NPoCP: Should My Daughter Buy this Car Edition

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura)
05/27/2018 at 12:34 • Filed to: None

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Does anybody have any experience with the Rio?

DISCUSSION (21)

jimz > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 12:38

CR has no data on it, unfortunately.

Nibby > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 12:40

buy her anything else

Steve in Manhattan > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 12:40

Probably made before Kia had the quality thing nailed down, although reliable enough. Buddy’s neighbor had Kias from this era and was fine with them. Take it to your mechanic before purchase and have it gone over so you know everything that’s wrong with it. And that’s a 2-3K car, says my gut ...

jkm7680 > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 12:46

That’s a 2019 Stinger?

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 12:48

Theyre fine. I put a new headunit in an older one for a family member. It worked as a car. I guess that’s all I have to say about it.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Steve in Manhattan
05/27/2018 at 12:49

Made when their quality was getting much better, so pretty reliable - they may be basic, but the Rio/Accent twins of this gen were often ranked Above Average in reliability. He should def get it checked though. :)

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > jkm7680
05/27/2018 at 12:53

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > jimz
05/27/2018 at 12:54

Edmunds does, though.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 13:00

I don’t have experience with the 2006-2010 Kia Rio, no, BUT, I do have experience with the 2006-2010 Hyundai Accent which was an exact sister car to the Rio and was essentially exactly the same underneath with different fascia (a lot of parts are interchangeable - the Rio/Accent had the exact same drivetrains, a 1.6L G4ED Alpha II 4-cyl with 110hp mated to a conventional 4-speed auto or 5-speed manual)! I own a 2009 Hyundai Accent hatchback and my brother and mother own 2009 and 2010 Hyundai Accent sedans (which would be EXACTLY the same as that Rio other than interior trim and fascia) and we’ve had almost no issues whatsoever.

If it’s been well taken care of, definitely consider it! This was around the time when Kia/Hyundai were getting their act together bigtime and the Accent and Rio of this vintage and they are VERY reliable. Higher-mileage cars can eat front tires a bit from worn suspension components, but otherwise that is all I know of. The only recall for my Accent is a possibly defective brake light switch and I’m finding none in the Transport Canada database for that gen Rio whatsoever. Another website I just looked at says there was a recall for an airbag sensor (TO NOTE: Rios/Accents of this gen were never affected by the Takata recall FYI). For small niggles - locks can freeze up a bit easily in the winter to get the key in (if not keyless entry), but a small bottle of lock deicer in your pocket solves that quickly.

Compared to some newer or more expensive cars, they may not be as safe (only front airbags AFAIK), but as an around town commuter it would be perfectly fine. They are not fast or amazing handlers or anything, but completely adequate Dily Drivers. Very limited on options, but it should have an Aux. Input on the stock stereo for her tunes. If she can drive a manual, the manual transmission makes a lot of difference in the peppyness / peppy feeling department (the autos feel a bit gutless). The throws are longer, but have a satisfying ‘chunkiness’ to them, especially when engaging. The clutch is very light and very easily to modulate / learn on.

Accents and Rios of this gen were consistently ranked Above Average in reliability as well...not much to go wrong in the first place, really, but they are pretty solidly built. Cheap plastics everywhere, sure, and the plastics can get a bit rattly at high mileage in colder weather as they shrink every so much, but mechanically they are great. They had pretty good rustproofing too - mine is at 140,000kms and the only signs of rust are just in front of the rear wheels where the front wheels blast up road debris - and it’s only surface rust (going to have it touched up in the summer). Keep it regularly undercoated if you live in a wintery area and it should last for a long time. Decent on gas too - I get 6-6.5L per 100km in the summer in warmer weather with a manual and a little worse in the winter in cold weather. In other words, about 600-630km to a 45L tank in the summer and about 580-ish in the winter.

Please ask me any questions if you’d like and I’ll do my best to answer! :)

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 13:00

Very solid. Friend’s parents have had one since new, never needed anything beyond servicing and wear items.

KingT- 60% of the time, it works every time > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 13:07

Be careful the seller might have an extra $10K markup aka Market Adjustment™ and refuse a test drive unless you can pinky promise them to buy it.

ttyymmnn > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 13:50

Is this for K?

Tristan > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 14:05

I have a coworker who knows nothing about cars and doesn’t care at all about cars. He’s had horrible luck with cars because of this. However, he has a Kia Rio with 280,000ish miles that he bought with 150,000. He’s had to replace the clutch and the timing belt. Aside from that, it’s been flawless.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 14:32

I drove one once. It was a car. That’s pretty much all there is to say about it.

Wouldn’t recommend it for highway use. Even at 45mph there was a lot of buffeting.

BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo > KingT- 60% of the time, it works every time
05/27/2018 at 14:42

Me rn

Kinja'd!!!

Wobbles the Mind > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/27/2018 at 14:45

I had a 2006 through most of college and the first few years of my career. Only options being automatic and A/C. Put around 250,000 miles on the little guy and found the exterior and interior to be extremely durable. EXTREMELY durable, like the paint looked very good even on the roof after 6 years of hard ownership. I beat on that car and it survived everything I threw at it, including when I would take it onto unpaved roads and do handbrake slides and plenty of stupid stuff.

The engine, like most subcompacts, required timely service, especially the timing belt. They just barely hung on for the 60,000 mile routine so definitely make sure that was done since it’s an interference engine.

I think that cars like the Rio, Accent, Yaris, Fit, Mazda2, and so on all require more engine upkeep than the Forte, Elantra, Corolla, Civic, or Mazda3. If you can find a clean compact that is just as basic it will be worth it IF you are planning on that car lasting more than a few years and 50,000 miles without putting $3,500 into maintenance and repair.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > ttyymmnn
05/27/2018 at 18:54

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent
05/27/2018 at 18:56

The idea is affordable, basic transportation. Other than an affront to Nibby’s personal taste, the reviews are being pretty favorable.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Wobbles the Mind
05/27/2018 at 18:59

I told them if they buy it, to plan on taking it straight in for a timing belt unless there was a receipt for a recent replacement of the same. And 110 hp ought to make it get out of its own way, anyhow, with the manual trans.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > Wobbles the Mind
05/27/2018 at 22:07

I second the higher maintenance on smallest cars. I’m driver #3 to beat on the family Elantra and it just takes every punch and shrugs it off. My friend has an Accent that requires much more work- for instance, his rear drums seized up on a dry summer day.

OP, if you want an affordable low maintenance machine for a teen/college kid, go with the Forte/Elantra. They’re indestructable, and cheap if they do get broken.

pip bip - choose Corrour > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
05/28/2018 at 05:35

meh.

it’s a car