10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
64,774 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2009 Kia Optima lights problems

lights problem

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2009 Kia Optima Owner Comments

problem #8

Sep 272019

Optima

  • 50,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Brake light stays on and drains battery. Rear brake light not functional.

- Lutz, FL, USA

problem #7

May 202015

Optima

  • miles
The contact owned a 2009 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 13V114000 (service brakes, hydraulic, exterior lighting). The manufacturer had not sent notification of the vehicle being included in the recall from March 29, 2013. While driving highway speeds, the contact noticed smoke under the hood of the vehicle. While pulling the vehicle over, an off duty fire fighter flagged the contact to quickly pull over and exit the vehicle. The fire fighter remained at the scene as the fire department arrived and extinguished the flames. The driver was not injured. The insurance company towed the vehicle to a facility, inspected the collision damages, and claimed the vehicle as a total loss. The cause of the fire was not investigated. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was notified. The vehicle was destroyed. The failure mileage was not available.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #6

Jul 072018

Optima

  • 122,000 miles
Headlights replaced 6 times.

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #5

Jul 132018

Optima

  • 114,856 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

SRS light came on while stationary and continued while vehicle is running..now it stays on all the time. No matter how many times they reset it comes back next day and stays on.

- Belle Chasse, LA, USA

problem #4

Apr 032016

Optima

  • 97,773 miles
Constantly blowing the low beam headlights. Have replaced 4 bulbs in 4 months. On 04/03/16 I left to start my car to go home at approximately 9:30 pm to discover I had no low beam headlights and my high beam would not stay illuminated unless I held the lever that controls the headlights. Both bulbs are out again! the vehicle was parked for approximately 3 hours.

- Kennesaw, GA, USA

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problem #3

Dec 152015

Optima

  • 133,560 miles
While I was not notified about a recall, until recently, the dealer advised my information was probably not passed on to the proper authorities from the previous owner. I went to the Kia dealer in crystal river and they supposedly put a new brake light switch on my vehicle and when I left the dealership my ABS/ESC lights were illuminated on the dash and my car started doing all kinds of funny things like vibrating and shuttering under the gas pedal. You know you could feel the shuttering on the gas pedal. At that point I had no brakes and barely stopped. I thought it was only a temporary thing but now its doing it all the time and I can't feel safe driving the car at all. I still owe almost $9000 dollars and can't afford a costly repair from a recall.. I have spoke with some people and they advised that the recall has been causing the ecs to malfunction in many cases and caused the stability of the car and ABS to act up.

- Old Town, FL, USA

problem #2

Feb 172014

Optima 4-cyl

  • miles
I received a letter regarding a safety recall for my vehicle's stop lamp switch. I submitted a request for reimbursement of my repairs on January 22, 2014. I received a check for partial payment of $101.34. This amount was just for the installation of the stop lamp switch. However, I submitted an additional receipt and reimbursement request for the actual brake light replacement. This was due to the malfunction of the stop lamp switch. The total cost of the replacement was $28.10. I contacted Kia at 1(800) 333-4542 which was the number indicated on the letter. I was transferred twice with no assistance. I just wanted clarification as to why I wasn't paid the entire amount of $129.42 (the cost of the installation and bulb replacement).

- Antioch, TN, USA

problem #1

Nov 222013

Optima 4-cyl

  • miles
Per NHTSA recall number 13V114 I took my 2009 Kia Optima to koons Kia in woodbridge on 11/21/2013 to replace my vehicle's stop lamp switch. The next day I noticed that after applying the brakes for the first time the brake lights are continuously illuminated and remain illuminated after I have shut down the engine and the ignition switch is in the off position. Another problem is that the electronic stability control (ESC) light intermittently comes on. Both of the above problems arose after the 11/21/2013 stop lamp switch replacement.

- Woodbridge, VA, USA

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