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.
I purchased a 2016 KIA Optima from eCars in Wichita Ks in November of 2022. The car had no major issues until the Optima was stolen this last March. I recovered the car quickly but it was damaged. Had ignition pulled out steering column broken, window broken and lots of cosmetic damage. Was towed twice and in the shop twice. All has been fixed with auto insurance funds. I am part of the KIA theft settlement and waiting for funds to be dispersed. Second part of my issue is that on 07/22/24 the check engine light came on while I was driving to work. It was blinking which indicates a serious engine issue. I turned around and went home and parked it. I started researching KIA engine issues and found that my car is also eligible for the KIA Theta II engine class action settlement but the submission deadline was 12/07/23. Since I was not the original owner, I was never notified of this class action settlement so could not submit a claim. I contacted Midwest KIA in Wichita KS to see about their "Buy Back program" I found online that KIA will sometimes buy certain vehicles back due to quality or safety issues. They want me to drive the car over 30 miles from my house to their lot so they can see the car in person, which I am not comfortable with. My question is what kind of legal recourse do I have with KIA" Am I still covered under Kansas Lemon Law" I still owe over $15k on the Optima. I ended up buying a new car on Saturday from Rusty Eck Ford but didn't trade the Optima in because they told me it had a salvage title, which I wasn't aware of when I bought it. It caught on fire apparently. All the damage was fixed, which could have been covered under the settlement as a qualifying fire.
I most recently started noticing that my oil changes were not lasting at around 46,174 miles. I found this to unusual in a car with low mileage. I had to result to buying oil from a local store. The light indicator started coming on when ever I apply the brakes. When I checked my oil, it was completely dry. So I started monitoring the oil intake, even after I had oil changes at the dealership in which I mentioned that it appears to be taking in an excessive amount of oil. What I noticed was that I was adding oil every week. I did not detect any outward appearance of a leak. In addition, I experienced on several occasion what felt like the car was having a seizure. As soon as I filled up the gas tank. The car froze up, steering wheel would not move and the car was in drive but not accelerating. I immediately shut the engine off, then restarted the car. That seem to alleviate the problem for that time. It then got really bad, that it shook and was running rough as if it was falling apart. So I drove it the dealership, explained the two problems I had, running rough and a high level of oil being used in between oil changes. I was given a diagnosis on cylinders misfiring and needing spark plugs replacement, and ignition coils. Nothing about the oil issue. I was later told that would be an additional diagnosis charge to check. I asked about engine warranty and possible complaints or recalls, and was told that my issues would not be covered under the warranty. I purchased the items they indicated needed to be addressed and took my car to someone else. That's where it was discovered, when the spark plugs were removed, that oil was sitting in each pocket or cup that holds the spark plugs. All of them were soaked in oil. Though the spark plugs have been replaced and the rough shaking of the car has subsided, the acceleration is still questionable and I'm still having to fill my car with oil weekly. I'm not due for oil change until 51,174 miles and I'm currently at 51, 098.
I was driving and the car-??s electrical completely cut out and locked my steering wheel up and ran us off the road and we hit a big rock on the driver side and then the power kicked back on and the steering yanked super hard to the right about 4 times and caught a fallen tree on the right side then completely died with me and my young kids. Took it to Kia to be serviced and got it back and it started to do it again
My steering wheel locked while I was on my way to work early Monday, March 28,2022. I was driving down county road Park Avenue around 30MPH and suddenly, I was unable to move the steering at all. Luckily, I was already in the right lane =; however, it was very challenging to steer to get off the road. I called the local dealership and they suggested I bring the car in for inspection to determine what the cause is. I took the car to the dealership and I was informed the vehicle was not drivable because the Steering Wheel Column Assembly and ECU needs repair. They also informed there was no recall on the vehicle. The mileage at the time was 67,400 miles which was very surprising. I received a letter from Kia Motors in February 2022 (6 years after the car was manufactured about the recall however, most cars at this point were out of warranty and Kia was aware no car met the warrantee qualifications). I was told by Kia Motors customer service that my vehicle was out of warranty at the mileage. I paid $3386 for repairs which should have been covered years in 2019 and 2020 according to other reports of the same incident occurring to other 2016 Kia Optima models.
- Goldenrod, FL, USA
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The City of memphis has seen a massive spike in motor vehicle thefts. Which i have been one of the Kia vehicles stolen & damage that cant be fixed quick with the steering column. The Memphis Police Department has described the situation as a car theft -??epidemic.-?? The car thieves-?? main targets are Hyundais and Kias, which account for approximately 66% of all thefts across all vehicles. Kia and Hyundai, as well as their joint design center, Hyundai Kia America Technical Center (-??HATCI-??). As the Complaint details, these car thieves figured out what an entire team of Hyundai and Kia engineers seemingly missed: the companies-?? vehicles are designed and manufactured with subpar security measures, thereby making them incredibly easy to steal. These design flaws pose significant safety risks and create a substantial financial burden for consumers. the Complaint alleges that many Kia and Hyundai vehicles are equipped with a defect that makes them incredibly easy to steal. Although local media outlets have reported as much, the Complaint describes in detail the nature of the common defect present in these vehicles, including how the thieves are stealing these cars. Given the incredible public safety threat this has created, we did not want to exacerbate this problem by providing aspiring car thieves, a playbook on how to steal these vehicles. Something has to be done.
My steering wheel will randomly lock in the middle of road while driving. I have to forcefully turn wheel to be able to pull of off the road meanwhile the there is on coming traffic. I have been told my car is having misfire and an engine knock code P1326 I have also got other codes and was told it could be a factory malfunction.
Vehicle was in motion, driving straight in left lane on a city street in eastbound direction. On its own, the car started to accelerate while turning towards the left simultaneously. Driver was driving about 40 mph and based on air bag module, car sped up to 55 mph. The steering wheel and the brake seemed to be locked or stuck because neither component worked while this malfunction occurred. Driver tried to press the brake to slow the car down, but brake would not press down. Also tried to turn steering wheel to avoid oncoming westbound traffic, but steering wheel did not work either. Driver had absolutely no control of vehicle. The car accelerated and veered left for about a quarter of a mile until it finally hit a curb, then front passenger side wheel, rotor, and suspension broke. It seemed as if car was still trying to accelerate after it hit the curb because there are skid marks from the tires after impact. When the car stopped, the steering wheel and the brake pedal were no longer stuck. The steering wheel rotated properly and brake pedal pressed down with ease. Because of broken wheel, car was not operable afterward and was towed to collision center. Complaint was filed with Kia Consumer Affairs and inspection completed, but they said they did not find any errors with the car electrical system or any other errors. The air bag module report coincides with the malfunction claim that I filed with Kia on the day of the incident, but Kia stated there weren't any error codes in the report. After repairs and inspection were completed, I traded-in the vehicle out of fear that this malfunction may happen again. Since an issue wasn't found with the car, that means the issue wasn't fixed and I didn't want to own a malfunctioning vehicle.
Sometimes when I start the car it only runs at about 500rpm and the digital speedometer starts going up in numbers when I'm in park and I have no power steering. I can put the car in drive and park or open the door and it starts acting normal. It also acts like it's going to shut off when I come to a stop. I am aware that the rpms drop when you stop almost like a gas saver but with in the last 20 thousand miles it has gotten really rough. It burns oil like crazy the dealership is aware of this but can't do anything with the engine tell it throws a code and they can't duplicate any of my other issues, the front end has made awful noises for the last 50 thousand miles or so and has had the front suspension replaced but that didn't fix the issue. Iv has the knock sensor replaced but I'm convinced it was just a gimmick so the car won't throw codes anymore because it should be with the issues I'm having. Like when the electronic steering goes out I get no dash light. I wish Kia would own up to their issues
Driving at highway speeds the car has very tight steering and car drifts all over lane. I am always making corrections. Feel like rack and pinion is failing. Car only has 31,000 miles on it.
I have had the steering go out multiple times - reported it to Kia where I lease from and a local shop. Just happened again today (11/25/19) - it has happened at least 3 times in the last year - I have had it towed to the place I leased from as well. Also, twice now - while driving the engine shuts off. Very scary. As I stated, I have taken in and the Kia dealerships say that they cannot not get it to duplicate, they treat me as I am making up. Now reading that it does happen to others, I think this is an issue. I will not lease or buy another Kia
Steering wheel when turned to the right is very loose to the left very tight. Occassionally it locks completely causing vehicle to either be unable to turn or merge lanes, or even more dangerously causes the car to veer to the right with no ability to move it. This happens when the vehicle is on the highway typically at speeds or 55 or higher. The tightness/looseness usually happens at any speed or type of roadway.
Multiable occasions of power steering loss at low speeds (15mph or less). The power steering unit appears to stop working which results in the inability to turn the wheel. I have driven cars without power steering and this condition with the Kia Optima results in a near complete lack of steering, not just difficulty turning. The condition appears to be preceded with a sticking or clicking condition that increases in frequency until the system fails. Turning off the car then restarting it appears to clear the issue and steering returns to normal for a decreasing period of time between each episode. The car has spent over two weeks at the local Kia service department without them being able to recreate the issue.
On the evening of May 17, I needed a jump after work. I went home, turned off my car but was unable to start it again so I replaced the battery. I thought I had fixed the problem until the next day when I was driving 65mph on a local interstate with my daughter in the car, all my dash lights came on, I lost navigation & radio and my power steering locked up. I went to turn on my hazards and those did not work either. I checked my mirrors to make sure no one was going to hit me and I was able to get off the highway and pull onto the shoulder. I was extremely fearful as I had minimal steering capability & was unable to notify other motorists of my disabled vehicle as my hazard lights were not functioning. I was able to get it towed to a dealership where I was told I needed a new alternator for my 3 year old car. While my mileage was at 66,500 miles, I definitely had not anticipated need to replace that part of a while. Despite that, I was more upset that I lost function of my car and was not able to warn other cars with working hazard lights.
Steering wheel locks while driving. Initially happened 1 year ago while driving. Had to use severe force to turn the wheel. I took the car to the Kia dealership, who said they did see something on diagnostics; however, they could not duplicate the problem, so they could not fix the car. They kept & drove the car. They checked the coupling unit & contacted Kia hotline but still could not find the problem, so they returned the car to me. On April 14th, while backing out of my parking space, the wheel again locked up. I jiggled the wheel and it released, so I pulled out & proceeded to drive. I reached the end of my street & wanted to turn & could not move the wheel. Luckily, I was still in my development with a 25mph zone, so I turned off the car. When I started it again, I could move the wheel, so I returned it to parking spot & had it towed into the dealership on April 15th. The dealer had the car for 8 days, drove it for 340 miles & still could not duplicate the issue, so they could not fix the problem. They returned the car to me & said if they cannot duplicate the issue, they cannot fix it. So I am now driving a car in fear that this will happen again & possibly when on a highway & at higher speed.
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. While driving 15 mph, the steering wheel became loose and the traction control and power steering warning indicators illuminated. The contact also mentioned that when turning left or right, a clicking noise was detected. In addition, the steering wheel would only allow the contact to turn approximately one inch to the left or right, and the steering wheel eventually seized. The vehicle was taken to South shore Kia (1128 sunrise hwy, copiague, NY 11726, (631) 991-3910) where the contact was informed that the computer needed to be reset. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failures. The failure mileage was 2,843.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Augusta, KS, USA