Kia Optima Complaints (2018)

244 consumer complaints on file.

#11515516April 5, 2023
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Optima Hybrid. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the message "Turn Engine Off Immediately" was displayed, and the vehicle decelerated to 35 MPH and stalled. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the engine was faulty and needed to be replaced. The engine was replaced but the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 100,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11514003March 27, 2023
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Optima. The contact stated that after an oil change was performed on the vehicle, the oil pressure warning light illuminated. Upon inspection, the contact noticed there was no oil in the engine. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who added oil to the engine. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 122,760.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11510727March 8, 2023
ENGINE, FIRERELATED
The car caught on fire in our driveway
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11510005March 3, 2023
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was jerking. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was then taken to Battleground Kia of Greensboro (2927 Battleground Ave, Greensboro, NC 27408) but no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11508317February 21, 2023
POWER TRAIN, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
While driving down the road the car said it had a major voltage failure and was shutting down. I was in the middle of the street and thankfully was able to coast to the turn lane before the car came to a total stop. since the gas pedal didn't do anything. the car then said there was multiple failures and the hybrid system needed to be immediately shut down. The car then wouldn't start or move after that. about 20 mins later the car like dashboard and screen would turn on but the engine would not. when it turned back on there were even more warnings along with other failures like emergency braking and transmission and the hybrid communication. when the tow truck came and took it it would go into neutral to get on the truck but wouldn't even do that when we got it to the dealership it had to be manually taken out of park to get it off the truck. there were lots of warning lights but the oil, engine, and another light I not sure what it meant were always on even when the others would go away after a while.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11502650January 19, 2023
ENGINE
2018 KIA OPTIMA EX A/T. MY WIFE DRIVE THIS CAR TO WORK EVERY DAY, 45-50 MILE ROUND TRIP FOR THE PAST COUPLE YEARS. WE HAVE NOTICED THAT OIL CONSUMPTION IS STARTING TO BECOME A PROBLEM. IM UNSURE THE EXACT AMOUNT IT GOES THROUGH BUT IT SEEMS TO BE ALMOST 3-4 QUARTS BETWEEN OIL CHANGES. EVERY NOW AND THEN IT WOULD RANDOMLY BE A QUART LOW, BUT NO LEAKS, NO NOTICEABLE SMOKING, NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS. MY WIFE HAS HAD A FEW TIMES WHERE THE CAR WOULD RANDOMLY LOOSE ACCELERATION NAD SLOW WAY DOWN. THE CAR WOULD COME BACK UP TO ACCELERATION AFTER PULLING OVER TO THE SHOULDER OF THE FREEWAY WHEN IT HAPPENS. IM WONDERING IF IT MIGHT BE RELATED TO THE OIL CONSUMPTION, BUT NOT SURE. IT HAS THE RECAL FOR THE KNOCK SENSOR UPDATE WHICH WE ARE WAITING FOR FEB 28TH, THATS THE TIME THE DEALER CAN GET THE CAR IN FOR IT. OUR CLOSEST DEALER IS 150 MILES FROM HOME. WE HAVE OWNED IT SINCE NEW AND THIS IS THE ONLY PROBLEM WE'VE HAD WITH IT. I HOPE WE CAN GET THIS RESOLVED. NO NEW CAR SHOULD GO THROUGH THIS MUCH OIL AT ALMOST $6 A QUART OR MORE.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11498673December 23, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
Front brake calipers seize and burning smell and smoke coming for front wheels. Have replaced the rotors, calipers and brake pads(twice) and it does not seem to fix the problem.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11496523December 8, 2022
ENGINE
Excessive oil consumption will burn through around 4qts of oil before 1k miles
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11493460November 14, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Normally, when the doors are open my car will tell me. The doors notify me that they're open but my trunk was not showing that it was open. It blinks when it is. Due to that I was driving and my trunk seemed closed and it just flew open. So the problems I'm having is that my trunk will not show its open but it also will not close AT ALL due to the latch. I literally had to bungee it closed. This is dangerous. I have seen many recalls in other kia's and hyundai's just like this. This is very dangerous and needs to be recalled and/or fixed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11492374November 5, 2022
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
At around 40,000 miles my car started burning oil rapidly. No leaks were found and I would get an oil indicator light then the car would shut down while driving. I couldn’t get it to accelerate. Mechanic said Kia’s and Hyundais have been having those issues. I have needed oil changes every 3 weeks to keep in functioning.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11491042October 26, 2022
POWER TRAIN
UNKNOWN When slowing to a stop, the vehicle spontaneously makes a sudden jolt, throwing passengers forward. It’s as if the the transmission malfunctions when down shifting and results in engine braking.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11489713October 18, 2022
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Optima. The contact stated that when the vehicle's oil will be as low as half a tank or lower the engine would suddenly stall. The vehicle would immediately regain power and function as expected. The failure occurred at various speeds with the highest speed being 60 mph. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer who diagnosed that there was fuel pressure pump failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact received a letter stating that the manufacturer was well aware of the failure and have also created an extended warranty, however, they did not have the remedy. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 122,652.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11486933September 28, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I brought the vehicle into Kia service for the recall including a computer operating system upgrade. After the recall work was done the car driving at high highway speeds failed, and immediately slowed down, almost causing a rear collision. The computer system turned off the drive mechanism and I was left with only the electric motor to propel the car. The car barely limped off the highway. The car was brought to the Kia Dealer and no defect was found and the computer was reset. This problem occurred two more times, at highway speeds (70 mph) and Kia was contacted to find out why the problems occurred and how to fix it. To date, Kia has not responded to how to fix the problem and has ignored all phone calls and emails. The car has been in the shop for 3 months. The problem occurred only after Kia upgraded the software due to the recall. Additionally, the recall work was done. I do not know why the recall work was not reported.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11486765September 27, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Rough idle, chugged along before killing engine power. Has happened a couple of times. No check engine light has come on
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11486502September 26, 2022
STEERING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
Just Started Having Problems On It’s On The Car Only Has 38,000 Miles
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11486511September 26, 2022
ENGINE
My car is consuming 2 quarts of oil for every 1,000 miles. This falls under the oil consumption that needs a motor replaced and I am getting a run around from the dealership about getting it replaced. They are saying that Kia does not like to replace the motors and I'm better off trading it in. I bought this car intending on keeping it long term, not purchasing a new one. All of the regular maintenance has been done on the vehicle. I've been into the dealership a multitude of times a month due to issues with the car.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11484676September 15, 2022
EXTERIOR LIGHTING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
When headlight switch is set to automatically come on, the light will sometimes randomly turn off. No warning or indicator on the dash appears showing that they are off. Technicians are unable to reproduce the issue in the shop. Have recommended replacing the entire headlight switch on the turn signal stick.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11484505September 14, 2022
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2018 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle went into Limp Mode. The check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the failure was diagnosed as a faulty knock sensor that needed a software update. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that after receiving the vehicle from the dealer the vehicle was slow to accelerate and the vehicle was driving sluggishly. The contact stated that the vehicle needed to be taken back to the dealer to be diagnosed and repaired. The contact related the failure to the Kia Consent Order with NHTSA; however, the 2018 Kia Optima was not included. The contact stated that the remedy was not sufficient to remedy the vehicle failure. The manufacturer was notified and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 62,709.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11483363September 7, 2022
ENGINE
Excessive oil consumption. Dealer says it is normal to burn a quart every thousand miles. At that rate I would have no oil left before my next oil change. That is not normal and could cause overheating and engine lock up. The car only has 45,000 miles.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11482867September 4, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I got out of my car to talk to someone and my car was running With my purse and phone in the car and the trunk open.i was meeting someone to buy a vacuume from Facebook marketplace. I decided to put the vacuum in the back seat instead so closed the trunk. When I went to open the door all the doors were locked. I was locked out in the rain for an hour. The person I bought the vacuum from called kia and they sent someone out to unlock my car. Several people have said the car is supposed to recognize that the key is inside the car and not lock it. And that this is an issue. I do know it has only started doing this recently because I live 8n the country and never lock my car in my garage. And recently I have noticed it is licking itself now every time I get out. So I have been leaving the windows down at home but it was raining today when I got out and I didn't think about or remember that it is locking itself .... Also I have never gotten out of the car to get something with it running and the windows closed since this issue came up.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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