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Hello Everyone!!
I am brand new here and have a question, I had ran across a deal I could not pass up I managed to buy a 2008 Kia Optima 4 cyl 5 speed car with "0" miles from a local large Kia dealer here. I bought it back in February 09 it was a left over no one wanted it because it is a 5 speed. I got such a good deal on it I knew it was the right time to buy.
This car is a spare vehicle for us as I have a company car that I use daily so the Kia is used on the weekends and occasionally a weekday. I average about 4,000 miles a year on the car. It currently has just turned 1,800 miles. I want to be sure it stays in TOP SHAPE!! so I want to know what do I need to do.. I was going to take the car on a road trip the 4th of July weekend and put about 600 mi on it!! A RARE trip!!
So here is what I want to know, oil changes? I was going toget the first one when I get back so the car will have about 2,300 mi on it at that point.I was told to put in synthetic oil in because it lasts longer. I also take the car out at least once a week and run it on the freeway about 10 miles at the least every week should we not use it this way it just doesnt sit around I assume that’s a good idea?
I basically want to know how to keep the car in top shape even though I dont drive it much, I hope in 5 years when this car just about hits the 20,000 mile mark that it is maintained right and remains reliable like it is now since its a brand new vehicle.
I know the car calls for maintenance at mileage intervals but being driven so little I am not sure exactly how to maintain it with out wasting money and doing maintenance that it will not need because it is driven so little. any advice is appreciated!! a few other things it is in a fully enclosed garage every day, and as of today the NEW CAR SMELL is still strong when you open the door!! gotta love that!  also I paid just over 10,000 for this car a stellar deal for a car so loaded with options and only 20 miles on it  the MSRP was 18,755.00
Thanks for reading my post and I sure hope I get some good advice here!!!
Thank you!!  

If your putting on 4000 miles a year you don't have to do anything special.If you put synthetic oil in ive read that you should put in a half quart of regular oil to keep the seals from drying out.If you find that your not driving the car for months at a time mark the tires and move the car 90 degrees every two weeks to prevent flat spots.  

Hi, this is my opinion on vehicle maintenance for cars that are not been driven a lot. I have a 2000 Porsche Boxster in my garage 7 month out of the year. I only put on 3000 km per year on the car. Oil changes, synthetic oil have a higher flash point that's all. Meaning synthetic oil will not break down easily like regular oil. It will break down at a higher temperature. This is good for racing, or abusive driving, but it doesn't necessarily last longer. The rule is change your oil regardless if you have driven or not within 12 month, and in my opinion you should start your car once every 2 weeks and let it run for 15 minutes or longer. Take it on the high way to recharge battery at least once a month. I work for a used car dealer in Toronto called Whitby Motors, feel free to visit our website at http://www.whitbymotors.com