IllustrationWHEN I START MY CAR, THE RPM ACCELERATES HIGH AS IT WILL GO. VERY ANNOYING AND LOUD. IT DOES THIS MOST OF THE TIME SOME TIMES WHEN I COME TO A STOP LIGHT AND PROCEED FORWARD, THE CAR JERKS FORWARD AS I ACCELERATE. *TR
2004 Kia Amanti
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2004 Kia Amanti do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 36.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Amanti years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
220–25K
1225–50K
1350–75K
975–100K
2100–150K
3150K+
61 reports with mileage · 12 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Air Bags. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
8 crash reports1 fire reports5 injury reports
Power Train complaints
9 reportsKIA AMANTI LOSING POWER WHILE DRIVING OR LOSING POWER THEN ACCELERATING OUT OF CONTROL AND KIA SEEMS NOT TO BE ABLE TO FIX THE PROBLEM. *TR
MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON AND MY CAR LOSES POWER FAST NO MATTER WHAT SPEED I AM GOING. I PUT MY FOOT ON THE GAS AND THE RPM'S GO UP AND I AM ONLY ABLE TO DRIVE AT A SPEED OF 20MPH. AT TIMES MY CAR WILL DRIVE AT A NORMAL SPEED AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WILL BE ON .ITS VERY STRANGE. I'VE TAKEN IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY …
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MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON AND MY CAR LOSES POWER FAST NO MATTER WHAT SPEED I AM GOING. I PUT MY FOOT ON THE GAS AND THE RPM'S GO UP AND I AM ONLY ABLE TO DRIVE AT A SPEED OF 20MPH. AT TIMES MY CAR WILL DRIVE AT A NORMAL SPEED AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WILL BE ON .ITS VERY STRANGE. I'VE TAKEN IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY SAID THAT IT NEEDED A NEW CATALYTIC CONVERTER. IT WAS REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY. ONE WEEK LATER THE SAME SYMPTOMS AND ANOTHER OUT OF POCKET EXPENSE OF OVER $1,000.00 AND ANOTHER PART. THE PROBLEM STILL EXISTS MONTHS LATER. EACH TIME WITH A DIFFERENT DIAGNOSIS BY THE DEALER. MY MECHANIC DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM WHEN IT FIRST HAPPENED WITH HIS METER AND IT READ ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY. I TOLD THIS TO THE DEALER MONTHS AGO AND THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS AGO. *TR
THE VEHICLE SURGES WHILE ACCELERATING. THE PROBLEM OCCURS SPORADICALLY BUT HAS DONE IT CONSISTENTLY FOR OVER 5 YEARS. EVERY TIME I TAKE IT TO THE DEALER THEY CAN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG AND NOTHING IS DONE. THIS VEHICLE HAS AN ELECTRONIC THROTTLE. *TR
CAR ON OCCASIONS LURCHES AND STALLS FREQUENTLY. WIFE'S CAR REALLY NOT SURE IF THROTTLE,ENGINE,TRANSMISSION. JUST VERY DANGEROUS. *TR
AFTER PULLING THE CAR FORWARD OUT OF THE GARAGE IN THE MORNING AND WHILE STOPPED TO WAIT FOR THE GARAGE DOOR TO CLOSE (BRAKE APPLIED, IN GEAR), THE VEHICLE ATTEMPTS TO BURST-LURCH FORWARD (NOT TOUCHING GAS PEDAL). THIS SEEMS TO HAPPEN YEAR-ROUND. THE DEALERSHIP CANNOT RE-PRODUCE THE PROBLEM, BUT ALSO HASN'T KEPT THE VEHICLE OV…
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AFTER PULLING THE CAR FORWARD OUT OF THE GARAGE IN THE MORNING AND WHILE STOPPED TO WAIT FOR THE GARAGE DOOR TO CLOSE (BRAKE APPLIED, IN GEAR), THE VEHICLE ATTEMPTS TO BURST-LURCH FORWARD (NOT TOUCHING GAS PEDAL). THIS SEEMS TO HAPPEN YEAR-ROUND. THE DEALERSHIP CANNOT RE-PRODUCE THE PROBLEM, BUT ALSO HASN'T KEPT THE VEHICLE OVERNIGHT FOR A COLD-START. HAVE HAD A COUPLE OF NEAR-COLLISIONS AT THE END OF MY DRIVEWAY. *TR
2004 KIA AMANTI WITH TRANSMISSION PROBLEM. CONSUMER STATES THAT THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO BUCK AND JUMP AND DROPPED DOWN TO 15 MPH. HE ALSO STATES THAT THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO SHAKE. *KB THE CONSUMER STATED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND THE CRUISE CONTROL WAS LOST. *JB
THE TRANSMISSION ON THE AMANTI SKIPS/HESITATES GOING INTO 2ND GEAR AT ABOUT 8 MILES PER HR. I HAVE RETURNED THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER TWICE, EACH TIME THE DEALER TELLING ME THERE WERE NO PROBLEMS WITH THE TRANSMISSION. I AM TAKING IT BACK FOR THE THIRD TIME TODAY 4-4-06. I AM ALSO HAVING A PROBLEM WITH THE POWER STEERING. IT N…
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THE TRANSMISSION ON THE AMANTI SKIPS/HESITATES GOING INTO 2ND GEAR AT ABOUT 8 MILES PER HR. I HAVE RETURNED THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER TWICE, EACH TIME THE DEALER TELLING ME THERE WERE NO PROBLEMS WITH THE TRANSMISSION. I AM TAKING IT BACK FOR THE THIRD TIME TODAY 4-4-06. I AM ALSO HAVING A PROBLEM WITH THE POWER STEERING. IT NO LONGER GOES FROM ONE LEVEL OF POWER STEERING TO ANOTHER. IT IS ALWAYS IN FULL POWER LIKE YOUR PARKING. THE FRONT END IS ALSO VERY LOOSE AND BANGING WHEN I GO OVER THE SMALLEST OF HOLES. I HAVE ALREADY HAD MY MOTOR MOUNT CHANGED ON THIS VEHICLE. *NM
TRANSMISSION SKIPS GOING FROM 2ND TO 3RD GEAR. *JB
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.