1997 Kia Sephia: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 375 complaints
375
Total Complaints
63,000mi
Median Mileage
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
Top Issue
49
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

49,900 25th Percentile
63,000 Median Mileage
75,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
33
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
23
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
23
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:ROTOR
23
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC
21
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS
19
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
17
STRUCTURE
11
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
9
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
8

Severity Assessment

49
Crashes
5
Fires
40
Injuries
4
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"SYNCHRONIZER FOR TRANSMISSION FAILED. ALSO, WIRING HARNESS/VAPOR HOSE/AIR BAG LIGHT MALFUNCTIONED."
"SYNCHRONIZER FOR TRANSMISSION FAILED. ALSO, WIRING HARNESS/VAPOR HOSE/AIR BAG LIGHT MALFUNCTIONED."
"SYNCHRONIZER FOR TRANSMISSION FAILED. ALSO, WIRING HARNESS/VAPOR HOSE/AIR BAG LIGHT MALFUNCTIONED."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28