Horn won't work and other misc problems

bubbashrimp · 08-18-2008, 01:40 PM

I just purchased a 1999 Kia Sportage automatic 4WD with 106K miles a couple of days ago. I bought it AS IS and it has a few problems.

1. The horn doesn't work. I checked the fuse pannel under the driver's side dash and could not find a fuse for the horn.

2. The CD player won't work. A couple of seconds after you put the CD in it says EJECT and pops back out. I tried a CD cleaner and the same thing happened.

3. The CEL light came on a day after I bought the car. I am taking it to Autozone to see what the codes are.

4. The car did not have an owner's manual, but I have ordered one

5. Can anyone reccommend a good Repair Manual

I am very happy I found this site and hope maybe I can fix some of these problems my self so I don't have to take it to the dreaded Kia dealer.

kiaracer · 08-18-2008, 11:23 PM

check the fuse box under the hood. usually it's under the dash but i would check the one under the hood if you already looked in the one under the dash.

as for the cd player, you're gonna have to take it out and take the top cover off to see if it's jammed up or not. or just buy an aftermarket cd deck for it.

can't help you out much on the cel til you get a code number.

the best repair manual you can use is kiatechinfo.com. we use kiatechinfo.com at the dealer and that's the best you can get because the info is straight from kia. i use a combination of kiatechinfo and a chilton's manual when i'm working on my sephia because kiatechinfo doesn't like to list some of the torque specs for some of the bolts so if i can't find it on kiatechinfo, i find it in the chilton's or vice versa. finding a chilton's might be hard to find for the sportage though, i was lucky to find one for my sephia.

bubbashrimp · 08-19-2008, 12:15 AM

Thanks for your reply kiaracer. I am tempted to just get an aftermarket radio/cd player. I'll have to see how hard it is to get the old radio out.

The codes were P0442 - EVAP small leak.
P0101 - MAP or MAF

Autozone was great about running the test and printing out the descriptions of the codes.

I replaced the fuel cap which didn't help and I will check all the hoses for cracks next before going any further. At the same time I will try to find the second fuse box under the hood. I found a box with 3 big fuses [80 amp] and some relays, but still haven't found a horn fuse. I understand the horn relay is behind a panel under the steering column.

stangman_1976 · 08-21-2008, 08:55 AM

my girls horn went out like 50,000 miles ago and I cant seem to get this one either. all fuses are good from what I see I need to check horn to see if its getting power. otherwise need to buy new horn???

bubbashrimp · 08-21-2008, 10:11 AM

Thanks for the reply Stangman. I want to check the fuse first, but still have not found it. I ordered an owner's manual and it should be here in a couple of days and then maybe I can find out where the blasted fuse is.

My nearest Kia dealer is in Gainsville. I called Sunny Kia to ask where the fuse was. The guy in the service dept seemed very pleasant and refered me to the parts dept, saying they would know right where it was. The guy in parts was rude and abrupt, saying that he was no mechanic and had no idea where the fuse was located. So much for my helpful Kia dealer support.

I think the horn relay is under a panel below the dash under the steering wheel. Apparently you have to get at the horn by turning the steering wheel to the left and getting to a panel behind the right front tire.

As far as the CD player goes, I saw an in dash radio CD player at Walmart for only $199.99 and it had a 4" screen with a TTS GPS. The screen would also display DVD's Unfortunately it looks like it might be just a little too big to fit.

kiaracer · 08-21-2008, 11:35 PM

universal cd and dvd players will fit. give me a second to look up the location of the horn relay for you. not sure if KGIS has the location or not...i may need to get on the dealer's alldata account.

kiaracer · 08-21-2008, 11:50 PM

the horn relay is behind the knee air bag panel under the steering wheel. the horn is actually wired into the "stop" fuse in the passenger compartment fuse box. you might need a continuity tester, a volt meter, or a test light to test around because there are several things that could be wrong. bad relay, blown fuse, bad horn button, bad clock spring cable, or a bad horn.

bubbashrimp · 08-22-2008, 07:46 AM

Hey thanks Kiaracer for the info. We are right in the eye of FAY so it is rainning pretty good here. Probably won't quit until late tomorrow and then I can get out and check that fuse. I assume STOP is the stop lights, so I don't think that fuse is blown.

Thanks for the tip that the Walmart radio will fit. It looks bigger, but maybe it's just the front panel that is bigger. That makes sense. My birthday is coming up on Sept 14 and I think that's what I want.

gomer · 08-22-2008, 04:22 PM

Four letters on the horn issue, man: K5LA.

bubbashrimp · 08-22-2008, 08:02 PM

A K5LA sounds like just the thing. It would definately get people out of my way. Know where I can get a set cheap?

When I was riding my Goldwing I put twin airhorns under each saddlebag and I had cars almost go in the ditch when I blew those babies. I especially liked to blow the horn if I was going through a tunnel or an underpass.