5.2

fairly significant
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
18,435 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.

2018 Kia Optima engine problems

engine problem

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2018 Kia Optima Owner Comments

problem #8

Sep 042023

Optima

  • miles

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

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request" ******Speed Control- Vehicle will stall while on road/ highway causing rear vehicles to brake. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? *****Several times I was forced to pull over to side lanes to avoid being rear ended. **** the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? I have called dealership several times in regards to this issue, all I was told was to do not use A/C or heater as that will make the vehicle lose power. Refused to conduct was full inspection of vehicle. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? ****, no it has not been inspected Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear" **** warning lamps not symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.

- Commerce City, CO, USA

problem #7

Sep 152023

Optima

  • miles
Car will NOT go pat 60mph and i haven-??t had this car just over 6 months. And the camshaft sensors are gone out. Smoke comes out the pipe when mash on gas-??. It is really a bad vehicle. And Southeast auto refuses to fix it. I really honestly think the motor is bad in it. Because I been having issues with it since I had

- Terry , MS, USA

problem #6

Jun 152023

Optima

  • miles
Knock sensor detection system. Driving and all the sudden felt like it hard down shifted-?? car behind me almost hit me. Engine light started flashing so I pulled into autozone and plugged it in and got the knock sensor code. It-??s had oil consumptions issues for a while. It-??s so dangerous to drive with limited power and speed

- Clover , SC, USA

problem #5

Jun 012023

Optima

  • miles

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

Ever since I got my car I-??ve had black oil since the start. Second my car breaks on its own at times 3rd my car system keep breaking down as the sparks leaking in some where has this issue since bought it 2 years ago low miles

- Camarillo , CA, USA

problem #4

May 262023

Optima

  • miles
-Knock Sensor Detection System - ECU Logic Improvement - I Was driving with my infant son in the backseat. I was going 70 mph when my car started rapidly losing speed. This happened again with just myself after receiving the car from mechanic. There was heavy traffic and I had to swerve to avoid being hit by an 18-wheeler. - I can see on the website where I received the car from, there is a recall for my exact make and model with the same code but they say there is no recall for my specific car. - The check engine light started flashing and Kia Systems starts talking.

- Lithia Springs , GA, USA

problem #3

Feb 062023

Optima

  • 106,983 miles
Car smoking white, and driving slow after I hit a pothole when it was raining hard.

- Arcadia , CA, USA

problem #2

Sep 282019

Optima

  • 22,500 miles
I purchased a brand new 2018 Kia Optima in November 2018. I have put approximately 22,500 miles on it and have been keeping up with updated oil change maintenance per the schedule recommended by the dealer. On Saturday 9/28 I dropped the car off for a routine oil change, and as I drove it off the lot it sputtered as if it was going to die, but it didn't. the car continued to run and it got me home. The next day, Sunday 9/29, it drove without problems for about an hour, but while driving the car completely powered down and stopped working. It was a terrifying experience as I was in the middle of a major city road and almost caused a serious accident. I put the car into park and was able to start it back up, and I was lucky enough not to be struck by another vehicle. The dealership was closed at this time so I called them first thing Monday 10/1 to report the issue and dropped it off. The dealership is claiming to be unable to recreate the issue so ready to give me the car back. This is a huge safety concern and I can't believe we as consumers have to put our lives at risk to wait for the problem to happen again before any recourse can be taken. From my research on the internet, it is very common for the dealership not to be able to recreate the problem so unable to provide a fix. Kia had 5+ years of engine stall problems that were not acknowledged until many years later, and the dealership certainly will not validate this. Furthermore, when the engine stalls, the power steering and brakes both go out, so you have nothing but prayers to rely on to keep you alive.

- Surprise, AZ, USA

problem #1

Apr 252019

Optima

  • 18,000 miles
When I got in my car the check engine can on. I started driving my car to work, because I was not sure why this light came on because this was/is a new car. I have less than 19K miles on my car. As I attempted to get on the highway the car refused to speed up. The max that I could drive was 60 mph. I had to pull over to the side of the road because my car would not pick up speed. So I called the service department, who informed me that when I brought my car in for an oil change in January that they has place a saftey feature on my car to keep the engine from blowing up. According to the dealership, there is possibly something wrong with the engine, however, they are starting out by changing the wiring first. I can not explain how different this drives since the wires have been changed. It is the worst drive. The car is very loud it does not pick up speed when it should and it does not slow down as fast as it use to. Needless to say, I am having issues with this car and seemingly every time I take it in for repairs, the car gets worst. I will never ever buy a new/used Kia again.

- St. Louis, MO, USA

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