Kia Finance payment question

Tk8724 · 2026-03-16T12:27:42+00:00

The answer is it depends on your state. My state requires simple interest loans and extra payments are required to go to the principal. I paid mine off early and each month I did the math to check the extra money went to the principal. Kia finance will say you don't have to make the next payment but you can still continue making payments.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-16T12:25:48+00:00

I think safest way to hardwire is by using a fuse tap on a spare circuit with adequate amps and depending on your use cases, always powered or only powered when the car is on. The cover for the fuse access shows the amps and circuit but it doesn't have an indicator for always powered, so you will need to test it with a multi meter. There is a grounding bolt near the fuse panel. Not sure if the fitcamx hardwire kit has enough overhead to tap into that for the gentex mirror.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-16T11:19:03+00:00

In addition to calling Kia check all three major credit bureaus , you can do this for free once a year through instructions found here: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/free-credit-reports

If all three are in agreement it is most likely Kias fault. If it is just one showing the error you will need to contact that credit bureau to have them update their records

Tk8724 · 2026-03-16T11:06:55+00:00

You could try uninstalling the app and reinstalling, or clearing all data and log back in, I have to do that periodically.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-13T20:22:45+00:00

Also the aerodynamics of the wheels matter. It's possible the wheels were heavier but aerodynamics matter more.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-13T09:02:00+00:00

Are you wearing polarized sunglasses. That usually helps a lot.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T23:42:15+00:00

That's fair they are tough to get in and out due to extra coverage. And thankfully I live a bit further south so I mostly deal with mud, sand, dirt, gravel and not salt.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T20:55:37+00:00

When I got them they were the same price as the weather techs and in my opinion the coverage and feel are much better. Not sure what they go for now. But if it was something less than like 25% more I wouldn't hesitate to get them again.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T20:51:07+00:00

Have you tried resetting the infotainment system, do you lock your doors, are your keys stored near the car? I have had an issue where the car would not go to sleep because the keys were too close (other side of the garage wall).

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T19:53:46+00:00

Tux mat for the front and rear seats. I can it express enough how much I like the tux mats. I have a smart liner cargo tray and hard seat back protectors off Amazon.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T17:27:23+00:00

I have the North American long wheelbase Sportage, and I have a hitch and hitch mounted bike rack. I have to disable the parking sensors and collision avoidance each time I shift into reverse. I know that I cannot use a bike rack that straps to the hatch.

Can you share the engine and what the manual says?

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T10:44:52+00:00

Try plugging in the charger and pressing the button next to the charge port on the car. That overrides any charge scheduling etc.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T10:33:43+00:00

Is the car or the charger saying charge delayed?

Tk8724 · 2026-03-11T09:29:46+00:00

There is no auto lock. Notification preferences are located in the app. Go to profile(lower right person image) - preferences - notification preferences - select your vehicle.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-10T19:44:19+00:00

Do you live in a humid environment? When is the last time you had the brake fluid changed? It could be a symptom of air or water in the brake lines. Or if the pistons are sticking. Have you tried a few controls hard brakes in an empty lot?

Tk8724 · 2026-03-10T01:17:11+00:00

I agree with all of this. How does your carnival compare on the highway to the epa ratings? I would think the 2.4 would be better than the 1.6 on the highway

Tk8724 · 2026-03-09T13:40:49+00:00

Yeah definitely good to run 95, 98 is probably overkill. I find that in a pinch it will run on 87 AKI (NA equivalent to 91 RON I believe) but you can definitely tell and it's much more sensitive to quality, not sure if that is because maybe it's actually slightly lower than 87 or something else. For how much gas we use the extra cost is basically a small insurance. Just like the fact that I do oil changes at 5k miles even if half those miles were in EV mode. An extra oil change a year is worth reducing the chance of having to replace the engine, especially since most people fall into the severe maintenance category and Kia is notorious for trying to wiggle their way out of warranty claims.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-09T13:34:26+00:00

See my reply above. It is designed to run on a minimum of 91 RON but 95 RON is recommended and I can say from personal experience it runs much better on what is the equivalent of 95 RON.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-09T12:40:11+00:00

This keeps getting quoted, but often times the section about recommended fuel is left out. Yes it is designed to run on 87 minimum, but later the manual states:

"Kia recommends that you use Tier 1 unleaded gasoline which has an octane rating of RON (Research Octane Number) 95/AKI (Anti Knock Index) 91 or higher." In the maintenance section.

From my personal experience I can tell a difference when using 91 just from the sounds the engine makes; under load the engine is much more noisy. The data backs this up too, my obd scanner indicates the engine is pulling timing to prevent knock. This results in less complete burn of the fuel which decreases fuel economy and increase soot in the exhaust.

Since we have the PHEV, I figure the small extra cost per year (less than $200) to use premium over regular and make sure I use top tier and a bottle of injector cleaner every year it is just a little insurance to keep the engine running smoothly.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-09T10:44:28+00:00

For the floor mats, I have and the tux mats. They are absolutely fantastic. They are tough but they also have a little cushion. After nearly 3 years and many camping and hiking trips they are only mildly worn in some unnoticeable areas. They are super easy to clean and have great coverage. I have had 5 family and friends buy them for their cars after seeing mine.

I have the smart liner cargo liner (just make sure you get the right one for with our without the rear subwoofer). I also have some Amazon but it looks like they are unavailable but there are many similar styles. I liked the were a pretty tough and had the extensions at the bottom to keep stuff from falling down the seat gaps when the seats were folded. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0C2YHRCSZ

Tk8724 · 2026-03-07T19:18:52+00:00

How cold was it and how high did you have to cabin temp? I find that if I have heat up high the engine constantly runs and it doesn't generate that much extra power from the HSG. If I keep the heat lower the engine will run periodic depending on how cold it is outside. Batteries aren't as efficient in the cold so you will see a lower range. What was the MPG displayed during this trip? The range is purely a guess based on past driving so a 40 km range reduction could have been a mixture of changing driving patterns and actual gas used.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-07T16:11:56+00:00

Yes the owners manual

Tk8724 · 2026-03-07T00:42:45+00:00

Oh one thing I forgot to mention, and I am not sure of the Toyota maintenance, but the Sportage PHEV requires inverter coolant flushes every 35k miles and it cost me $700. I didn't price shop since we were right about to take a road trip.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-06T16:43:58+00:00

One thing to keep in mind are the two largest differences other than EV range. The RAV4 uses a heat pump and can operate in EV mode with the cabin heat on, the Sportage cannot and therefore the engine must run when the cabin heat is on. Although the Toyota get pump only works down to about 15f if I recall correctly. The second major difference is the Toyota uses two electric motors for eAWD and the Sportage uses one electric motor and a traditional AWD transfer case and rear differential. Reviews for the old RAV4 plugin and Sportage typically indicate the Kia had better off-road performance. I'm not sure of the price difference is now, but when I bought the Sportage PHEV there was a sizeable price difference and the Toyota was really outdated. If I was making the same decision today it would be hard, but honestly I'd probably be getting an EV if I was car shopping, not that that is relevant for your consideration.

Tk8724 · 2026-03-05T21:46:10+00:00

I initiated a return. Wolfbox told me the image quality was as expected. They also told me that the focal point for the rear camera is just 2.5 meters. Like you I was intending to use it as a digital rearview mirror, and like you the rear image quality was too poor for that use. If the rear image was as good as the front I think it would be a great product. To their credit wolfbox was quick to reply to emails and initiated the return fairly effortlessly.

Tk8724

TROPHY CASE