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Greetings From Honduras ☺ our Kia Sephia history

531K views 1K replies 16 participants last post by  Loyale 2.7 Turbo 
#1 · (Edited)
Greetings from Honduras! :)

I am not New to Car Mechanics but New to Kia.

I Recently obtained online for my wife, a Kia Sephia 2000
(Almost New 'cos its Previous Owner didn't use it very Much, it sat for long time!)
I Hope I Can Find Help here and Eventually I Hope I Will Help other Members too.

This thread will be a Binnacle of the Progress and Mods I will do to the Car. 🚙

(Edit: it says "Built in 1999" on the door's metal plate)

Kind Regards.
JesZeK.
 
#261 ·
I Know it isn't exactly Kia Related,

but I'm Glad that my Yellow Subaru and I Featured (For the Second Time)

in an internet Magazine's article!

Jalopnik Wrote about me:





As you can see the Full Article, Here:

~► This Honduran Subaru Nut Writes Awesome How-To Manuals
 
#262 ·
#263 ·
#270 ·
There are Lots of New Mods and Photos I've done to my Cars,

but I Stopped posting here since Photobucket restricted their Bandwidth

... :( ...​
So, I opened a Second Photobucket Account ... :) ... I'll Post some Photos with Other Mods I've done.

Kind Regards.
 
#264 ·
Lately, I've seen Many Huge Korean cars around the Town; like the Hyundai Equus, or the Kia Quoris.





By the Way, the Kia Quoris is based on the Huge K9 Platform,

Do not confuse it with the Kia Cadenza which is Built on the Smaller K7 Platform.

Kind Regards.

 
#265 ·
I just found this thread thanks to the active topics link and your posts are awesome. Thanks for sharing all the modifications and "how to" posts as well as the posts about Honduras. I haven't had the chance to read through all of your posts ( will do so either today at work when we're slow or tonight when I get home). Thanks for sharing and keep up the great posts!!!
 
#268 ·
... Also sometimes I still Fix Someone else's Cars... :p ... especially Old-School Subarus, for the extra income.




You're Welcome!

I'll Update this thread with more of my Crazy "do-it-yourself" Ideas :D

Kind Regards.
 
#267 ·
Yes, that's True! <3

She also is Lawyer as Me... imagine a Home with Two Lawyers... :rolleyes: ...So we divided the Home's jobs in Two: She Cooks and Cares about other Household things, etc... while I Repair everything, Paint Everything, Fix Everything, and also She sends me to do the Errands, including supermaket lists of groceries, etc ... also She doesn't like to Spend much time in front of a Computer at Home, she says it is Enough with the Eight + Hours we spent in front of it at our Jobs... So she doesn't use internet too often.

Remember that I Paid my Universitary studies by Fixing Someone else's cars, and I Love Mechanical Jobs; so Despite that now I work in an Office too, I spend my spare times, such as Late Night times (especially during the Horrid Gout Foot Attacks I Suffer from time to Time, that doesn't let me Sleep) Fixing our Cars and / or in the Internet World, either Learning or Sharing my -crazy- Ideas. :D

Kind Regards.
 
#269 ·
Despite that I have a Hard Job as Legal Assistant and also I do many Car Repairs at Home, I Always try to give my Best Time to my Little Daughter ... :) ... I Play with her but also She accompain me while I do some of the Repairs, at certain distance for safety.
 
#271 · (Edited)
Long Time Ago, my Father gave me as Birthday Gift, a pair of Good Quality Daylight Running Lights, each set had Eight SMD High Power Output LED Lights in 5000K temperature colour; they came in Plastic housing, shaped as Thin and Wide Halogens.



I had no use for them, 'till I noticed that the HeadLamps' Polycarbonate lens were Yellowish, not only from outside but from the Inside ... :eek: ... and I had to disassemble them in order to Polish and clean them from inside out.
 
#272 ·
So, a year ago, one night I removed both Headlamps and Disassembled them,

in order to Clean & Polish their polycarbonate Lenses ...





... as you can See:


 
#273 ·
As you can see, their interior were inmaculate. :D

So, when I finished Polishing, I remembered those LED lights stored in the Shed, and said to myself: "Why Not?" ... So I Cracked their Housings and Removed the LED's plastic stripe and its Wiring, figuring out a way to adapt it inside the Headlamps...

In Honduras Daylight running Lamps are only required legally during Rainstorms, otherwise is not needed to drive with the Lights "On" during Daytimes.
 
#274 ·
So, I found the better placement for those LED's inside the Headlamps: Diagonally between the Main Headlamp and the Built-in Corner Lights, as you can see in the Following Photos:
 
#276 ·
You can see the Wiring coming through a tiny hole, the LED lights' stripe is held in place with a couple of drops of Clear Epoxy Glue, but isn't really needed, because the Polycarbonate lenses will press the stripe against the reflective body, curving it along the outer headlamp's design.
 
#277 ·
I Re-Sealed the HeadLamps, using enough "Mega-Grey" Silicone, generously Smeared on both sides,

(The polycarbonate Lenses and the Back Base)

and this is How the Final product looks like:


 
#278 ·
My Wife Loves the Looks of the "KiaStein" with those White LED Lights.

I Wired them to the courtesy lights (Passing Lights) plugs, so they'll lit along them.

I Tried to take Photos of those during Night times, BUT to take a Photo of Direct Lights isn't easy... I Had to set manually the White (Light) Balance on my Camera to the Lowest setting, in order to avoid the natural distortion, so the Resulted pictures are Deep Dark... but they gives the Idea.
 
#279 ·
Photo at Dusk:




Photo at Night:




Yes, the Windshield Washers lit too...

Someone stolen the original ones at the Parkin' Lot

(Good Excuse, isn't it?)

;)
 
#281 ·
Comparison Side by Side, with the Camera White (Light) Balance at the Lowest setting:


Headlight off:




Headlight On:

 
#282 ·
The whole setup has more than a Year working Flawlessly, and the car does look more Modern, without adding a mess of other parts, somehow by this way, it looks standard, especially with headlights off when the LED Lights are almost unnoticeable.

Let me know what do you Think about this mod.

Kind Regards.
 
#283 ·
I've Uploaded a Short but Very Beautiful Video that

Explains the Three Different Worlds that Conforms

Honduras:


http://youtu.be/4pstBD5BEIo
 
#285 ·
I'm so glad that you Liked it!


Beside the Two "Monster" Cities Honduras Have ("Tegucigalpa" and "San Pedro Sula") this is how the rest of the country is.

KInd Regards.
 
#288 ·
No..but the third one was!
I looked at your garage and found out the Elan actually has a frame..
What was KIA thinking? :).
Also looks like a fair amount of parts were from the Spectra...The main dash gauges look like they "borrowed it" from one...
Dave
 
#291 ·
Starting a New Retrofitting Project with my Wife's "KiaStein"
=
Rear Disc Brakes.​


So, I am perfectionist and I somehow "Need" that my cars run Mechanically as near as Perfect could be Possible, but my Wife's "KiaStein" needs monthly adjustments to the Rear Drum Brake's Shoes and I'm getting very Tired doing that monthly adjustment. (More info on this same thread's older posts and also, ~► Here.)

Not only because it is a Pain in the Rear to do such simple Job, due to the Lack of "Outside Adjuster" and thus mean that you "Need" to remove the tire and the Whole Drum to do the Adjustment (many times 'till is done right), There's No Such "Star" adjusters on the Sephia... I Wish they used that simpler design, 'cos usually the Star adjusters could be Reached from the Back (Behind) of the wheel hub, so removing the Wheel & thus the Drum isn't needed. But No, Kia used a part that they named "Strut Adjuster" see the Photo on the Above-Linked Thread.

Also it is a Pain in the Rear to do that monthly adjustment Because I suffer from Deep & Horrid Gout Foot Attacks some times per year, and during those days, I couldn't do that adjustment ... and I have to drive my Wife's "KiaStein" because unlike my "BumbleBeast", the Kiastein is Automatic and thus mean to use only one foot...

I Know that there was a "Top of the Line" Sephia Model (Premium) with Factory Rear Disc Brakes and other ammenities, but is not easy to come across one of those in Local Junk Yards. So, the Questions Are:

Have anybody did the Rear Disc Brakes Swap or Retrofit on a 2000 Kia Sehia Before?

Where I could find Used parts from a Gen II Kia Sephia (1998 ~2001) or Gen I Kia Spectra (2000 ~ 2003) with Factory Rear Disc Brakes to do the Swap?

The Second Gen Kia Sephia does have the Same 4X100 lug pattern as the first gen Spectras, and the Local Kia Dealer's mechanics said to me that first gen Spectras Share the Same Brake parts in the Rear, with second Gen Sephias... Basically talking, those are the Same Vehicles. Despite that early Spectras got different Front Brakes & suspension parts, their rear axle is the same with the late Sephias.
 
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