Thinking of Buying a Kia K2700

[robert k]

I am considering buying one of these, either brand new or possibly one of the used imports from Korea that had never been on road in the Philippines. I can't find a great deal of complaints about them online which is usually a good thing but I would like to get an owners opinion. Hopefully someone can tell me how far the seats recline in the double cab model as that is something I can't find online anywhere.

The reason one of the used ones is attractive to me is that they are original L/H drive so no conversion and they were commercial vehicles 1 ton plus so they weren't chopped up and reassembled. Cab over and short wheelbase so maneuverable. Commercial, naturally aspirated (no turbo) diesel engine gear drive and not belt driven camshaft so hopefully low maintenance. Low milage, looking online 90k km is high milage for the just imported trucks.

The only real bad I can find online is a fellow in S Africa who bought the extended warrantee and he had a couple that didn't fare well, overheating, fan belt broke, broken fan shroud, cracked air filter box. I have a sneaking suspicion that the driver never opened the bonnet to check the water, oil, belts and all the things one should check on a commercial vehicle. Some people have the talent that they could ruin an anvil or could kill a pet rock through neglect. But this guy probably had the added benefit of a lazy service department at his dealership. A match made in Hell.

 

[RBM]

Personally would go brand new if within budget. Alternatively low mileage providing your able check service is up to date.

I owned a Kia Retona which gave me some frustrations, my friend a shortage and also problems. Not sure if the models imported are sub standard or just maybe mileages higher than shown. 

Best of luck with your purchase.

 

[PaulB]

I have a New Kia Sportage here in Abu Dhabi and she runs smoothly in the heat, All Wheel Drive if required, cooled seats and good Air con for the desert heat. Great value for money here and I will look to buy one in the Philippines in the next couple of years ready for my arrival for retirement in 3 years.

[robert k]

2 hours ago, RBM said:

Personally would go brand new if within budget. Alternatively low mileage providing your able check service is up to date.

I owned a Kia Retona which gave me some frustrations, my friend a shortage and also problems. Not sure if the models imported are sub standard or just maybe mileages higher than shown. 

Best of luck with your purchase.

 

Maybe the Kia Retonas had to be chopped up as many sportages were to be reassembled and legally driven in the Philippines. I'm not too fond of the chop-chop vehicles. I'm fairly certain that the Retona was never sold new in the Philippines. 

This K2700 is a commercial 1 ton vehicle that can be imported whole and sold as is. It appears that companies in S Korea do much the same as in the US disposing of fleet vehicles after they are 5 years old. I have a fair degree of confidence that if I have a yard full of them to choose from as they came from S Korea that I could pick a good one as I used to be a truck mechanic.

Of course buying new isn't out of the question or beyond budget either, about the same as I would pay for a new work pickup in the US. I was mainly wondering if someone had one because I'm trying to find if there is a serious defect in this particular model line, new or used. But thanks, I will cross a Retona off my list if the matter ever comes up.

[robert k]

39 minutes ago, PaulB said:

I have a New Kia Sportage here in Abu Dhabi and she runs smoothly in the heat, All Wheel Drive if required, cooled seats and good Air con for the desert heat. Great value for money here and I will look to buy one in the Philippines in the next couple of years ready for my arrival for retirement in 3 years.

Thanks. Kia Sportages get a bad rap in the US, partly deserved and partly not. Partly deserving because they came with a 100k mile warrantee and after that point they start needing many replacement parts that remind people of Harley Davidson where every part no matter how small is HD which doesn't stand for Harley Davidson but Hundred Dollar. The US models are gasoline engine and they are pretty much pooped before 120k miles which might last longer than the body in the Philippines but is a very short lifespan in the southwest US. If I were to buy a Kia Sportage in the Philippines, I would buy new, or at least make certain that it was imported new (whole) and not assembled from chopped up vehicles surplus and sold as new (new to the Philippines).

The undeserved bad rap the Sportages get in the US is because people give them little care because they are going to trade them off before they are out of warrantee and they will become someone else's problem.