The Kia Sedona/Carnival Thread [ARCHIVE]

[mikey177]

charlie_alpha::: Page 8-3 of my manual says it should be 32 psi (general) and 36 psi (Europe).

I keep it at 34 psi and the tires still seem flat even at that pressure, but I think this is already due to the construction of steel-belted radial tires (they really tend to bulge unlike nylon tires).

Here's an explanation from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-radial-tires.htm

While tires may look simple they are actually made up of a series of layers of different materials. If we peeled back the tread in bias-ply tire one would see a nylon weave (these are the plies) beneath, running in a diagonal pattern meeting in the centerline of the face of the tire. The weave runs at an angle down the sidewalls to the bead — the part of the tire that fits on the wheel's rim. Nylon ply is stronger than polyester but compresses and sets when under load especially when left for periods of time, resulting in "flat areas" on the tire. Due to the direction the ply runs on these tires, the sidewalls don't bulge even if the tire is low. This design allows tread to wrap down over the sidewall because there is no transition point from the circumferential face to the sidewall.

A radial tire is constructed differently. Rather than diagonal nylon plies that meet in the centerline it's made with polyester cords that run perpendicular from bead to bead, up over the face of the tire and down each sidewall. In other words it's "wrapped" at a right-angle to the direction of the tread. On the face of the tire over this polyester wrap, is a belt that runs below the tread. The belt is nearly the width of the tire and runs the circumference. This gives the tire a "squared" look. Though belts used to be made of rubber-coated fibers nearly all belts today are made from steel fibers. Hence the steel-belted radial. This belt helps stabilize the tread, reducing wear. Because of the construction of a radial tire, the sidewall will always have a bulge at the point of contact. Because of this bulge, when radial tires were still fairly new to the market many people assumed they were under inflated.

[mikey177]

Guys::: I need to change my rear shock absorbers since they just became noticeably soft. The rear suspension fails when I give it the bounce test.

Has anyone replaced his or her rear shocks already? Did you use OEM Kia shocks or do any reputable third party suppliers make rear shocks for the Sedona? What brand can you recommend and how much did they cost?

I was searching through the KYB web site but I didn't find the Sedona in the list of Kia vehicles that KYB makes shocks for. Any suggestions?

[mikey177]

Well, I couldn't wait any longer for feedback regarding Sedona shock absorbers since my rear shocks were already shot to heck.

I made the rounds of the auto supply stores here in our city but none of them had shocks (whether Kia brand or aftermarket) for the Sedona. Finally, I requested a reputable shop to order a pair for me from Metro Manila, and I got them within 48 hours (original Kia parts ito). I had them installed today, and my ride is back to normal.

The shocks cost me P2,900 each, which is okay considering that Wheels E. Rod quoted me a price of P3,700 and Kia Dagupan gave me a quote of P5,100 for each unit

[jabr]

hello there peeps,
just closed the deal with a 2nd hand 2001 carnival ls and drove it home last 31 may 2006. odomoter reading is just 36k+ km.for a five year old vehicle. external & internal features is above par, very fresh pa! didn't tell the kids (i have 4) that we'll be getting a new ride.... and they went loco upon seing it. one thing i noticed though is the rattling sound (parang plastic covers na kumakalog) at the passenger side of the car/engine bay when the gear stick is on the drive position in low rpm's and eventually eased up when i pressed the gas pedal. no rattle could be heard though when the car is in neutral position. any explanations to this? maybe a loose plstic covers on the air filters, because i noticed that there are missing clips & screws on some of the covers. very nice ride except with that rattling sound. 1st time to have a diesel engine and a/t car so i dont know anything about it. thanx!

[bisoy]

after a year with us, i finally took my 2000 kia carnival for a long drive. it's about 220kms (one way). gone upto 140kph occasionally and i was surprised na may ibubuga pa sya and van still feels very stable. i can keep up with newer vehicles like dmax, frontier titanium and fortuner. they just couldnt lose me sa back view mirror nila. even a late model lancer (wala pang plates) couldnt shake me off.

i was with my family pala.... my wife, my 3yr old kid and a 1 yr old kid.... they were all sleeping like a baby. kaya nga naka abot ako ng 140kph! do you think my wife would let me drive that fast? hahahahahahahaha im very happy with my purchase and if ever magpapalit ako ng van, it will be a kia sedona :D

[mikey177]

jabr::: It might be good to have a mechanic find the source of that rattling sound, especially since you mentioned that it might be coming from the engine bay.

The odometer shows only 36,000-km for a five year period? I envy you. I've had my Carnival for only four years and I have already logged close to 140,000-km during that time. As long as you got the unit from a trustworthy source (i.e. one who wouldn't roll back the odometer reading), then I guess you got a very good deal indeed.

Just read through the owner's manual so you'll be familir with the Carnival's quirks and areas where TLC are needed (e.g. turbo/engine warmup and cooldown periods, maintenance schedules, etc.).

bisoy::: Nakaka-inggit nga yung pamilya ko kapag long trips e. Lahat sila tulog, ako lang ang gising. I'm not complaining though... lagot kung pati ako makatulog

[altec]

i checked one of my oem tires that is almost down to the warning marker. I noticed the wear is slightly greater on the outside, meaning mas pudpod siya, as the warning marker is almost level to the tire surface already, versus the center tread's warning marker. I set it at 32psi, as recommended by kia. This means our tire is running underinflated, though slightly. This discovery seems to show we need to keep it at a higher psi, maybe 33 or 34, as 35 is the max psi setting of our tires.

[bisoy]

after my first long trip to butuan 2 weeks ago, we're going to davao this weekend! yahoo! this is going to be fun. nakaka adik pala tong mag drive!

[mikey177]

I was able to visit Fronte in Banawe for the first time last week. Hay naku, gusto ko umiyak --the shock absorber that our local auto supply sourced for me for P2,900 cost just P1,300 from them.

Anyway, that's the price I pay for living far from Metro Manila. I took the opportunity to buy parts that I may be replacing in the near future like brake pads/shoes, air and oil fiters, and the like. Even their air filters are cheaper at Fronte --P270 each versus P430 in Urdaneta

[DacoTyan]

mikey177, have I told you about the Kia dealer here in Davao? Well, I found out that the quoted price for, let's say, side-view mirror is double that of Fronte's plus there's a 3-day wait AND a 50% D/P. Pretty slick, they get almost 100% mark-up, customer provides the capital and they don't incur inventory costs.