No, I’m not talking about baseball. I wish I was. I am actually talking about my brand new 2000 electric blue Kia Sephia.

My 1991 Escort finally died. My mother and I went car shopping continuously for two days. We figured out that I would be better off getting a new car than a used car and we wound up at the Kia dealership.

I was so happy that I was able to get a new car. It was like a dream come true. All of a sudden, here I was standing in the middle of all these new cars trying to decide which color I liked best.

The Kia Sephia sold for $13,500. It is a compact car. It is the LS model. It came with: AM/FM radio, tape deck, power locks, power windows, automatic, 4 cylinder engine, airbags, air-conditioning, intermittent wipers, front and rear defoggers. When you turn the key to open one door, all the other doors open also. It is a four door. It comes with side bars in the doors which may help prevent serious injury from side impact collisions. It is beautiful. Nice sleek design, very comfortable. I felt so comfortable in it from the very first time I tried it. It was me. I have full coverage for five years, including road side assistance (no more AAA).

I drove it for less than one day. By that night, it was back at the dealership already. On my way to work that morning the speedometer decided to stop working. At the same time, the engine light was on and the overdrive light kept on flashing. I was given another Sephia to borrow.

I got the car back the next night after work. My mom and I went out to eat that weekend. I wanted to show her how the power locks worked. They didn’t. When I turned the key in one door, only that door opened. I didn’t think it was strange at first. I thought maybe I was doing something wrong.

Monday morning on the way to work again, the speedometer decided to quit again and those lights also came on again. Back to the dealership it goes. This time they told me that something in the transmission exploded and so they replaced the transmission. I had to drive a very uncomfortable car off the lot again. This time they kept it for 3 days to make sure it was properly looked at. During this time, my mother was on the phone with Kia. They were very rude. They said that it was the individual dealership’s decision on what to do next. They basically washed their hands of us

This morning my mother and I go to pick up my brand new Kia Sephia. We had a long talk with the manager and he assured me that the problem should be fixed. He explained to us exactly what service was done. So, this time my mother decides to get in the driver’s seat. She like it also and felt very comfortable in it. Not even a block down the road, my mother realized that she has no idea how fast she is going because lo and behold, the speedometer wasn’t working!

As I was getting out of the car to get my rental car, my mother had to open the door from the outside to get me out! Now, I am in a 2001 Mitsubishi Galant, fully loaded. I will probably drive this until Kia can find me another brand new Kia Sephia. I am also requesting that I get a CD player in this one. Kia will also pay the first two lease payments for me.

I’ll keep you updated!