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.
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Optima. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V652000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start up after not being drive for a while. The check engine warning was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed with an unknown result. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 180,000.
Defect discovered by KIA September 2023 Affected owners not notified until November 2023 As of March 1, 2024, no updates. After six months, if no "fuse" is available, entire HECU should be replaced. Vehicle's exterior has significantly deteriorated since being required to park outside. Additionally, seriousness of fire hazard restricts use of car.
HYDRAULIC ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT (HECU) can start a fire, I was informed not to park the car in a garage or near other cars, also it can also catch fire while driving the car!! I was notified months ago of this problem !! I called a KIA dealer that got me no where !! KIA recall #SC284TF
There's something going on at the Kia dealership in Wake Forest (Westgate). Per the current recall notice, the lights came on that were highlighted in the notice ( -??MIL-??, ABS warning light) so I had my car towed into the dealership. They claimed my car had a bad battery and the problems were not due to the recall situation. I took my car out of there and straight to auto zone, about 200 feet from the dealership. My battery tested fine. Not only this, the lights (check engine, and others) were no longer illuminated and the radio was mysteriously working again. I'm not sure what they did to my car, but they charged me over $200 for a diagnosis. Not only this, they cited several other issues with the vehicle that I nor my master mechanic were aware of. They had my car for several days without so much as a phone call. In addition, while I was waiting for the keys to my car (which took 15 minutes to obtain), I overheard the other gentleman inform a kia owner via phone that her car was not covered under the warranty because she had over 150K miles on the car. I'm so disgusted. This is what happens every time we have to take a car into a dealership. They're full of baloney.
My car won-??t crank. Starter is not working. Ask if warranty or recall. Let-??s see if they accept warranty for starter replacement. My car towed to Kia of Lincoln in Lincoln, Nebraska where the car parked there right now. Please contact Kia at Lincoln and I better hope warranty are accepted and diagnostic are free too. Thank you!
It appears I have a defective oil pump in the car which I think is what caused the engine to go bad to begin with. I am requesting that KIA of Denham Springs be authorized by the main office of KIA to install a new oil pump in my car after the new motor is installed, otherwise the new motor will probably go bad and will result in Kia having to install another motor for the car. I hope you can step in and assist me in getting a new oil pump installed as this would be a safety issue of the car breaking down on the road and could result in myself or other passengers possibly stranded on the highway. A engine compartment fire could happen if the engine gets too hot due to the deflective oil pump no keeping all engine parts oiled properly by the defective Oil Pump. I am requesting that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's office look into this matter. Thanks for your assistance Tommie McMorris 985-969-8995 email: tommieap@charter.net
After driving the car over 15 miles, the Check Brake Light comes on, activating my emergency brake, slowing the car down and preventing me to accelerate. This happens on the freeway, where traffic is fast and my decelerating car puts me and those around me at risk of collision. Once it occurs the first time, it happens again a few minutes later. I have to frequently veer off the side of the freeway, turn off the car, and then turn it on again for the Check brake light to go away and for me to travel once more. This has been a problem for a couple of years with me trying to get the issue repaired, and documented in my visits. Kia and other service operatives have repeatedly not been able to replicate the error in their care, however they never drive it long enough for it to occur. I-€™ve spent a lot of money now trying to fix this problem and have videos and photos of it occurring. The last time it was inspected they only drove it 6 miles and said there were a lot of little codes going off but weren-€™t again able to replicate the problem I had been describing. It first appeared 2 years ago and I can feel it start to come on when I-€™m not able to accelerate my car any further like there is an added resistance. This then amounts to the check brakes display to appear with the emergency brake icon always accompanying it. It makes a scraping, gargled sounds and slows down the car. Overall it has affected the overall drive of the car and braking system as it is growing harder to stop the car when driving. The brakes have been repeatedly checked as well as the fluid and it-€™s normal, so it should be braking normally. This car has had other issues in the past that have been fixed but this has continued and has been a growing issue that is not being resolved. I-€™ve googled this issue with others expressing the same issue without ANY viable solution from Kia so I know I-€™m not alone in this. It-€™s not safe to drive. Also I tried uploading the videos but it only allowed the pictures.
I was driving out of town and when I went to accelerate and the engine had seized, the brakes had locked up and I lost power steering which almost resulted in an accident. On the dash was showing the engine, oil, and esc light, which were not on the dash before and there was nothing wrong or weird going on with the car prior to the first incident to even indicate that something was wrong. Had to get the car towed home then realized there had been a recall on the engine. Contacted the kia manufacturer and they had towed it to a kia dealership where they replaced the engine. Waited 2 Months to get my car back, the dealership let me leave with the ABS and Eps light on the dash, and couldn't give me a reason why the lights were still on. I had it for 3 days, it drove okay and now it no longer drives nor does it start. I was stranded because the car wouldnt start again giving the same issues as before the recall repair was done, with only accessories turning on. On the dash it only shows Engine, Oil, Eps and battery light. Found the Serpentine belt already coming apart and misplaced, found strips of the belt laying in the bottom of the hood. Also had found out the entire engine block ROCKS BACK AND FORTH while car is in motion. If I had driven the car any longer the belt would have completely snapped and would most likely result in an injury or worse. With the Engine movement that is also going to cause other damages to the car and more safety hazards. I have not even known about the engine recall on this car until after everything happened and when the car was purchased no one had notified me in anyway about the recall. Now they refuse to cover towing costs back to the dealership because the "5 year warranty had expired" When this in no way is my fault. Second incident was Oct. 17th 2022.
When accelerating in traffic car will completely shut off for about two seconds. This kicks off the traction control and power steering is lost. This did not start happening untill the engine was replaced in June 2021.
Went to dealer under warranty because of check charging system (hybrid) 2011 Kia Optima They said they did an update It did not help it has been constantly doing the same thing I loose power I have to pull over and start the engine The check engine light stays on This is dangerous because I am driving down the street and it goes into the safe mode I have no power I need help Kia said they will not do anything the dealer is an idiot told me I needed a transmission Please help
Safety: It appears the vehicle in question has had Engine, Electrical, and Driveability issues within less than 8,000 miles of it being on the road the First record of this vehicle show's one owner, purchased not from a Kia Dealership but a third party. The Carfax history showed there has been a driveability issue an ECM Module has been replaced twice" less than 30,000 miles" It's Believed that the warranty or millage has been used as a reason to deny repair and or Because as the Recall on the engine states it is undetermined as to what is causing a malfunction but it has or will result in fire. This becomes a liability for those who offer works on the vehicle. Something within the vehicle is without warning causing the vehicle to randomly fail while descending from 65-85 miles an hour. There are also sudden jerks that randomly accrue. rendering the car hard to maintain direction. Imagin a first-time driver attempting to handle this on a busy Highway in Texas - The day we acquired the car we took it to KIA to do a full inspection - oil change, etc- The report given was that there are no problems identified but a computer module may need to be changed. We also asked that they give us an appraisal it was at that point they said that the car had a salvage title. Which the seller who sold it us ARELLANO AUTO SALES sail the title was clean. Last year a recall on the engine was issued. the insurance company determined the vehicle a total loss since how the car was branded a lost because it appears Kia refused to Fix the car, While everyone else says they can't recreate the issue for fear of liability. So here are with a car that has an undetermined engine issue that causes other electronics to malfunction. The vehicle has been seen at KIA dealerships according to the carfax. It's been seen. By two other service facilities and all have come up with something that may needed to be service while nothing has fixed the car
The engine seized. Ive been waiting for this recall. Kia has had tis vehicle for a month and I can't seem to get the approval for the current recall. It was in motion driving at 30 miles per hour smoke came from the engine and never turned on again.it was 300 downtown salt lake city. A city street. We had the vehicle towed home. The dealership seized the engine and quoted us $6500 to fix the entire car. Replace the engine.
My car loses power when I use the horn. It happens while parked with the engine on and in traffic. Initially, I thought it was faulty electrical problem because there were 3 active recalls needing to be fixed. I recently took my vehicle to a certified Kia service center to get the recalls taken care of and additonally, had the A/C compressor, struts, and a belt replaced. I also described the issue of engine power loss when I use the horn with service tech and attempted to demonstrate. However, my car didn't duplicate the issue. I'm not sure if the techs tested it thoroughly during the days it was being serviced. The final detailed bill states that the car wouldn't duplicate the issue. I'm currently satisfied with the fixed recalls, A/C, belt, and other minor repairs. I'm highly concerned and frustrated that I'm still experiencing engine, acceleration, RPM, and A/C failure whenever I need to use my horn. A couple of days ago while in traffic, I had to blow the horn because a distracted driver nearly side swiped me. As a result, my car loss power. I couldn't accelerate and the transmission wouldn't shift. I ended up doing around 30mph until I made it to a safe destination. I called for help, but after I turned the car off and back on, it was as if it never happened. I'm furious about it because the distracted driver proceeded to tailgate and intimidate me out of anger. Lastly, it was not professional or caring to be laughed at when I voiced this problem at the service center. I need help and answers before something more terrible happens. The number of engine and electrical complaints are startling. I'm hoping that my issue will be taken seriously and looked into. I'm not comfortable driving my car.
Hi my car has lot of safety issues.. I took many times to Kia dealer in jersey city my car door gets unlocked while it's in driving mode which makes me feel unsafe I told so many times to the dealers to fix it they do some temporary things in my car and they live me but again after some days that problem is arising again... I am fed up with this situation as I am the second owner of the car...
The contact owns a 2011 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while her father was driving at 70 mph, the vehicle shut off completely without warning. The contact's father stated that the vehicle had made abnormal noises prior to the failure. The contact was able to pull off to side of the road and had to have the vehicle towed to their home due to vehicle not restarting. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and requested that the contact pay for a tow to a local dealer to have the vehicle inspected; the contact refused. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure mileage was 145,362.
I was on I 95 yesterday in the evening heading home and all of sudden my car went to shaking in the engine light was blinking on and off I pulled over to the side of the road to stop the car as I pulled over on the side of the road I sat in the car while the car was still running part in the car cut off by itself end it all the sudden started making a knocking sound once I turn the car back on.
While parked in various locations (on street, at gas pump, in parking lots), and on about 8-10 occasions, I was unable to get the car to start after depressing the brake and start button on my car. All the lights lit up on the instrument panel and the radio went on as well - the rest of the car electrical system worked fine. The brake pedal became very stiff and was hard to depress. I put my key fob into the bypass in the trunk and it still would not start. The only way to get the car to start was to depress the stiff brake pedal, then shift from P to D and back again. Then the brake pedal seemed to loosen up and I was able to start the car successfully. I had researched the remedy through you tube. The first time it happened was October 2, 2018 and it has happened about 8-10 times since then. I have a video of the problem, but not of the solution that I found online, therefore I am unable to attach any documentation. I noticed that the replacement of the brake switch was "voluntary" NHTSA # 13V-114, but feel that this should be a mandatory fix instead since it has happened so often to me. Just last week when it happened again, I remembered what to do quickly as I was stuck in a long line at the gas station just last week, with cars honking at me to move when I could not. It happened to me the last time just yesterday 10/8/2019 inside my garage. Please look into making this a mandatory recall. I will be contacting my local dealer this week as well. Thank you.
Right low beam needed constant changing (1 every 4-6 months). Within the last 6 months, I had changed the bulb, 2 weeks later, the low beam light was not working again. Noticed a white film on inside of light assembly. Upon investigation, I discovered the wiring caught fire and melted the connector for the light bulb. I purchased a new assembly, only to have the exact same thing happen. This is a huge safety concern. Firstly, the low beam lighting is absolutely horrible in this car to begin with, now I'm running off of one light. After looking into complaints online, I see this problem is prevalent across the board with this car. Kia is a multi million dollar company, you need to stand behind your product and have the mindset of putting your customers safety as a priority. I work as a firefighter/emt and I'd hate to arrive on scene of someone that was killed due to Kia's faulty unsafe product. Especially of one that could be prevented by fixing these problems that you know is a manufacturer defect. Shame on you Kia for putting people at risk.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Fayetteville, NC, USA