Three problems related to engine and engine cooling have been reported for the 2000 Kia Motor Sportage. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2000 Kia Motor Sportage based on all problems reported for the 2000 Sportage.
The car had not been driven in 2 days. My daughter started the car, drove it about 1/4 - 1/2 mile when she noticed smoke coming from the console on the passenger side. She parked the vehicle, got out and ran to the passenger side to see if she could tell where the smoke was coming from and could see fire through the crack in the console where the cover over the console was joined together. Within seconds, the entire inside of the vehicle was engulfed in flames, which leads me to believe that there may have been a gasoline leak. She was in a residential neighborhood with very little traffic. Had she been on the highway or in traffic, this would have been a very different scenario. She and others would have been hurt or worse. Her pocketbook had fallen on the floor and she reached over to pick it up and that is when she saw the smoke. She had time to get out before the car imploded. The entire interior of the car was gutted and the paint was burned off the drivers side and roof of the car. All that is left of the inside is soot, metal and charcoal from front to rear. We bought the car from a dealer on December 21, 2012. It ran great, was in good shape and we had no problems or warning signs prior to this incident. I am going to notify kia, but am not very hopeful of any resolution without some intervention from NHTSA.
Brakes not working properly. ,when you step on brake you can feel the brake or tire spending and your car is still rolling when your are stepping on the brake. Engine, turning the car engine on and off. When you start the engine the engines clicks but does not start. Its not the transmission. I have replaced the battery several times but still the same problem.
My 2000 kia Sportage has been leaking gas. We haven't had it repaired, as we cant afford it. Someone suggested looking for recalls, that's when I found this site. The "heat shield" (?) has always rattled badly. In addition to the rattling and bad gas leak, the motor blower fan is not working, my 4wheel drive isn't working. Underneath it is a rust bucket! the back doors wont lock/unlock. Something really needs to be done!!! please, someone stand up for the little guy and make kia fix these problems!!!.