Loading vehicle data from NHTSA...
NHTSA recalls, safety ratings, and consumer complaints for the 2008 Kia Spectra.
| Trim | City | Hwy | Combined | Annual fuel $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.0L 4 cyl Automatic 4-spd | 24 | 32 | 27 | $2,200 |
| 2.0L 4 cyl Manual 5-spd | 23 | 30 | 26 | $2,300 |
| Overall Rating | Not Rated |
| Frontal Crash | Not Rated |
| Side Crash | Not Rated |
| Rollover | Not Rated |
| Overall Rating | Not Rated |
| Frontal Crash | Not Rated |
| Side Crash | Not Rated |
| Rollover | Not Rated |
No recalls found for the 2008 Kia Spectra.
After starting car, for first 15-20 mins, all normal. After speedometer go erratic (showing slower than actual speed - or - higher than actual speed) and soon after it just stops working. No check engine light. Dangerous to drive without knowing actual speed. Have to use mobile phone app like Waze or something which shows apx speed. Upon internet search, I found there are many Kia spectra Ex (from 05-09 models) reported similar issues. This situation is dangerous as driver may be following speedometer on highway and ending up driving slower than actual speed. NHTSA should issue a recall. Kia - as usual - never acknowledged issue to save money. Dealership recommending me buy a new car rather than fixing the issue or at least attempting to fix it. When declined for trade-in (or buy a new car) they demanded upfront diagnostic charges without telling me what is actual issue.
I have tires sized 195/60r15. I was having problems with shaking at a certain speed. my mechanic checked all the options that could have been mechanical and directed me to a tire shop. I brought the car in for them to check for balance. rims, etc. During the inspection, they discovered that both rear tires, driver and passenger side were separating. I had never had problems with tires until I purchased these. The third attached photo was after I first purchased the tires. The piece was shaved off and I don't know why. I had to replace it. I contacted this office on November 19, 2023, with the initial complaint about the tires. Tracking number 11555870.
195/60/15 I purchased four new tires From Prospect Tire and Wheels on September 23, 2022, with an alignment. In August of this year, 2023, I returned because of an issue with one of the tires, and the alignment. They told me after replacing the most serious issue that all four tires had "bubbles". They weren't willing to do anything except to rotate the "bad" tires to the rear of the car and sell me one other that absolutely had to be replaced. They offered me the contact information for their distributors as they had no idea which one it was they got the tires from. I contacted Cooper about the issue and the representative I spoke to, Julie, said they had no record of them because these particular tires were destined for Mexico? In my response below, I indicate when the tires were first purchased up until now, because I've had nothing but issues with them since.
The 2008 Kia Spectra has 0 NHTSA recalls and 136 consumer complaints on file. It received an overall safety rating of Not Rated out of 5 stars in NHTSA crash testing. The high number of complaints suggests potential reliability concerns — review the complaint details above before purchasing. For the most detailed information about a specific vehicle, decode its VIN using our free decoder above.
Enter a specific VIN to get the full report — specs, recalls, safety ratings, complaints, investigations, and technical service bulletins.
Duplicate transactions that we're compromising but verified through multiple accounts that were unauthorized and purchased by another provider or driver that was added to orginal policy along with several price gouges in Individual policies that had ties to driving history altered n edited it would seem to cause infamation to the cost of the driver would be expected to pay we meaning the eight orginal known targets at first glance all were verified as fatca act needing to be filed and then problems with verification of identity and us citizenship even from. 15 states that had alternate unauthorized banking information on file to match so.e bussiness n private insurance policies bought n then deliberately bolos begin called on the victims for reprocessed purposes of a new getaway car for the villain in this scenario. We also found that multiple devices that were begin paid for were attached through pre paid account to the orginal account that was authorized user ot driver has no prior knowledge of the added account or debit card that made the transactions or the fact that the mail was begindeffered and altered to manipulate the issues further from finding the assailants that are using victims as scapegoats by the end of the fun I. Ruin my life with the damage to keep on touching and effecting everything else.
The passenger air bag has failed. The dash light stays on due to issue and the air bag itself stays off per the light on the airbag on/off alert. I contacted the dealership who quoted me over $100 just to take a look at it, but was told this seems to be an issue with Spectras that they see pretty commonly.
THE PASSENGER AIRBAG SENSOR STARTED FAILING WHEN I PURCHASED THE CAR IN 2017 AND HAS SINCE COMPLETELY FAILED, WHICH HAS CAUSED THE AIRBAG LIGHT TO TURN ON. THE KIA DEALERSHIP WANTS TO CHARGE $140 TO RUN AN AIRBAG DIAGNOSTIC AND FROM WHAT I HAVE RESEARCHED, I WILL HAVE TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE SEAT, WHICH MAY COST MORE THAN THE VALUE OF THE CAR. MY CONCERN AT THIS POINT IS WHETHER OR NOT ANY OF THE AIRBAGS WILL BE DEPLOYED IN THE EVENT OF A COLLISION.
YES SO MY AIR BAG LIGHT WHEN I GOT THE CAR WAS OFF AN IT JUST POPPED UP COUPLE WEEKS AGO! I HAVE TRIED EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO TRY TO FIX IT AN STILL IS ON. I EVEN BROUGHT A NEW DRIVER SEAT AN IT STILL DIDN'T FIX THE PROBLEM. MY BE HOPE HAS BEEN PARKED SINCE THE AIR BAG LIGHT HAS BEEN ON.
I WAS DRIVING TO WORK ON 7 MARCH 2020. AS SOON AS I TURN TO PARK IN THE PARKING LOT OF MY JOB, THE CAR TURNED OFF. I TRY TO CRANK IT ON 3 TIMES IT WOULDN'T LET ME. SO I WENT IN TO WORK, THANK GOD I MADE IT TO THE PARKING LOT AT LEAST. AFTER RUNNING TO AUXINE TO SEE WHAT'S WRONG WITH IT (THEY WERE NO HELP) I MADE FEW CALLS BETWEEN FRIENDS AND CAR COMPANIES. TURNED OUT IT WAS THE TIMING BELT THAT SNAPPED AND IT'S BECAUSE IT WASN'T CHANGE FOR A LONG TIME AND I ONLY HAD THE CAR FOR 3 YEARS. SO WITH THE TIMING BELT MESSING UP, IT MESS UP THE ENGINE ALSO. I AM NOW WITH NO CAR JUGGLING BETWEEN RIDES AND TAXIS TO TAKE TO WORK. I REALLY LOVE MY KIA AND I AM SO SAD THIS HAPPENED. I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO DO. THIS HAPPENED AT ZAXBYS PARKING LOT (WHERE I WORK AT) IN WILSON, NC.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2008 KIA SPECTRA. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE A PASSENGER IN THE VEHICLE TRAVELLING AT 45 MPH, THE VEHICLE WAS HIT ON THE PASSENGER SIDE BY ANOTHER VEHICLE AS A RESULT THE PASSENGER AND DRIVER SIDE AIR BAGS AS WELL AS THE PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE PASSENGER AND THE DRIVER OF HER VEHICLE SUSTAINED BACK, HEAD AND ARM INJURES WHILE THE DRIVER SUSTAINED NECK AND BACK INJURIES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE OCCUPANTS OF THE OTHER VEHICLE SUSTAINED NO INJURIES. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CAR WAS DRIVABLE AS THE AIR BAGS FAILED DEPLOY HOWEVER, THE VEHICLE WAS DEEMED A TOTAL LOSS. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE 185,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.*DT*JB*DT*DT*JB
THE METAL COVERING ON THE INTERIOR DOOR PULLS IS PEELING OFF. THIS JAGGED METAL CUT MY FINGER. THERE ARE OTHER REPORTS OF INJURY FROM THIS ON LINE ALSO. FURTHER, THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR WILL NOT OPEN WITH THE INTERIOR DOOR PULL IF THE DOOR IS LOCKED.
CRUISE CONTROL WON'T SET.
WILL RANDOMLY STALL. BEEN TO THE MECHANIC SEVERAL TIMES AND WE CAN'T FIND THE PROBLEM. DOESN'T MATTER IF YOUR GOING DOWN THE ROAD OR JUST IDLING IN THE YARD STALLS OUT.
DRIVER SIDE AIR BAG LIGHT IS ON
AIR BAG LIGHT (RED WARNING LIGHT) STARTED TO STAY ON CONSTANTLY. THIS MEANS THAT AIR BAG WILL PROBABLY NOT DEPLOY IN CASE OF CRASH (TO BEST OF MY KNOWLEDGE WHEN SEARCHING ON GOOGLE ABOUT THIS ISSUE). BEFORE THIS LIGHT TURNED ON (RED LIGHT ON AIR-BAG), I EXPERIENCED AN ISSUE WITH "PASSENGER AIR-BAG OFF" LIGHT STAYING ON - DESPITE SOMEONE IS PRESENT ON PASSENGER SEAT (MEANING THAT AIR-BAG WILL NOT DEPLOY AS COMPUTER IS NOT SENSING ANYBODY SEATING THERE). I WOULD NEED TO STOP-BY ON ROAD SIDE, THEN TURN VEHICLE OFF COMPLETELY, ASKED A PERSON ON PASSENGER SEAT TO GO OUT - WAIT FOR A WHILE - AND THEN RESTART THE VEHICLE AND REQUEST A PERSON TO GET BACK ON SEAT. LATER ON, THIS WAY NO LONGER WORKING. COMPUTER RESET NO LONGER WORKING. FRIENDS WARNED ME THAT - IT IS SIGN OF AIR-BAG SYSTEM FAILURE AND KIA SHOULD GET IT FIXED (IT COMES UNDER SAFETY). THIS ISSUE IS CONSTANT IRRESPECTIVE IF VEHICLE IS STATIONARY OR IN MOTION.
SPEEDOMETER KEEPS GOING OUT. IT WILL WORK FIRST THING IN THE MORNING, BUT MID DAY IT DROPS TO ZERO
Showing 15 of 136 complaints