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.
Getting onto the freeway accelerating, when heard rattling and saw smoke, exited the freeway and parked the vehicle. There was no warning or lights that came on prior or during this time. Had the car towed to the nearest Kia dealership in city of carson. I received a phone call on Saturday 1/2/2021 from tony at the dealership asking for permission to diagnose the vehicle. I agreed to the diagnostic testing. Received a call back within an hour to notify me that there was a hole in the engine, no repairs could be done and I needed a new engine. I asked how did the hole get in the engine. He said there was an internal rod that shot out of the engine creating a hole. It will cost $8,875 and will take around 3-4 weeks to repair. I purchased this vehicle in October 2017 with approx. 3000 miles on it. Started having issues with electrical about a month or two after purchase 2017-2018. I had to have it towed to the Kia in cerritos because it was inoperable, since then we have had it in to be serviced and have had multiple issues. Including another major issue in August 24, 2020 when they repaired the active air flaps and a new battery.
I've taking my leases vehicle into carson of Kia 3 times for oil light they replaced the oil pressure switch twice of the 3 times while driving after the cars warms up I get ticking noise you can hear the better when when driving next to a retaining wall at this I've filed a complaint with the manufacturer and after reviewing the work order from the dealer all they offer me was 2 months of car payment which I decline so I'm contracting NHTSA for help and advise
My 2017 Kia Optima caught on fire on October 15, 2020. I was driving to the store and heard a ticking sound and some noises. The check engine light also came on. I pulled over in the left turning lane on the highway to exit the vehicle. I heard a popping sound and saw flames. I exited the vehicle and immediately called 911. My car burst into flames.
Bought my Kia 1 ago & always had a problem w/headlights always turning on & off when in auto mode. Trunk latch had to be replaced due latch not locking when trying to close trunk. Dealership said they get 20-30 latch issues w/my make & model of Kia every week. After vehicle starts car just dies & engine light comes on. At times car will stay on but stutters like its going to die.
I just purchased my 2017 Kia Optima two months ago. I was driving to work today in the center lane on the highway at about 65 miles per hour. Out of nowhere without warning my car shutters and the check engine light comes on. My vehicle immediately lost acceleration and got down to about 45 mph and was falling fast. Cars were flying around me and I was afraid for my life, I had to fight my way off of the highway to get to safety. I was loosing speed the whole time and almost got into an accident. I got into a parking lot and let the car rest. I checked all my fluid and oil and everything was full/ fine. I decided it was a fluke and to take a back road to work. Big mistake. The car wouldn't go over 20 mph and I pressed the accelerator down with no luck. Then all of a sudden the accelerator worked and my car sped up to 25 mph from 15. This was also extremely dangerous. I pulled back over and called rick case Kia. My boyfriend used his code reader and found out it was the knock sensor. Thats when I found out about the lawsuit. I scheduled an appointment and got a tow truck to take the car to the dealership. When I arrived I mentioned what happened and said that I just found out about the lawsuit from this issue. The one service manager freaked out that I mentioned the lawsuit in front of other customers and jumped to explaining how my car was already handled and this one issue is covered for life. This means they admitted to knowing about this life threatining recall when selling me the car. If they disclosed this crucial information that I had the right to know, I never would have bought it. They will attempt to fix it again but I am terrified to drive it.
- Hallandale Beach, FL, USA
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My vehicle has had multiple issues with its hybrid battery management system since purchase. It has been towed 4 times. While driving my car will start to jerk and a warning system telling me there is a problem with the battery management system (bms) and the power train. It will tell me to pull over or to contact the service department. This car has had its battery replaced and software upgraded numerous times, but I keep having the same issue. I'm concerned the battery system is faulty and it's dangerous to drive at this point, as nothing preceeds the issues - they happen out of nowhere.
Driving to work at about 70 mph on the freeway car lost power, check engine light turned on. Had to have the car towed off the freeway. Took to dealership &' they couldn't duplicate the problem after having my car for a week gave it back &' said nothing was wrong with it. Vehicle only had about 10.5K miles
When accelerating there is engine knock noises. There may be a blue smoke upon acceleration. The engine is using oil at a rate of 1 quart of oil every 1100 miles.
Bought vehicle new from ricart Kia in columbus, oh in 2018. Vehicle has 41,917 miles now. Vehicle developed flashing check engine light while driving at 65mph. Vehicle immediately reduced power to 1800-2000rpms. Vehicle will run and drive but will jerk violently at 1800-2000rpms to limit engine revolutions. Took vehicle immediately to dealership where bought. Service department confirmed dtc P1326. Dealership performed wiring inspection and replacement of ksds (knock sensor). Released vehicle to customer. Immediately upon reception of vehicle, check engine light flashes and vehicle exhibits same symptoms as stated before. Took vehicle back to dealership within 24 hours. Vehicle is inspected and dtc P1326 is discovered again. Dealership performs ECU update for ksds. Vehicle released back to customer. Within 48 hours, check engine light begins flashing, limits power, and speed. Currently scheduling 3rd appointment for same concern. Check engine light began flashing each time after being at highway speeds for roughly 20 minutes. Vehicle has been serviced only at ricart Kia. All paperwork/recalls performed by dealership.
Bought on 9-12-2019 with approximately 15,400+ miles. It now has 15,750+ miles. It has stalled/powered off on me twice. First time was Oct 7, 2019, parked on the curb when I was picking up my daughter from school, when she got in the car and I was about to drive off from the curbside and when I lifted my foot off the brake and stepped on the gas, the car wouldn't move. I realized the power off so I switched the ignition to off and turned it on again to start the engine again. I thought it was just a little glitch. It happened again on Oct 26, 2019 when I was on the drive thru of taco bell. I was waiting in line and again, when I lifted my foot off the brake to move forward, it wouldn't move because the power had just shut off again. I had to restart the engine. I complained to my son about the car but didn't do anything about it because it was past the 7 day exchange or return. But planned to bring it up on my scheduled maintenance unless it happens again. I was always cautious and worried that I will stall in the middle of traffic or worse, while driving. Mostly the reason why I've only driven the car less than 300 miles since I bought it about 4.5 months ago. Then yesterday morning, Jan 28, 2020, on my errands to two doctor appointments, the passenger seatbelt sign was beeping and flashing the whole time I drove around that day, when there was nobody with me in the car. It finally stopped when in the afternoon when I was close to home and after I picked my prescriptions from the pharmacy close to my house. Now I am curious and wondering why the navy man traded this car in when he'd only had it for la year and spent money on new black rims and blacked out tinted windows. I would like to have an inquiry on what problems the previous owner had with the car because of the short time he owned it and drove it. I'm more terrified to drive after reading other's issues.
2017 Kia Optima. Consumer writes in regards to vehicle shutting off while driving. The consumer stated the vehicle cut off when making a left turn and slowing down for a red light then would restart. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failure
This is my new car, I bought it because my good experience with the 2 Kia spectra we bought for work more than 10 years ago and because the beautiful shape and comford inside. Big mistake !!! when you are in a date with somebody is better to wait, beauty sexy body not always come with a good soul or engine. One week before my first car payment driving charlotte Oct. 20, down I-77 my car began to slow down, then engine light came on, few seconds later the battery light as well, low oil light, all the alarms go on like a christmas tree. In middle of that chaos looking for a safe place to stop the front drive tire hit a pothole and caused damages to the botton of the car. Few minutes later the car started again and I moved it to a business park where it died 100 %. I paid to a tow company to move it to my house and next day to the keffer Kia dealer here in mooresville where I bought it. If this happens driving at the mountains I can kill somebody or kill my family with a faulty car and the dealer knows about the engines problems but they not take and refuse responsibility for their cars, now the second car payment is coming and is not way to go to work without a car. Because all the info. From the car computer is gone they say is my fault. Any idea what to do?
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the vehicle consumed one pint of oil every one thousand miles. The contact took the vehicle to walmart for an oil change and was informed that there was very little oil on the dipstick. The vehicle was taken to Kia of anderson (5281 us-76, pendleton, SC 29670, (864) 328-0542) three times where they topped off the oil and added more oil. The dealer informed the contact to bring the vehicle back after one thousand miles. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer after the one thousand miles was traveled and it was discovered that the oil was low one half of a quart. The dealer advised the contact to repeat the same procedure. The vehicle was taken back to the same dealer and the result was the same. In addition, the contact stated that an engine compression and other unknown tests were completed and the information was sent to Kia support. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 54,000.
While my significant other and I were driving down the highway our car began smoking from under the hood, then smoke began coming through the air vents inside the car; within seconds we seen flames coming out from under the hood and immediately evacuated the vehicle in heavy traffic with no where to pull over. Within minutes the entire car was engulfed in flames. There was no warning, our car was regularly maintained, there were no check engine lights or others displaying on the dash, no leaks or overheating to cause this.
While I was driving probably about 45 miles an hour or so my car started to shake really hard then it shut off. Once it shut off the low oil light came on along with the check engine light and the low battery light as well. After that the car went completely dead. I turned the key to the off position and then tiredness it back on with with no problem. For my car to shut off while driving on a major street causes major concerns. One what if it happens again and I get in an accident or cause an accident.
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- Lakewood, CA, USA