VehicleVerdict

1998 Kia Sephia visibility & wipers problems

The 1998 Kia Sephia has 47 visibility & wipers complaints filed with NHTSA — 5% of the year's total, and up sharply from the prior model year.

47

Visibility & Wipers complaints

5%

Share of year

1

Crash-involved

1

Related recalls

Visibility & Wipers complaints by year

Sephia visibility & wipers complaints by model year47 complaints1995: 4 complaints1996: 7 complaints1997: 16 complaints1998: 47 complaints1999: 21 complaints2000: 22 complaints2001: 8 complaints
Sephia visibility & wipers complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

Related recalls

99V271000Visibility & WipersOctober 6, 1999 · 90,054 units

Defect

VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. THE BALL SOCKET ON THE WINDSHIELD WIPER LINK MAY BE OUT OF TOLERANCE RESULTING IN THE LINK DISENGAGING FROM THE WIPER MOTOR DRIVE UNDER LOAD, SUCH AS PUSHING AGAINST ICE, SNOW OR OTHER RESISTANCE. ALSO THE WIPER ARM RETAINING NUT COULD BE INADEQUATELY TIGHTENED ALLOWING THE WIPER ARM TO SLIP AND/OR STOP FUNCTIONING.

Consequence

THIS CONDITION COULD CAUSE IMPAIRMENT OF VISIBILITY IN INCLEMENT WEATHER INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

Remedy

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE WINDSHIELD WIPER LINK AND ALSO PROPERLY TIGHTEN THE WIPER ARM RETAINING NUTS.

Common questions

How many visibility & wipers complaints does the 1998 Kia Sephia have?

NHTSA has 47 complaints about the 1998 Kia Sephia visibility & wipers — 5% of all complaints filed for that model year.

Are there recalls for the 1998 Kia Sephia visibility & wipers?

Yes — 1 NHTSA recall campaign for this model year is tied to the visibility & wipers: 99V271000.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.