2009 Kia Spectra Lx Sedan 4-door 2.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Car flies off Pittsburgh parkway and into auto shop parking lot

A motorist lost control of their car on a Pittsburgh freeway yesterday and, after hitting a curb, flew off the freeway and crashed into the parking lot of a local auto shop. According to KDKA, an unidentified motorist was driving along Parkway West in a Kia Optima just after noon on January 30 when they missed a sharp turn near the Campbell Road exit. The Kia hit the curb, flew into the air, smashed through Snyder Brothers' Automotive's sign, and landed nose-first in the repair shop's parking lot. "It sounded like a shower of debris hitting the floor, you know, the ground out there," owner Donald Snyder told KDKA. "We ran out there and we had 911 on the phone and he told me to check him out. We were checking him out. I looked at him, he didn't have no bruises on him, no scratches, it was amazing," Snyder told reporters that this isn't the first time a car has flown off the Parkway and into their lot. In fact, it's the eighth one in nine years. "We've had cars flip over, catch on fire. Hit the building, time and time again," said Snyder. "You know, coming down 376 and when you're in the right hand lane to exit – that's a long run. I think people, they are not prepared to make that sharp turn. Also, I think people become distracted. This fellow, he didn't even hit his brakes, he just kept going straight without turning." Snyder has reported the situation to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation numerous times. He said that PennDOT keeps putting up warning signs, but they just get destroyed by the next person who misses the corner and crashes into his lot. He told KDKA that he just wants people to be careful out on the Parkway. "Slow down and be aware of that sharp turn," said Snyder. Related Video:

Kia putting GT Concept into production, roadster concept due in Detroit

If you were enamored of the GT concept that Kia unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show two years ago, we've got good news for you. According to the latest reports, Kia is planning on putting it into production.
The big question at this point is how closely the production model will shadow the four-door coupe concept. The svelte shape will undoubtedly have to make some concessions toward roadworthiness and production feasibility, but just what platform Kia will use to underpin it remains unknown. It could base it off the large, rear-drive K9 or borrow the platform from sister-company Hyundai's Genesis Coupe. Either of those options would enable the production Kia GT to keep the concept's rear-drive orientation, but other routes would make it either front-drive or potentially all-wheel drive.
Word has it also that Kia is planning to reveal a small roadster concept in the mold of the Mazda MX-5 at the upcoming Detroit Auto Show in January. If public feedback is positive enough, that could see production before the end of next year as well.

Dealership worker takes Kia Soul for 200-mile joyride

Most often, dealership road-test capers in customer cars involve exciting metal - an employee totals a Chevy Camaro ZL1, or a does the same thing with a Dodge Viper. Or tapes himself wringing out Italian exotics at triple-digit speeds on public roads. That kind of horseplay rarely involves mass-market metal because it's not worth getting caught running red lights in a 2001 Mitsubishi Montero - except that actually happened, too. But we still don't understand the mechanic at Peak Kia North in Windor, CO, who used a customer's Kia Soul as his own car for four days and put 200 miles on it. Owner Veronica Pief discovered the nonsense when she downloaded the 17 hours of driving video from her dashcam. She dropped the Soul off to have its speed-volume control fixed, but got it back with the extra mileage and the volume problem still hadn't been remedied. It got worse when she said of the dealership, "Afterwards, they just blew us off. They didn't care. They didn't show any concern." Sometime between that disrespect and Denver's KUSA 9NEWS doing a story on it, the dealer decided it should fix the situation. Pief said she wanted the dealer to buy her car back and pay off the loan, which sounds extreme, but she might have been thinking about the verbiage in her owner's manual. Kia is one of the automakers that's strict about voiding warranties if it deems a car has been abused. Peak Kia North gave Pief what she wanted just one day after the original story ran, buying the car back from her with plans to auction it and donate the proceeds to charity. And yes, the mechanic was fired. You can watch the local news report above. Related Video: News Source: Detroit Free Press, 9NEWS Auto News Kia Car Dealers Hatchback Videos viral video colorado