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.
We were traveling at around 55-60 miles an hour and were T-bones by a Chevy Avalanche on the passenger side of the vehicle. I was in the front passenger seat and my husband swerved so the truck luckily started at my door and completely ripped and smashed in the back passenger door and back/ trunk of our Optima. Back wheel is completely turned out. Hit so hard it completely turned us in 2 circles and busted my front license plate and it hit absolutely nothing. I busted my head open and received 3 staples and knee shoved in dash but not 1 air bag in this vehicle deployed!! I have always owned a Kia!! I will no longer purchase a Kia because I do not feel safe!!
II have paint peeling and falling off at a rapid rate and the car only has 77000 miles it is garage kept and detailed twice a year I feel it need attention from Kia as this is not normal they will not cover it and it appears this is an ongoing problem for this year Kia
I have a 2013 Kia Optima with pearl white paint. Consistent with widespread reports of rapid paint peeling and delamination of this particular paint color, I too am experiencing the same. Also consistent with widespread reporting, the primary areas are along the pillars around the windshield (long vertical strips peeled down to the primer), and bubbling and peeling on the engine hood, the front grill and the front bumper. This has happened very quickly, and is rapidly worsening. I first noticed the peeling around the windshield on 5/28/20, and the engine hood and bumper on 8/2/20. I have approximately 62,900 miles on the car and it is typically garaged. My understanding is that this will continue to worsen, and that the entire vehicle will need to be repainted. I firmly believe this is a defect, as reported by others, we are all experiencing the same issues in the same manner and locations on the vehicle. This should be recalled and repaired by Kia at no cost to me. Thank you.
- Menlo Park, CA, USA
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In the late morning of Monday, April 6th 2020, my husband was driving our 2013 Kia Optima sxl home from the store when the car began filling with smoke. Luckily, he was able to pull the car over and jump out before flames began to engulf the front of the car. He called 911 and the fire company was dispatched. Their response time was short, but it took under a minute for the car to go up in flames (see pictures attached). There was zero warning that this horrific event was about to occur. No engine light, no funny noises, no problems whatsoever. In fact, I had just brought the car into our local dealership for routine service less than a month before on March 9. they gave me no indication that there was anything wrong with the car that would cause it to catch on fire. We filed a claim with our insurance company, who confirmed the car was totaled and listed a recent, but as yet unannounced, recall on my exact year, make and model of the car. After some research, I found that according to a February 27, 2020 article in us news and world report, Kia would shortly be recalling nearly 142,000 2013 and 2014 Kia Optima's. furthermore, 'Kia says a fuel hose can deteriorate and crack due to engine heat. The hoses can leak and cause fires. A fix is still being developed. The recall is expected to start April 16.' Although at the time of the article no fires had yet been reported, given the sudden nature of our car fire, it is obvious to us what has happened.
On 1/11/2020 my 16 year old son was driving the 2013 Kia Optima when the vehicle lost engine power. He was able to get the vehicle off the roadway at which time the vehicle stalled and burst into flames. The vehicle has had no prior mechanical issues. There have been no warning lights.
Before I paid off my car in 12-1-18, my 2013'Kia Optima's paint started chipping off. It has chipped off first on the hood and then on the door jams on both front doors. I find this suspicious in that when I bought the car new, they were pushing an extra paint protection program- - for a mear $2000 plus extra! it's as if they knew the paint would fail in less than five years.
Waiting on a red light, the Kia Optima stalled and then smoke started coming into the cabin. Within seconds the front of the car caught fire and my wife and two children had a very limited time to get out from the burning car into safety. The burning car was eventually extinguished by the fire department. Local police cordoned off the lane to provide safety for my family and others motorists on the road. The weather was clear and the time of the fire was around 12:30pm.
I was driving from woburn MA on new boston road headed to wilmington MA and my car seemed to shut down I was able to pull over off the street next to a curb location 147 new boston rd. I tried to start my car pressing the push button start only lights came on on the oil has engine battery... while still sitting in the car I was trying to make some calls I smelled a burning smell I noticed smoke coming from the front of the car. The smoke increased rapidly I exited the car called 911. While waiting for help to arrive I grabbed some items from the glove box and back seat the front of the car at that point flames were coming from under the hood the flames escalated to pop the hood a large fire had ignighted from the engine area the fire department put out the fire. A tow truck towed the car away.
My car randomly caught fire at 10:30 pm while it was already sitting in my drive way since 7 pm. The entire front end of the car is now melted on my driveway pavement. Putting my family and my house at danger.
"takata recall". my Kia has been recalled several times, the motor has been recalled twice. The second time, I had my family with me going to Arkansas, and the car stalled as we were going through a stop light, another vehicle almost hit us. I have lost wages from work, lost time waiting to get my vehicle fixed, it has caused stress and anxiety and right now I just got three more recall letters in the mail. These cares are unsafe, but unfortunately it is my only means of transportation. I want Kia held accountable and to get these dangerous cars off the streets before some gets killed.
On September 16, 2018 at approximately 930am, while on duty at work(correction officer) my Kia Optima gdi 2013 went up in flames in the parking lot of my job.. I was not present and the vehicle. I had already been on duty 530am that morning. Once I made it to the scene my car was completely almost burnt to the ground. The fire department labeled it as a electrical fire, which caused the car the burn from the inside out, starting from the engine. I had several personal items of mine burnt in the fire and also work equipment that was lost in the fire. Since the incident I've suffered mental, emotional and physical distress. I'm a single mother and I depended on my car to get me where I needed to go. Things have been very frustrating and hard. I'm seeking help from Kia motors.
My 2013 Kia Optima caught on fire just short of driving it for about 15-20 min on 9/23/18. We got no warning on the dashboard we heard a light pop noise, the vehicle turned off when we got off there was fire coming out from the hood that fastly spread throught out up to the whole front of the car destroying the whole engine. The car never had any mechanical issues. We had just driven from AZ to ca the night before with no problems. I still have no explanation why my 5 year old car with just a little over 86K miles caught on fire.
While driving down the expressway my car stalled and then caught fire with no warning at all, as I pulled over on the side of the expressway I seen smoke and then flames while car was total loss.
The paint pilling off the car took it to Kia they told me they can't do nothing the pain pills so bad this a five year car in it look like 15 year old car cost me 2800 to get the car painted I know that this was a defect on the pait in Kia don't want to admit it I think this is something that it needs to be checked Kia need to fix this problem
While I was driving the car, I stopped at a stop light, and realized that my car was on fire from the engine area. The electrical shorted out and I was locked in the car, I had to manually hold the electric lock to be able to escape from the car. It was engulfed in flames.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Loves Park, IL, USA