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2002 Kia Spectra

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2002 Kia Spectra do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 96.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

52 reports with mileage · 40 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Air Bags. Review the 22 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 9 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

25 crash reports2 fire reports15 injury reports

Visibility complaints

7 reports
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3,000 miles · Dec 11, 2007
Visibility

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 KIA SPECTRA. WHILE DRIVING 5 MPH, THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE POWER WINDOW FELL. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE WINDOW REGULATOR CAUSED THE FAILURE. APPROXIMATELY TWO YEARS LATER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE WINDOW REGULATOR WAS POOR QUALITY AND THEY REPLACED THE WINDOW REGULATOR AND RE-…

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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 KIA SPECTRA. WHILE DRIVING 5 MPH, THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE POWER WINDOW FELL. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE WINDOW REGULATOR CAUSED THE FAILURE. APPROXIMATELY TWO YEARS LATER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE WINDOW REGULATOR WAS POOR QUALITY AND THEY REPLACED THE WINDOW REGULATOR AND RE-ATTACHED THE WINDOW CABLE. APPROXIMATELY ONE YEAR LATER, THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE REAR WINDOWS AND THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE WINDOW FELL SIMULTANEOUSLY. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE WEATHER CAUSED A PLASTIC PART ON THE WINDOW REGULATOR TO FAIL. THE DEALER REPLACED ALL THREE WINDOW REGULATORS. THE POWERTRAIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 3,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 24,140.

NHTSA ODI #10211447

38,000 miles · Dec 23, 2004
Visibility

I BOUGHT A CAR 8 MONTHS AGO, A KIA SPECTRA, RIGHT AFTER I GOT IT THE REARVIEW MIRROR FELL DOWN WITH A PIECE OF THE WINDSHIELD. I WENT TO THE KIA DEALER AND THEY FIXED IT. THEY REPLACED THE WINDSHIELD. BUT LAST WEEK EXACTLY THE SAME PROBLEM HAPPENED AGAIN THEY RESCHEDULED MY APPOINTMENT 3 TIMES, AND FINALLY TODAY AFTER 7 HO…

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I BOUGHT A CAR 8 MONTHS AGO, A KIA SPECTRA, RIGHT AFTER I GOT IT THE REARVIEW MIRROR FELL DOWN WITH A PIECE OF THE WINDSHIELD. I WENT TO THE KIA DEALER AND THEY FIXED IT. THEY REPLACED THE WINDSHIELD. BUT LAST WEEK EXACTLY THE SAME PROBLEM HAPPENED AGAIN THEY RESCHEDULED MY APPOINTMENT 3 TIMES, AND FINALLY TODAY AFTER 7 HOURS OF WAITING I GOT MY CAR BACK. BUT THIS TIME THEY DIDN'T REPLACE IT, THEY ONLY GLUED IT, WHICH BY THE WAY I DON'T THINK IS GOING TO WORK. BUT THEY SAID THAT KIA DOESN'T WANT TO REPLACE IT BECAUSE THE CAR DOESN'T HAVE A KIA WINDSHIELD ANYMORE. BUT WHEN THEY REPLACED IT THE FIRST TIME THEY DECIDED TO USED A NON-KIA PART, NOT ME PROBABLY BECAUSE THE DIFFERENCE IN THE PRICE IS OVER $200. ANYWAY, I'M REALLY UPSET AND DISAPPOINTED WITH THIS. I GIVE THEM A CHANCE TO SHOW ME HOW GOOD KIA IS. YOU CAN ORDER A KIA WINDSHIELD FOR $350 OR YOU CAN REPLACE IT WITH A LOCAL COMPANY FOR ABOUT $100. SO YOU DO THE MATH, AND TELL ME IF THERE IS A DIFFERENCE. *AK

NHTSA ODI #10104434

Mileage unknown · Nov 26, 2003
Visibility

DRIVER'S SIDE FRONT WINDOW LOCKED UP WILL NOT ROLL DOWN. USED ON THE WAY TO WORK, 4 HOURS LATER WOULD NOT ROLL DOWN. NO NOISE, OR SOUNDS JUST QUIT WORKING. *LA

NHTSA ODI #10047645

17,000 miles · May 28, 2003
Visibility

THE WINDSHIELD GLASS CRACKED VERY EASILY WHEN IMPACTED BY THE LIGHTEST OBJECT PER CONSUMER. *TT

NHTSA ODI #10021738

Mileage unknown · Oct 21, 2002
Visibility

CONSUMER STATES OF HAVING PROBLEMS WITH HER WINDOWS. TS

NHTSA ODI #8021255

Mileage unknown · Sep 10, 2002
Visibility

WHILE DRIVING IN THE SUN WINDSHIELD HAS LITTLE SPECS THAT CAUSE SLIGHT VISIBLITY.*AK

NHTSA ODI #8018360

Mileage unknown · May 7, 2002
Visibility

WINDSHIELD CRACKED EASILY. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER AND SERVICE MANAGER SAID THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO ABOUT THE PROBLEM. NOTICED OTHER COMMENTS OF WINDSHEILD CRACKING ON EDMUNDS.COM WEB SITE. APPEARS TO BE A MAJOR FLAW IN THE WINDSHIELD, AND MAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR FUTURE CAR ACCIDENTS. MANUFACTURER SHOULD CONTACT KIA OW…

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WINDSHIELD CRACKED EASILY. TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER AND SERVICE MANAGER SAID THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO ABOUT THE PROBLEM. NOTICED OTHER COMMENTS OF WINDSHEILD CRACKING ON EDMUNDS.COM WEB SITE. APPEARS TO BE A MAJOR FLAW IN THE WINDSHIELD, AND MAY BE RESPONSIBLE FOR FUTURE CAR ACCIDENTS. MANUFACTURER SHOULD CONTACT KIA OWNERS AND RECALL WINDSHEILDS DUE TO FAULTY GLASS.*AK

NHTSA ODI #761614

Official recalls

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

PE04065 · Rear Drum Brake Wheel Cylinder Leakage

Opened Sep 21, 2004 · Closed Feb 8, 2005

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic; Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:drum:wheel Cylinders

THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) OPENED THIS PRELIMINARY EVALUATION TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGATIONS OF REAR DRUM BRAKE WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE IN 2002 KIA SPECTRA VEHICLES.THIS INVESTIGATION WAS PROMPTED BY KIA?S EARLY WARNING REPORT TO THE AGENCY FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2004, WHICH CONTAINED A SINGLE FIELD REPORT THAT IDENTIFIED 13 INCIDENTS OF WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ARE AVAILABLE IN BOTH 4-DOOR SEDAN AND 5-DOOR HATCHBACK BODY STYLES.THE SAME PARTS SUPPLIER PROVIDES WHEEL CYLINDERS FOR BOTH VEHICLE TYPES, ALTHOUGH THEIR PART NUMBERS DIFFER.THESE PARTS ARE USED ON ALL MY2002-2004 SPECTRA ?TYPE-I? VEHICLES MANUFACTURED THROUGH 12/30/2003.ADDITIONALLY, MY2001-2005 KIA RIO VEHICLES BUILT THROUGH 11/17/2004 USE THE SAME WHEEL CYLINDERS AS THE SUBJECT SPECTRA ?TYPE-I? 4-DOOR SEDAN.MY2004 SPECTRA ?TYPE-II? VEHICLES, WHICH STARTED PRODUCTION ON 12/8/2003, DO NOT USE THE SUBJECT COMPONENTS AS THEY ARE EQUIPPED WITH REAR DISC BRAKES.THE MANUFACTURER NOTIFIED ODI OF ONE COMPLAINANT WHOM ALLEGED A CRASH CAUSED BY, ?INADEQUATE BRAKE SYSTEM RESPONSE,? RESULTING IN ONE PERSON INJURED.HOWEVER, IT APPEARS THAT MULTIPLE CAUSAL FACTORS MAY HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE CRASH INCIDENT AND NO SINGLE FACTOR HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED AS THE PRIMARY CAUSE.IN TOTAL, ODI IS AWARE OF 5 CONSUMER COMPLAINTS, 1 FIELD REPORT, AND 813 WARRANTY CLAIMS RELATED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT IN 2002 KIA SPECTRA VEHICLES.NONE OF THE COMPLAINANTS ALLEGED DEGRADED STOPPING PERFORMANCE OR LOSS OF BRAKING CAPABILITY CAUSED BY WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE.TO DATE, THE COMPLAINT RATE IS 7.0 PER 100,000 VEHICLES AND THE WARRANTY RATE IS 1.13%.KIA?S ANALYSIS OF WARRANTY RETURN PARTS INDICATES A SLOW RATE OF FLUID LOSS; TESTS SHOWED A MAXIMUM FLUID LOSS RATE OF 1 CC PER 4000 BRAKE APPLICATIONS (THE MASTER CYLINDER RESERVOIR HAS A 134CC FLUID CAPACITY BETWEEN THE ?FULL? AND THE LEVEL AT WHICH THE BRAKE WARNING LAMP IS ILLUMINATED).KIA TESTING OF A VEHICLE EQUIPPED WITH A LEAKING WHEEL CYLINDER SHOWED THAT AFTER 100 STOPS FROM 100 KM/H THE PEDAL STROKE INCREASED 5%, PEDAL FORCE INCREASED 13%, AND THE BRAKING DISTANCE INCREASED 7% (51.7M VS. 48.1M) WHEN COMPARED TO THE SAME VEHICLE WITH A NON-LEAKING WHEEL CYLINDER.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:drum:wheel Cylinders

THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) OPENED THIS PRELIMINARY EVALUATION TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGATIONS OF REAR DRUM BRAKE WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE IN 2002 KIA SPECTRA VEHICLES.THIS INVESTIGATION WAS PROMPTED BY KIA?S EARLY WARNING REPORT TO THE AGENCY FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2004, WHICH CONTAINED A SINGLE FIELD REPORT THAT IDENTIFIED 13 INCIDENTS OF WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ARE AVAILABLE IN BOTH 4-DOOR SEDAN AND 5-DOOR HATCHBACK BODY STYLES.THE SAME PARTS SUPPLIER PROVIDES WHEEL CYLINDERS FOR BOTH VEHICLE TYPES, ALTHOUGH THEIR PART NUMBERS DIFFER.THESE PARTS ARE USED ON ALL MY2002-2004 SPECTRA ?TYPE-I? VEHICLES MANUFACTURED THROUGH 12/30/2003.ADDITIONALLY, MY2001-2005 KIA RIO VEHICLES BUILT THROUGH 11/17/2004 USE THE SAME WHEEL CYLINDERS AS THE SUBJECT SPECTRA ?TYPE-I? 4-DOOR SEDAN.MY2004 SPECTRA ?TYPE-II? VEHICLES, WHICH STARTED PRODUCTION ON 12/8/2003, DO NOT USE THE SUBJECT COMPONENTS AS THEY ARE EQUIPPED WITH REAR DISC BRAKES.THE MANUFACTURER NOTIFIED ODI OF ONE COMPLAINANT WHOM ALLEGED A CRASH CAUSED BY, ?INADEQUATE BRAKE SYSTEM RESPONSE,? RESULTING IN ONE PERSON INJURED.HOWEVER, IT APPEARS THAT MULTIPLE CAUSAL FACTORS MAY HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE CRASH INCIDENT AND NO SINGLE FACTOR HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED AS THE PRIMARY CAUSE.IN TOTAL, ODI IS AWARE OF 5 CONSUMER COMPLAINTS, 1 FIELD REPORT, AND 813 WARRANTY CLAIMS RELATED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT IN 2002 KIA SPECTRA VEHICLES.NONE OF THE COMPLAINANTS ALLEGED DEGRADED STOPPING PERFORMANCE OR LOSS OF BRAKING CAPABILITY CAUSED BY WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE.TO DATE, THE COMPLAINT RATE IS 7.0 PER 100,000 VEHICLES AND THE WARRANTY RATE IS 1.13%.KIA?S ANALYSIS OF WARRANTY RETURN PARTS INDICATES A SLOW RATE OF FLUID LOSS; TESTS SHOWED A MAXIMUM FLUID LOSS RATE OF 1 CC PER 4000 BRAKE APPLICATIONS (THE MASTER CYLINDER RESERVOIR HAS A 134CC FLUID CAPACITY BETWEEN THE ?FULL? AND THE LEVEL AT WHICH THE BRAKE WARNING LAMP IS ILLUMINATED).KIA TESTING OF A VEHICLE EQUIPPED WITH A LEAKING WHEEL CYLINDER SHOWED THAT AFTER 100 STOPS FROM 100 KM/H THE PEDAL STROKE INCREASED 5%, PEDAL FORCE INCREASED 13%, AND THE BRAKING DISTANCE INCREASED 7% (51.7M VS. 48.1M) WHEN COMPARED TO THE SAME VEHICLE WITH A NON-LEAKING WHEEL CYLINDER.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) OPENED THIS PRELIMINARY EVALUATION TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGATIONS OF REAR DRUM BRAKE WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE IN 2002 KIA SPECTRA VEHICLES.THIS INVESTIGATION WAS PROMPTED BY KIA?S EARLY WARNING REPORT TO THE AGENCY FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2004, WHICH CONTAINED A SINGLE FIELD REPORT THAT IDENTIFIED 13 INCIDENTS OF WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ARE AVAILABLE IN BOTH 4-DOOR SEDAN AND 5-DOOR HATCHBACK BODY STYLES.THE SAME PARTS SUPPLIER PROVIDES WHEEL CYLINDERS FOR BOTH VEHICLE TYPES, ALTHOUGH THEIR PART NUMBERS DIFFER.THESE PARTS ARE USED ON ALL MY2002-2004 SPECTRA ?TYPE-I? VEHICLES MANUFACTURED THROUGH 12/30/2003.ADDITIONALLY, MY2001-2005 KIA RIO VEHICLES BUILT THROUGH 11/17/2004 USE THE SAME WHEEL CYLINDERS AS THE SUBJECT SPECTRA ?TYPE-I? 4-DOOR SEDAN.MY2004 SPECTRA ?TYPE-II? VEHICLES, WHICH STARTED PRODUCTION ON 12/8/2003, DO NOT USE THE SUBJECT COMPONENTS AS THEY ARE EQUIPPED WITH REAR DISC BRAKES.THE MANUFACTURER NOTIFIED ODI OF ONE COMPLAINANT WHOM ALLEGED A CRASH CAUSED BY, ?INADEQUATE BRAKE SYSTEM RESPONSE,? RESULTING IN ONE PERSON INJURED.HOWEVER, IT APPEARS THAT MULTIPLE CAUSAL FACTORS MAY HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE CRASH INCIDENT AND NO SINGLE FACTOR HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED AS THE PRIMARY CAUSE.IN TOTAL, ODI IS AWARE OF 5 CONSUMER COMPLAINTS, 1 FIELD REPORT, AND 813 WARRANTY CLAIMS RELATED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT IN 2002 KIA SPECTRA VEHICLES.NONE OF THE COMPLAINANTS ALLEGED DEGRADED STOPPING PERFORMANCE OR LOSS OF BRAKING CAPABILITY CAUSED BY WHEEL CYLINDER LEAKAGE.TO DATE, THE COMPLAINT RATE IS 7.0 PER 100,000 VEHICLES AND THE WARRANTY RATE IS 1.13%.KIA?S ANALYSIS OF WARRANTY RETURN PARTS INDICATES A SLOW RATE OF FLUID LOSS; TESTS SHOWED A MAXIMUM FLUID LOSS RATE OF 1 CC PER 4000 BRAKE APPLICATIONS (THE MASTER CYLINDER RESERVOIR HAS A 134CC FLUID CAPACITY BETWEEN THE ?FULL? AND THE LEVEL AT WHICH THE BRAKE WARNING LAMP IS ILLUMINATED).KIA TESTING OF A VEHICLE EQUIPPED WITH A LEAKING WHEEL CYLINDER SHOWED THAT AFTER 100 STOPS FROM 100 KM/H THE PEDAL STROKE INCREASED 5%, PEDAL FORCE INCREASED 13%, AND THE BRAKING DISTANCE INCREASED 7% (51.7M VS. 48.1M) WHEN COMPARED TO THE SAME VEHICLE WITH A NON-LEAKING WHEEL CYLINDER.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.