2000 Sportage 4x4 2dr. convertible. Manual transmission. 137,000 miles.
If you are stopped, and the air conditioner is switched on, the car will not accelerate, at all, it bogs down completely and the engine nearly dies. You push the pedal to the floor, and nothing happens. Very dangerous! However, if you switch the A/C off, it accelerates normally, as if nothing is wrong! When you get up to 30 MPH or so, and THEN turn the A/C on, everything runs normally, no adverse hesitation, and the A/C works well and is nice and cool. But, once you come to a stop, the car will NOT go again until you turn the A/C off!
Anyone have any ideas??? Thanks.

That's a strange problem. By any chance is the check engine light on or has it recently turned on and then turned off?

sounds just like mine was. i thought i was gonna get creamed by cars after i pulled out. one time actually pulled back off road to let cars by because the thing wouldnt hardly move. i love my sport and i'll drive one till i die. but it is the most underpowered vehicle i have ever drove. the stock fan comes on automaticly under a certain rpm,with the ac on the compressor starts sucking horespower. between that fan and that compressor theres just nothing left for your foot. when im approaching long inclines on highway with air on,i turn off the green lighted button on dash which turns off ac, and can feel the extra power. sad thing is its still not enough to keep from having to floor it to get up the stinking hill. so i just drive my sport like i stole it. i haul an atv on a trailer.pack the car with gear. and it gets me where im going and gas milage isnt too bad. you just gotta get used to reving the engine to 5000-6000 rpm to get over any hills.

now...the primary prob. getting off the line quicker. put on electric fan.remove old pulley ,get shorter belt or you wont get the best results. turn ac off. and there you have it. thats as good as it gets. i wish we could get a stall speed for the autos.

I have a 2000 and not that problem.
Just to remove any doubt, I'd install a voltmeter and check voltage (may be at lighter plug) when this happens. A/C clutch current is not that much and should not cause a severe voltage drop but there have been a lot of voltage problems, bad grounds, with this model and I just wonder if it could be a factor here; a higher RPM might run the alternator to a higher voltage and clear the problem....this is just speculation but clearing it out leaves the way for other options.

No..no...the engine is not just weak when the A/C is switched on....nearly all 4 cyl. motors act that way...my sportage literally stops and will not move! This problem just recently cropped up....it didn't do this before. But turn the A/C off; accelerate, then once you're going, turn it back on, and everything runs like normal, until you get to the next stop sign. I will take some voltage measurements to verify, and when the fan clutch dies again, i'll probably do the electric fan install! And yes, Axe Man, it has codes...it's had codes for 2 years now, continuously, i've had it at 3 different Kia dealers and 2 independent shops in the dallas area, and spent almost five thousand dollars dollars on it, and nobody could ever make the codes stop coming. I'm still fighting with one dealer and Kia of America about that. Literally everything was changed..every sensor, including the computer and all the electrical wiring harnesses for the engine. The only thing that hasn't been replaced is the crankshaft sensor. Kia just scratches their head and asks for more money. :P Only someone who REALLY loves his Kia would try so hard to fix it!

What codes keep showing up? What codes do you have right now?
Might help someone troubleshoot your problem if you could give the codes out.
Everet <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/patriot.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />