partsisparts

They are probably replacing the whole transmission with a rebuilt unit froma certified honda rebuilder. Ford would do the same thing.

The rear window of the Fit is VERY close to the head of the rear passengers. If you get rear ended and are sitting back there it is not looking good for you. If an american car company designed a car like this they would get pounded by every magazine and consumer group out there! There is not much back there to protect you. It really looks like any SUV will wind up in the back seat.

It's about time some one reviewed a Honda without drinking the Kool-Aid first.

It's an insult to my 53 Hudson Hornet. :D

My friend has an 01 GT. It had a slight tick when new and the dealer told him it was normal. While watching Horsepower TV recently they were working on a Mustang and they mentioned a tick out of certain 4.6 GTs saying the head gaskets were bad from new and that was causing a tick in the motor. He checked his oil yesterday and noticed a small amount of water in the oil. this AM the car had a much louder tick. Does anyone know about this problem? Is there a TSB about this? Is Ford doing anything about this?

Kevinb you are exactly right! I was in the car biz for 20 years and have observed the same thing. What about the use of cheap timing belts that have to be changed? Ford uses chains that do not need to be changed and all you hear form the rags is that Ford engines are "not as refined as the japanese." Also when you are on the road, check out how many old Tauruses you see compared to similar year Camrys and Accords. Especially from 92-95 model years. My bro in law has a 96 Taurus LX with 208k and runs great.

I would rather walk in the cold than be treated like dirt for 8 to 10 hours a day.

Ovaltine, I am glad we agree on a few things, and I am glad you love your Kia. I love my new Fusion! But I have been in the auto biz for 25 years and have seen alot. I feel Kia will take years to be a major competitor for the same reason Hyundai was'nt for many years. Their initial products were bad. It took Hyundai ten years to get over the Excel and I feel it will take the same amount of time for people to forget the Sephia and the first gen Sportage. Yes, you do have a better car, but the public is not that forgiving. I know your thinking of the american brands quality problems, but people tend to forget the good. For instance Econoline vans, Taurus, third gen Escorts, Mustangs,F series. Explorer was Americas choice for years, now you cannot read an article about them without some reference to the Firestone tire recall. You see the press is very biased against U.S.auto makers. If you have a problem with a floor mat on a Focus it is national front page news, Toyota Recalls every Prius they ever built it is a little blurb on page 39. Please do not listen to Honda and Driver mag or Toyota Trend, listen to yourself. Go out look and drive and make an educated decision for yourself not a magazine looking to sell advertising space. I own a V6 Fusion SEL and could not agree with you more. Some have said the Fusion is a 4 door Mustang and I am starting to agree. The car handles like a BMW for a lot less money. Has adequate power( I blew away "tuned" Honda Accord last night).And Looks great too. So far I could not be happier with this car. All for under 25k tax and all. :D :D :D

To answer your question I last sold them in 2002. You think that there resale value will grow in time? What are you basing this on? I live in Jersey and New York where their is not 1 exclusive Kia dealer anywhere around. But your post explains why. There is only 400 exclusive dealers, an average of 8 per state. Wow, they are taking over! Kia has also been in this country since 94 so they are not "fledgling" any more. The only reason they are still around is because Hyundai bought them or they would be amongst the ranks of Yugo. Saturn has been around since 92 to compare, yes I know the General is behind them, but if thet did not sell, Oldsmobile would still be here and saturn would be gone. At 275,851 cars, Ford sold that many F-150s by the end of April. Now that's competition. As far as the growth streak goes it seems there is no other place but up. Is Toyota worried about the Koreans? Yes because they own their own shipping line and steel mills and have big backing from the Korean Gov't.

Does anyone know why Kias have such terrible resale value? Well, I can tell you. Because the people in the car biz ie: dealers, wholesalers and used car lots, know that the product is inferior. Rememeber these are the REAL car experts. The car at auction does not even bring book price. They know the car does not bring good money on their lots. Consumers do'nt go out looking for a used Sephia. Kia came out with a 5 door Sephia and called it a Spectra because the Sephia had such a bad rep. That was told to me by a Kia factory rep. You see I sold these little beautys for years and I know this stuff first hand. Kia was giving dealers HUGE incentives just to take their franchise. Did anyone ever see a stand alone Kia dealer? I have not even though I know ther must be some somewhere. The car is dead last in resale value and in the crash tests. Therefore the usual Kia customer is a credit criminal who cannot get financed on anything else. Kia has big rebates on inexpensive cars so dealers can manufacture big down payments on them. S the bank has less risk. Most of the "second chance" credit services you see on TV will wind up slamming you in a Kia because of this. Just my 2 cents from someone with 20 years in the auto sales biz.

I own a 06 Fusion SEL V6. And I parked next to a new Kia this AM. The mouldings are DIFFERENT. I can tell you this the Kia looks like a soda can compared to a Fusion. The fit and finish are better and the paint quality. Also you should tske a look at the crash test ratings. Please do not try to justify your purchase of an inferior piece of crap to us on this board!

McNamara left the company in 1961 to become secretary of state for JFK

Great Grand Dad left the company in worse shape than it is in now. Henry 2 saved it, he devolped the 49 Ford. Great Grand Dad wanted to build Model Ts again as late as 1940. That tells you where his head was at! :huh: Mcnamara and Iaccoca started at fomoco in 1946. The car Iaccoca was the father of was the 2000-2000 car called the Pinto.(2000 dollars and 2000lbs)

The company was in WORSE shape when old Henry left it. Henry 2 hired the Whiz Kids (Iaccoca,McNamara) to help him save it. If he had'nt you would not have a Ford Notor Co today. Thet came up with the 49 Ford, If that was not the hit that it was, the company probably would have went under.