 released a modified engine with a crankcase, the volume of which was increased from 4 to 6 liters.
There are fewer complaints about diesels. First of all, the high-pressure fuel pump at a price of 50 rubles or more suffers from bad diesel fuel. The turbine, for which you will have to pay from 000 rubles, is almost guaranteed to last up to 40 km, and often longer. If you refuel with high-quality fuel, then the service life of these components increases significantly.
A five-speed manual gearbox, like the six-speed that appeared in 2011, does not give cause for concern. However, when replacing the clutch on diesel versions, the dual mass flywheel may need to be updated. And they ask for an extremely immodest amount for it: from 52 rubles for the 000-strong version and from 136 for the 70-strong one.
The six-band "automatic" is quite reliable - however, subject to a rigorous oil change every 60 kilometers, otherwise you will have to say goodbye to the valve body for 000 rubles and a clutch package ahead of time. But the Koreans assure that this unit is maintenance-free!
Active driving with sharp starts and braking will quickly finish off the torque converter worth 66 rubles. With age, from dirt and moisture, the automatic transmission control electronics begin to mope: valves and solenoids hang, sensors fail.
He does not like water procedures and all-wheel drive transmission. From moisture getting inside, the electromagnetic clutch quickly becomes unusable, the price tag for which ranges from 35 to 000 rubles. Due to corrosion, it also cuts off the splines of the intermediate shaft. True, the Koreans quickly worked on the bugs, and on cars younger than 60, these sores were cured. However, the transfer case may still be at risk, in which, due to poor-quality oil seals and seals that allow water to pass through, splines wear out over time.
In a fully independent suspension, you need to pay attention to the shock absorbers, which in the first cars began to knock already by 10 km. Many owners have changed them under warranty several times. The rear springs were not far behind the shock absorbers, sagging to 000 km. In this case, the recommendations are simple: it is advisable to change the springs and shock absorbers for parts from famous manufacturers, and then you can forget about the problem.
However, on the restyled version of the Sportage, Korean engineers thoroughly shook up the entire suspension, so that its reliability has increased markedly. Although the main competitors, like the Toyota RAV-4 or Honda CR-V, the car still falls short in this parameter ...
By the way, compared to the “Japanese”, the Sportage has much more complaints about the electrical part. The electronic systems of active and passive security are moping, the dashboard, multimedia, parking sensors and the keyless entry system are buggy.
In general, with relatively affordable prices for spare parts, they will have to be changed quite often, which, of course, does not add to the attractiveness of buying a third-generation Sportage.
