Kia Sedan Range

A shaking through the steering when you apply the brakes is often caused by brake rotors which have warped. Imagine spinning a bicycle wheel with a buckle in it. In a micro sense, that's what a warped brake rotor is doing. When that happens, they fight against the force of the brake calipers and that leads to the shaking you're feeling. You're right not to feel safe as the car is definitely not safe in this condition.

Sometimes the brake rotors can be machined to make them true again, but other times a replacement set of rotors is the fix. Don't forget to get your mechanic to change the brake pads when they fit the new rotors, as new rotors can be compromised by old pads.

Sadly, Aussie cars like the Ford Fairmont just aren't being made any longer. As you've correctly identified over many years and almost 300,000km, this big, rugged, relaxed type of vehicle was perfect for travelling in Australia, but the onslaught of SUVs and the death of the local car-making industry put an end to these big sedans.

There's nothing wrong with a Kia Sportage (in fact, it's a good choice) and you might find the effortless turbo-diesel version suits your needs and preferences quite well. You may also appreciate the higher ride height and easier entry and egress. But what you won't find in any mid-sized SUV is the same dynamic feel of a conventional sedan like your current Ford. This is not to say modern SUVs don't drive well; they do, and improved fuel efficiency and different packaging is all part of where the Australia car-park is going.

If you're not venturing off the bitumen, however, there are a few alternatives to an SUV in the form of some very accomplished medium-sized sedans. The Hyundai i30 Sedan would be one and, if you want to retain the rear-wheel-drive feel and big performance, then the Kia Stinger is another alternative to an SUV.

The other alternative would be to take the time and effort to seek out a later-model Ford Fairmont with fewer kilometres on its odometer and start over again with the packaging you clearly already enjoy.

The NSW Office of Fair Trading has a Disciplinary Action Unit (DAU) which, on the surface, appears to be able to sanction companies or enforce findings by the department. Which leaves me wondering how Kia has managed to brush off that authority by refusing the refund recommended by the department. Perhaps you would be wise to contact the ACCC (the old Consumer Affairs Department) as this organisation has some real teeth.

The question, however, is whether you’ve given Kia sufficient opportunity to fix the problem. Form what you’ve said, that’s probably the case, but all disputes of this nature rely on the car-maker being given every chance to make things right. That said, your frustration is understandable and, even if the problem is eventually rectified, your opinion of the vehicle will probably be permanently coloured.

For the record, plenty of other owners of the Kia Stinger have complained about exactly the same problem, so it appears that it’s a real concern and not one of which Kia could possibly be unaware. I’ve heard of some owners having the sunroof frame replaced and that fixing the problem. So perhaps there’s a tolerance problem in the manufacturing of the sunroof frames. The point there being that replacing the original frame with another one that is out of spec will simply reproduce the same problem. Perhaps that’s what’s happening to your car.