Revamped Sportage's seven-year warranty

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Manufacturing moves to Europe
Quality improvements boost confidence
Korean-built cars to get longer warranty, too

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Kia's revamped Sportage 4x4 will be sold with a seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty.

The new Sportage has a revised grille and light clusters, as well as revisions to its handling that give it a stiffer ride, less body roll and more direct steering.

The original Sportage came with a three-year warranty, but Kia has decided to extend this on the new model after moving production of the car from Korea to its state-of-the-art European factory in Zilina, Slovakia.

'We've extended the warranty because we know the car is better built now - it's as simple as that,' said Ian Matthews, Senior Product Manager for Kia UK.

Kia already offers a seven-year warranty on its Cee'd models, all of which are built in Slovakia.

Its Korean-built models currently have three-year warranties, but quality improvements mean this is likely to increase to five years soon.

'We are honest about people's perceptions of Kia, and the long warranties are one way of overcoming buyers' concerns about the quality of our products,' said Matthews.

Diesel versions of the revamped Sportage are on sale now, with petrol models available from January 2008.

Prices start from £13,995.