[shancz]

Originally Posted by ChoosetoCruze

Manual transmissions have been perfected (and supposedly bulletproof) since forever. Now you’re telling me these clowns have managed to botch up the manufacturing of a 5 speed manual tranny too?

If you look closely at some of the bolts in the first image, you can see wear marks at the edges, which are telltale signs of the transmission being dismantled after being assembled at the factory. Why the need to do that & what transpired later, only Kia/the dealer knows.

Unfortunately, the Indian market hasn’t matured yet, to appreciate the real marvels of good engineering and R&D. But that’s for a different discussion.

Exactly, Hyundai/Kia seem to be messing up the basics, Transmissions/Steering/Brakes/Paint/Mounts. Poor material quality and QC seems like a result of "cost cutting" in men and materials I guess.

Saw the wear marks too, this also shows the control Kia has over its dealers. Their resolution of this issue will show us their attitude as well.

Agree, I had said in some other thread that in our quest for buying feature-lists we have forgotten about the car. Probably so have Hyundai/Kia.

Originally Posted by Bibendum90949

All the earlier issues reported which one thought to be one off cases has become a regular affair now. Kia has to get their act together and fast. It's becoming clear Kia isn't any different to Hyundai when it comes to QC. What's with these manufacturers that make them think they can get away after each goof ups.

Exactly, this either points to a lack of control over the production and dealerships(which I doubt) or a deliberate reduction in quality which is enraging.

The way Kia is going, they might need a dedicated thread to themselves, we already have the following threads(including one from Bibendum90949) :

• https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...ia-seltos.html (Brake failure issues in the Kia Seltos)
• https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...-response.html (Hyundai India - The occasional serious quality lapse and apathetic manufacturer response!)

All I can say is Hyundai tune kya Kia


Sorry for the cheesy line but that was there for the taking and its not unfair, they've earned it.

[Manoj2268]

In the first pic GTO posted, there is a tell take mark of the case being pried apart via a screwdriver (a mark in the casting, right next to the oil drop, at the 11 o clock position)

That means that the pre dispatch qc was shoddy and the Factory tried to paper it over, rather than taking it apart on the assembly line again.

[saikarthik]

Scary to even read about the failures! I haven't seen these many mechanical and basic things failing in any car, although some features malfunction due to complex electronics and software.

Hyundai and Kia need to focus on basic engineering and cut the chase on cost reduction to offer more features.

With this rate of failures popping up, I think they will exceed their feature list.

[VijayAnand1]

Seems like it's just another day for Kia and for all the wrong reasons. How can Hyundai Kia jeopardize their legacy by taking people's trust for granted, given the response the brand has garnered in such a short time frame. MG took the rod for flames and stalling, but this, taking QC shaming a notch above? Definitely not KIA. I am seriously suspecting vendor parts quality here rather than KIA alone to be blamed.

Parts are designed with certain metallurgical standards and stresses to cope with. This seems like a botched up job by the vendor providing inconsistent quality which in turn has turned out to be a disastrous second innings for KIA. Can the "demand surpassing supply" caused KIA to skimp over crucial QC or just the blind faith imbibed on their vendor counterparts? Anyone's guess.

Hyundai off late has been losing the plot and seems KIA is keen to follow the same as well. Definitely, not the right time to botch up their reputation before somebody raise a stink. Hope KIA brasses wake up, before it's too late.

Sad indeed!

Cheers!
VJ

[manjubp]

Originally Posted by VijayAnand1

I am seriously suspecting vendor parts quality here rather than KIA alone to be blamed.

Parts are designed with certain metallurgical standards and stresses to cope with. This seems like a botched up job by the vendor providing inconsistent quality which in turn has turned out to be a disastrous second innings for KIA. Can the "demand surpassing supply" caused KIA to skimp over crucial QC or just the blind faith imbibed on their vendor counterparts? Anyone's guess.


Sad indeed!

Cheers!
VJ

We buy cars based on Brand KIA or Hyundai not based on who are the vendors. Sorry to disagree here with the observations on vendor quality.
One can't let KIA and Hyundai (KnH)off the hook. KnH are responsible for the quality of the product, they need to work with their vendors to address the issue.

[ToyoCabbie]

Update:Went to inspect and pick up the Sonet today(6th Jan 2020) and requested to see ours and another sonet under a lift to get a side by side comparison of the transmission housing.

The service advisor admitted that there was some mess-up previously but they fixed it for us.

Transmission of our Sonet:




Transmission of another Sonet:


Excess of RTV in the first image is a huge red flag,looks like they're trying patch up the leak due to some casting defect .A factory seal is supposed to look like the one in the second image!

We refused to pick up the car and asked for a replacement or a refund.

Regards
ToyoCabbie

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by ToyoCabbie

Update:Went to inspect and pick up the Sonet today(6th Jan 2020) and requested to see ours and another sonet under a lift to get a side by side comparison of the transmission housing.

The service advisor admitted that there was some mess-up previously but they fixed it for us.

This definitely does not looks that great a job at fixing, they seemed to have pried it open and dumped a huge amount of paste and refitted the same. Any reason why they can't give you a new box? The scar on the cast is also not assuring.

[Nalin1]

Originally Posted by ToyoCabbie

Update:

The service advisor admitted that there was some mess-up previously but they fixed it for us.

Excess of RTV in the first image is a huge red flag,looks like they're trying patch up the leak due to some casting defect .A factory seal is supposed to look like the one in the second image!

We refused to pick up the car and asked for a replacement or a refund.

There is no doubt that there was a mess up in the interim period between rolling out of the assembly line and delivery to the customer. And they had tried a typical Indian jugaad!. Unfortunately for them it did not hold up. Good that the SA admitted it.

Now you need to ensure that there is no jugaad over a jugaad done to get this issue done and dusted from them.

Demand a proper fix no less than a factory finish.

[Maverick5490]

Originally Posted by ToyoCabbie

We refused to pick up the car and asked for a replacement or a refund.

Regards
ToyoCabbie

Sorry to know about the issue and good call about not accepting the car. Using the second image you posted, the blue pen marks are made on assembly lines post components are assembled. In your image the lines are missing on the bottom sump, is it possible that the sump on this car was also changed or swapped from another Sonet?

[Turbohead]

It's unlikely they'll replace the car but you can certainly ask a replacement of the faulty unit. Besides, it's not your fault and we really don't know if there is any damage caused because of this. Repairing the part is a big no because if it fails after warranty period, you're looking at a big bill.

[saikarthik]

Originally Posted by ToyoCabbie

We refused to pick up the car and asked for a replacement or a refund.

Get a written confirmation about the fix which is done and the complete history of the issue with a root cause. This will help you to negotiate or discuss with higher levels in future if required to.

If KIA is ready to replace the transmission or the vehicle itself, get the expected date for a fix or delivery of a new car in some written format.
In my opinion, you should sue them in district consumer forum.

[girishv]

Originally Posted by Axe77

PS: Are all these quality issues unique to Kia alone or is it fair to assume that the equivalent Hyundais (Venue and Creta) also prone to the same issues that the Kia is showing? Would appreciate some feedback on this please. Thank you.

Slightly OT. I had suffered similar oil leakage problem in my less than 400 km run Honda CB 350 and had to tow it. After reaching service centre, found that I'm not the first one to face the issue. Though they sorted out the issue, I'm hearing that many owners are facing this problem.
Not exactly sure why the so called Honda quality do not apply to this and why they are not issuing a recall when they know the problem.

[Sen]

The number of niggles and issues in critical parts is starting to mount for the Korean duo. QC review needs to be done at the factory fast, and how. This coupled with the engine mounts breaking on another Sonet the other day makes me suspicious in general of the casting QC process at the factory. Sad news for new owners that chose to have faith in supposedly bulletproof build quality (on the interiors anyway) and hype sales of KIA/Hyundai.

[chetancm7]

Originally Posted by Axe77

Given the kind of quality issues Kia is showing, I would NOT advise anyone asking me to pick their DCT automatics. It is just too premature until we have some decent track record.

Which is quite a shame because between the diesel and petrol automatic Cretas, the petrol is clearly the more fun to drive and the diesel relatively "adequate" compared to most other SUVs in the vicinity of the Creta's price point.


PS: Are all these quality issues unique to Kia alone or is it fair to assume that the equivalent Hyundais (Venue and Creta) also prone to the same issues that the Kia is showing? Would appreciate some feedback on this please. Thank you.

When I first purchased my car Eon in 2011, right after 3 months my car just stalled and came to an abrupt halt in the middle of a road while returning to Bangalore from a day trip to a nearby place called Shrirangapatna. The ignition was not starting at all. I had to then call the customer care, they towed the vehicle which was during midnight and I got back the car after a week. Till date they never gave me a proper answer as to what went wrong. The only reply I received is that they have fixed the issue and a promise of non recurrence. This happened on Jan 1st and imagine my horror to begin a year with such a bad experience. Well fingers crossed after that incident I never faced any such issues with the car again. So far it has always been my constant companion no matter what the total distance covered till date.

[ToyoCabbie]

Hello team!

Originally Posted by Jaggu

This definitely does not looks that great a job at fixing, they seemed to have pried it open and dumped a huge amount of paste and refitted the same. Any reason why they can't give you a new box? The scar on the cast is also not assuring.

Indeed,they did a terrible job trying to fix this already jugaad repair.It really won't take them much to do it right at least the second time!
Unfortunately we didn't discuss about getting a transmission or engine replacement yet but the option is definitely not ruled out yet considering It's going to be very tough to get a replacement from kia.

Originally Posted by Maverick5490

Sorry to know about the issue and good call about not accepting the car. Using the second image you posted, the blue pen marks are made on assembly lines post components are assembled. In your image the lines are missing on the bottom sump, is it possible that the sump on this car was also changed or swapped from another Sonet?

You have sharp eyes! I'm pretty sure no production line uses pen marks until the component is completely fitted.It' s possible that the original transmission was defective and silently swapped before delivery.Does anyone else have any idea?

Originally Posted by Turbohead

It's unlikely they'll replace the car but you can certainly ask a replacement of the faulty unit.

We wrote to kia asking to replace the car but we'll mostly settle with a transmission swap if they approve it.

Originally Posted by saikarthik

Get a written confirmation about the fix which is done and the complete history of the issue with a root cause. This will help you to negotiate or discuss with higher levels in future if required to.

If KIA is ready to replace the transmission or the vehicle itself, get the expected date for a fix or delivery of a new car in some written format.
In my opinion, you should sue them in district consumer forum.

Thank you for your concern.I will make sure we get a letter from the SA stating everything that has been done to the car and about the state it was in before the repair.

Do you guys think it is worth risking accepting the "fixed" vehicle or should absolutely demand a transmission replacement.Should we at least ask for free extended warranty?Is suing a good option? I heard cases being dragged on for years without any resolution.Would love to know your thoughts.Absolutely sucks having to deal with a faulty car!