Kia Carnival Problems

I have spoken to Kia and the company says it has replaced the steering rack and power steering and that it believes the car is operating correctly. It has not been able to identify any brake fault.

The crash testing has been done by ANCAP and, even though Kia recently had a safety glitch with its Carnival, I’m expecting a five-star result for the Sportage.

You don't have to look any further than the Sorento's stablemate at Kia, the Carnival. It's a great family machine and even shares much of its basic engineering with the Sorento.

The iMax is reliable and would win in terms of storage space. The early Carnival with the V6 motor was troublesome, but the later one is quite reliable and could be bought with confidence.

Take it to a suspension specialist and have them check the alignment and adjust if needed, and talk to them about what they might be able to do to prevent it happening.

For starters there is no such thing as a 'lemon law' in Australia; our legislators have chosen to leave us without protection when it comes to cars. You really have no comeback on the dealer, except to appeal to their common decency and help you out. You don't say what went wrong with the car, but the Carnival was prone to head gasket problems in the early days, so I'm guessing that could be the problem.

The Carnival only got a four-star score from ANCAP in July because of excessive movement of the parking and foot-brake pedals, with a heightened risk of injury to the driver’s legs and feet. Work has been done and there should be a re-test early in 2016 with ANCAP with improved cars on sale in the first quarter.

You’re correct; it is nothing to do with Australian safety standards. Take it back and ask them to wheel align it.

I would get a second opinion on the Kia's engine before you do anything else. A sludged-up engine suggests a lack of servicing, but if no damage has occurred you might be able to salvage it. I wouldn't recommend either a Multivan or Valente, those you are looking at are too old and potentially too expensive to run and repair. A seven-seat SUV might be a better option.