2011 KIA OPTIMA Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 KIA OPTIMA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH, THE ENGINE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE ENGINE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 75,000.

MARCH 2016 WHILE TRAVELING ON HIGHWAY AT 65 MPH AND PASSING A SLOW MOVING VEHICLE CAR LOST POWER, BECAME DIFFICULT TO STEER AND UNRESPONSIVE. WE WERE LUCKY THAT WE WERE RIGHT BY REST AREA AND COASTED SAFELY. INSPECTED THE VEHICLE WHILE AND NOTICED A SMELL REMINDING AN ELECTRICAL SHORT/FIRE. CAR WAS TOWED TO KIA DEALER AND DIAGNOSED TO BE ENGINE FAILURE. THE ENGINE WAS INSPECTED AND PER DEALER IT WAS PRISTINE, KIA DECIDED TO COVER UNDER WARRANTY @ APPROX 98K MILES. DEALER STATED THAT PER KIA IT WAS DUE POSSIBLY TO NON OEM OIL FILTER (NICE). WHEN WE GOT THE CAR BACK IT DID NOT WANT TO START OCCASIONALLY, WHERE IT HESITATED ESPECIALLY AS TEMPERATURES INCREASED. NOTICED DEALER, DEALER TOOK IT IN VERIFIED BATTERY AND STARTER WERE TO SPEC. IN JUNE ON A HOT DAY CAR ALMOST DID NOT START, SET AN APPOINTMENT WITH DEALER FOR LATER IN THE WEEK. NEXT DAY CAR DID NOT START, WAS TOWED TO DEALER AND DIAGNOSED TO WEEK STARTER. STARTER WAS REPLACED AND CAR STARTED ON FOR ONE DAY, THE SECOND DAY TEMPERATURES INCREASED AND CAR WAS DEAD WITH SIMILAR ELECTRICAL MELTDOWN, ALSO NOTICED FOG LIGHTS WERE NOT WORKING AFTER BULB REPLACEMENT. DEALER DIAGNOSED WITH KIA TO BAD ENGINE AGAIN DUE TO TOLERANCES CAUSING FRICTION AND MORE HEAT. SPOKE TO KIA AND STARTED A CASE BUT THEY JUST WANT TO REPLACE THE ENGINE AGAIN AND NOT DISCUSS POTENTIAL ISSUES WITH ELECTRICAL HARNESS COMPROMISE AND ONGOING ISSUE WITH ENGINE FAILING FOR NO REASON. THIS CAR IS SCARRY AND HOPE IT DOES NOT START ON FIRE WHEN THE THIRD ENGINE FAILS.

CLICKING IN THE STEERING WHEEL WITH VIBRATION. THE ONLY TIME IT DOESN'T CLICK IS WHEN GOING COMPLETELY STRAIGHT. IT OCCURS THE WHOLE TIME I'M DRIVING.

WHILE TRAVELLING AT APPROXIMATELY 50 - 55 MPH ON A HIGHWAY A DEER HAD RAN ACROSS THE ROAD, IN ORDER TO AVOID A COLLISION HEAD ON WITH THE DEER I TOOK AN EVASIVE MANEUVER AND UNFORTUNATELY COLLIDED WITH THE GUARDRAIL ON THE DRIVERS SIDE AT APPROXIMATELY 40 - 50 MPH. IMPACTING THE ENTIRE DRIVERS SIDE OF MY VEHICLE. HOWEVER, NO AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT OCCURRED WITH SIDE CURTAIN AIRBAGS AND VEHICLE IS NOW CONSIDERED A TOTAL LOSS FOR INSURANCE PURPOSES DUE TO DAMAGE AND AS WELL AS A POSSIBLE AIRBAG SYSTEM MALFUNCTION IN THE VEHICLE.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 KIA OPTIMA. WHILE REVERSING THE VEHICLE, IT INDEPENDENTLY ACCELERATED IN REVERSE AND CRASHED INTO A PARKED VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE THEN ACCELERATED FORWARD AND CRASHED INTO A HOUSE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED AND THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED AND WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.

VEHICLE SHOT DOWN WHILE DRIVING AND ACCELERATING PEDAL DIDN'T RESPOND. WE HAD RESTART VEHICLE SOME DAY 3 OR 4 TIMES AND AFTER THAT WAS WORKING FOR THE WEEK OR TWO WITH NO PROBLEM .WHEN THE SAME PROBLEM OCCURRED WE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO KIA AND TOLD THEM THAT ENGINE HAS A PROBLEM BECAUSE WHILE DRIVING SHOT DOWN. IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY. KIA FAILED TO FIX THE PROBLEM AND SAID THAT IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE ENGINE.KIA SAID THAT VEHICLE IS FINE WITH NO PROBLEM . AFTER WARRANTY EXPIRED ENGINE BLOW OUT AND KIA REPLACED THE ENGINE. THEY ASKED $ 5900FOR REPLACE THE ENGINE. WE REFUSED TO PAY SO MUCH MONEY BECAUSE WE FEEL THAT WAS THE SAME PROBLEM BEFORE THE WARRANTY . THEY OFFERED US THE ENGINE FOR FREE AND WE PAID $ 1875 FOR LABOR. WE MADE A CLAIM THROUGH KIA HEADQUARTER BEFORE THE WARRANTY EXPIRED. NOTHING HELPS.WE HAVE TO PAY BECAUSE KIA ENGINES ARE NOT GOOD AND IT HAS TO BE A RECALL THE LONG TIME AGO. WHEN ENGINE FINALLY BLOWS OUT IT WAS THE SAME SCENARIO AS ALWAYS BEFORE ...RESTART ENGINE , ENGINE SHOT DOWN WHILE DRIVING, RESTART AGAIN, DRIVING, RESTART UNTIL WE HEARD LOUD KNOCK NOISE

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 KIA OPTIMA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 15 MPH, THE ENGINE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE ENGINE SEIZED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. IT WAS UNKNOWN IF THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER OR INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED DUE TO THE PARTS NOT BEING AVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 92,479.

IN MARCH 2016, OUR KIA OPTIMA SEIZED ON THE ONRAMP TO THE I-10 SPEED GOING AT 45 MPH WITHOUT ANY WARNING. WHEN IT STALLED THE CAR IN BACK OF US NEARLY HIT US. THERE WAS NO WARNING THE ENGINE WAS FAILING AS IN SIGNS OR WARNING LIGHT. AFTER GETTING TOWED TO THE MECHANIC, THE INSPECTION FOUND THAT ONLY 1 CUP OF OIL WAS FOUND IN THE ENGINE. THE ENGINE HAD NO SIGNS OF ENGINE PROBLEMS OR OIL LEAK. MAINT. PER OWNER'S MANUAL WAS DONE SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR BRAND NEW IN 2011. WE WERE VERY LUCKY NO ONE WAS HURT SERIOUSLY AND WAS GRATEFUL THAT WE WERE ABLE TO MOVE TO THE SHOULDER WITH NO POWER. KIA DID NOT ASSIST IN ANYWAY AS GOODWILL DUE TO FACT WE WERE JUST OUTSIDE OF THE WARRANTY. PLEASE INVESTIGATE THIS SAFETY ISSUE WITH KIA ENGINES.

I WAS DRIVING MY 2011 KIA OPTIMA HOME FROM MY COLLEGE GRADUATION. WITHOUT ANY WARNING THE CAR STALLED AS I WAS DRIVING DOWN MY DRIVEWAY AND IT WOULD NOT RESTART. NO WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON, THE OIL WAS FINE, NOTHING TO INDICATE ANY PROBLEMS. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO A KIA DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY SAID THE ENGINE HAD SEIZED. THE CAR HAD 76,000 MILES ON IT AND WAS ALWAYS BROUGHT IN FOR ITS REGULAR SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE. THE ONLY OPTION WAS TO PAY OUT OF POCKET FOR A NEW MOTOR, THE DEALERSHIP WOULD OFFER NO ASSISTANCE BECAUSE IT WAS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY. I HAVE NEVER HAD PREVIOUS ISSUES WITH THE VEHICLE AND HAVE A HARD TIME BELIEVING THAT IT IS CONSIDERED "NORMAL" FOR AN ENGINE TO SEIZE AT 76,000 MILES. I WAS VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE THIS INCIDENT OCCUR IN MY DRIVEWAY BECAUSE IT COULD HAVE POTENTIALLY BEEN VERY DANGEROUS TO MYSELF AND OTHER DRIVERS IF IT HAD HAPPENED ON A ROADWAY. STILL IN CONTACT WITH KIA CUSTOMER SERVICE BUT HAVE NOT MADE IT VERY FAR AT THIS POINT. VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH THE 2011 OPTIMA, I EXPECTED IT TO LAST ME MORE THEN A YEAR AND A HALF, AND THE KIA CUSTOMER SERVICE.

LIGHT TAPPING SOUND WAS HEARD FOR APPROXIMATELY 3 DAYS. ON THE FOURTH DAY, WHEN ACCELERATING TO MERGE ONTO A HIGHWAY, THE CAR SHUT OFF COMPLETELY AND SMOKE CAME FROM ENGINE COMPARTMENT. CAR WAS TOWED TO MECHANIC AND DIAGNOSED WITH SEIZED ENGINE. COMPLETE REPLACEMENT OF ENGINE WAS ONLY RECOURSE. THE CAR WAS REGULARLY SERVICED WITH OIL CHANGES AND NO WARNING LIGHTS WERE LIT.