On January 4, 2006, the Office Of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a preliminary evaluation to investigate alleged fuel leakage from the steel fuel storage tank in certain model year 1999-2000 Kia Sportage vehicles.ODI sent a letter to the manufacturer on January 25, 2006 requesting information about these and other Kia Sportage vehicles.ODI is aware of 40 non-duplicative complaints that allege fuel storage tank leakage in the subject vehicles.analysis of manufacturer data indicates that alleged fuel leakage at or near the storage tank may be attributed to several different failure modes involving the fuel containment and distribution system.Kia has identified corrosion as a primary causal factor related to fuel storage tank complaints and continued fuel system part sales.according to Kia, fuel tank corrosion claims related to leakage can be divided into two categories: Lower tank claims associated with exterior corrosion due to disruption of the polyvinyl chloride (pvc) protective coating and upper tank claims associated with corrosion at the fuel sending unit mounting plate area.the manufacturer's investigation into alleged fuel tank corrosion resulting in leakage is ongoing.accordingly, this investigation has been upgraded to an engineering analysis (EA06-007) to further study the frequency, scope, and safety consequences of the alleged defect.
