2004 Kia Optima

I WAS COMMUTING. I GAVE MY CAR REGULAR OIL CHANGES AND TUNE UPS. THEN THE ENGINE COILS WENT OUT. THE CAR WOULD NOT GO OVER FORTY. REPLACED THAT. HEARD FUNNY NOISES COMING FROM THE ENGINE. THE CAR WAS AT 70K AT THIS POINT. THE MANUFACTURERS WARRANTY SAID TO REPLACE THE TIMING BELT AT 110K. SO I DECIDED TO HOLD OFF AS THAT PROBABLY WASN'T THE PROBLEM AND A MANUFACTURER WOULDN'T LIE TO ME AS THEY ARE REGULATED BY THE GOVERNMENT. THEN I AM DRIVING AND THE CAR DIES IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY INTERSECTION. I GET THE CAR TOWED. THE TIMING BELT IS CHANGED AND THERE ARE HALF THE TEETH LEFT ON THE TIMING BELT. HOW IS THE CAR STILL RUNNING YOU MAY ASK? IT IS A MAGICAL CAR AND IS LIKE THE LITTLE TRAIN THAT COULD. THEN I AM DRIVING ON A BUSY SCARY MOUNTAINOUS HIGHWAY AND THE CAR DIES AGAIN AT A BLIND CORNER. NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT BUT THERE ARE PLENTY OF CARS THAT WANT TO HIT ME. THE CAR TURNS BACK ON. THE FEAR FOR MY LIFE AND THOSE AROUND ME HAS SUBSIDED FOR A MOMENT. THE CAR IS ABLE TO TURN BACK ON... SOMEHOW. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT STAYS ON. THE CRANK SENSOR IS THE PROBLEM. THE CRANK SENSOR WAS THEN FIXED. THIS CAR IS A HAZARD TO HAVE ON THE ROAD. THE AIR BAG LIGHT HAS ALSO BEEN ON FOR A YEAR AND WON'T GO OFF. I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE ENGINE COILS, DOOR LOCKS, TRUNK ALIGNMENTS AND PROBABLY SOME OTHER THINGS THAT MADE ME FEAR FOR MY LIFE. THE SPEEDOMETER ALSO BROKE AND SAID I WAS GOING 0 MPH WHEN IT WAS REALLY 80 MPH. AS OF RIGHT NOW THE CAR IS RUNNING OKAY. I EXPECT BY NEXT OCTOBER THAT SOMETHING WILL GO WRONG AS THAT IS THE MONTH THAT EVERYTHING DOES WITH THIS CAR. *TR

I HAVE A 2004 KIA OPTIMA AND MY KEY OR FOB WON'T OPEN THE DRIVERS DOOR. THE KEY HAS FINALLY STOPPED WORKING AT ALL, I HAVE TO CLIMB OVER THE CONSOLE TO GET IN AND OUT OF THE CAR. I'M ALMOST 57 YEARS OLD AND DON'T NEED THIS IN MY LIFE. THE DEALER WANT $52 TO CHECK IT AND SEE IF IT'S UNDER WARRANTY. I DO HAVE THE EXTENDED WARRANTY WHICH I GUESS I PAID FOR NOTHING. I' HAVE FOUND MANY PEOPLE WITH THIS PROBLEM AND I MYSELF ARE VERY TIRED OF THIS . I HATE THE DAY WHEN I HAVE TO GET OUT OF MY CAR IN A HURRY. WHEN IT FIRST STARTED I COULD USE THE KEY ONLY WHEN PULLING HARD ON THE HANDLE AT THE SAME TIME. I BELIEVE KIA NEEDS A RECALL ON THIS PROBLEM AND SOON! *TR

MY CAR DOORS DO NOT OPEN EITHER INSIDE OR OUTSIDE. THIS PROBLEM STARTED WITH MY FRONT PASSENGER SIDE DOOR AND NOW IS AFFECTING MY DRIVERS SIDE DOOR. THE PROBLEM APPEARS TO BE ELECTRICAL AND WILL HAPPENS RANDOMLY. THE PASS. DOOR IS NOW 100% AFFECTED AND THE DRIVERS SIDE JUST STARTED TODAY. SO THE END RESULT IS I AM LOCKED INSIDE MY CAR UNLESS I CRAWL THROUGH THE WINDOW. I GOOGLED THIS PROBLEM ONLINE AND APPARENTLY THIS PROBLEM IS RAMPANT. I CALLED KIA CUSTOMER SERVICE AND THEY SAID THAT THERE IS NOT A RECALL AND BECAUSE MY CAR IS A 2004 (WITH ONLY 39,000 MILES) THEY WILL NOT COVER IT. I TOLD HIM HOW DANGEROUS THIS TYPE OF PROBLEM WAS AND HE REALLY DIDNT SEEM TO CARE. II ASKED HIM WHO ISSUES RECALLS AND HE SAID IT WAS YOUR ORGANIZATION, WHEN I SAID THAT I WOULD CALL YOU TO TRY AND GET A RECALL HE THEN SAID "WELL YOU COULD BRING IT INTO KIA AND SEE WHAT THEY FIND, ALTHOUGH NO GAURANTEE I WOULD GET IT PAID FOR BY THEM EVEN THOUGH IT HAS HAPPENED TO MANY KIA CARS. I THEN TOLD HIM I WOULD BE CONTACTING YOUR ORGANIZATION AND HE DIDNT SEEM TO HAPPY. * WHEN MY PASSENGER DOOR STARTED WITH THIS PROBLEM APPROX. 2 MONTHS AGO I CALLED THE LOCAL DEALER AND THEY SAID THAT THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO FOR ME. I SHOULD ADD THAT THE NEAREST KIA DEALER IS APPROX. 2.5 HOURS ONE WAY AWAY FROM ME. *CN

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 KIA OPTIMA. IN JUNE OF 2004, THE EXTERIOR LIGHTING FAILED WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED. IN ADDITION, THE DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR WOULD NOT LOCK AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CONSISTENTLY ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THE EXTERIOR LIGHTING WAS REPAIRED; HOWEVER, THE DOOR WAS NOT BECAUSE IT WAS NOT UNDER WARRANTY. AFTER THE REPAIR WAS MADE, THE EXTERIOR LIGHTING CONTINUED TO FAIL AS WELL AS THE OTHER ISSUES. SHE TOOK THE VEHICLE BACK TO THE DEALER APPROXIMATELY FOUR TIMES TO REPAIR THE SAME FAILURES, BUT THE ISSUES KEPT PERSISTING. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED SINCE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 93,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 19,195. UPDATED 10/05/08 *CN THE HEADLIGHTS AND BRAKE LIGHTS WERE REPLACED SEVERAL TIMES. THE DIMMRE SWITCH ALSO FAILED. UPDATED 11/06/08. *JB

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 KIA OPTIMA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH, THE INSTRUMENT CONTROL PANEL BECAME INOPERATIVE AND DISPLAYED INACCURATE READINGS. THE CONTACT CALLED THE DEALER AND SHE IS IN THE PROCESS OF HAVING THE VEHICLE INSPECTED TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF FAILURE. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 64,000. UPDATED 09/16/08 *BF UPDATED 09/19/08. *JB

HELLO I HAVE A FEW ISSUES WITH MY 2004 KIA OPTIMA THAT I HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO GET RESOLVED. THE 1ST IS MY AIR BAG LIGHT IS CONSTANTLY ON. I TOOK THE CAR INTO THE SHOP FOR THIS WHILE IT WAS UNDER WARRANTY AND WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS FIXED. THE LIGHT CAME BACK ON AND NOW THE CAR IS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY. I WAS TOLD THAT IN ORDER TO HAVE IT FIXED I HAVE TO SPEND A COUPLE HUNDRED DOLLARS TO HAVE MY PASSENGER SEAT REMOVED AND SOME WIRES WOULD HAVE TO BE SPLICED TO CORRECT THE ISSUE. I'M NOT COMFORTABLE PAYING TO HAVE A PROBLEM FIXED THAT SHOULD HAVE ALREADY BEEN FIXED AND THE RESPONSE I GET AS TO THE SOLUTION INVOLVES SPLICING OF WIRES FOR MY AIR BAG. I HAVE BEEN ON SEVERAL WEBSITES AND HEARD MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SAME ISSUE WITH THIS YEAR/MODEL. ISSUE #2 INVOLVES MY HEADLIGHTS. I HAVE OWNED MY CAR SINCE I PURCHASED IT IN 2005. I HAVE BLOWN AT LEAST 5 SETS OF HEADLIGHTS IN THE VEHICLE. THIS IS SETS AND NOT JUST BULBS. MY MOST RECENT ONE HAS BLOWN AND HAS NOT EVEN BEEN INSTALLED FOR 3 MONTHS. IN ORDER TO GET THIS FIXED I WILL HAVE TO TAKE IT TO THE SHOP AND SPEND ALMOST $100 JUST TO HAVE SOMEBODY TEST THE SYSTEM AND TELL ME WHAT'S WRONG AND THEN PAY TO GET IT FIXED. IT HAS BEEN BAD ENOUGH THAT ONCE THEY BOTH BLEW AT THE SAME TIME AND LEFT ME WITH NO HEADLIGHTS AT ALL EXCEPT FOR MY HIGH BEAMS. I HAVE ALSO SEEN MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS ISSUE ALSO WITH THIS MAKE/MODEL. IF SOMEBODY COULD PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT THESE ISSUES AND ASSIST ME WITH GETTING THEM ADDRESSED. MY CAR CURRENTLY WILL NOT PASS AN INSPECTION DUE TO THE AIRBAG LIGHT BEING ON. *TR

PURCHASED 2004 KIA OPTIMA EX NEW. HAVE HAD FUSE BLOCK REPLACED W/IN 15000 MILES. NOW, THE FUEL PUMP HAS FAILED. THE CAR RAN FINE AND WAS PARKED. NEXT DAY CAR WOULD NOT START. NO FUSES BLOWN. THE TERMINAL CONNECTOR FROM THE FUEL PUMP TO THE GAS TANK PENETRATION HAS BURNED OUT CAUSING AN INTERMITTENT OPEN IN CIRCUIT. FUEL PUMP BURNED UP IN TANK. WIRES AND CONNECTORS VISIBLY CHARRED. CONNECTION THAT FAILED IS INSIDE OF THE GAS TANK. VERY SIMILAR TO NTSB CASE #10161074. HAVE 120,000 MILES ON THE CAR. OTHERS WITH LESS MILEAGE ARE IN FOR TROUBLE DUE TO POOR ENGINEERING DESIGN. DEFECTIVE PARTS AVAILABLE FOR PHOTOGRAPH OR INSPECTION. *JB

ON JULY 22, 2007, I WAS ON MY WAY BACK HOME FROM MY ANNIVERSARY TRIP WHEN MY CAR JUST SHUT OFF. WE TRIED SEVERAL TIMES TO GET THE CAR RESTARTED WITH NO LUCK. SINCE THE CAR IS STILL UNDER WARRANTY, WE CALL FOR ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE WHICH FALLS UNDER THE WARRANTY. WELL 3-1/2 HOURS LATER A TOW TRUCK SHOWED UP. UNFORTUNATELY FOR ME, IT WAS NOT CALLED BY KIA. HE JUST HAPPENED DOWN THE ROAD AT THE TIME. SO I HAD TO PAY $250.00 TO HAVE MY CAR TOWED HOME TO AVOID STORAGE FEES AT THE DEALERSHIP. THE NEXT DAY THE KIA DEALERSHIP HAD THE CAR TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY CHANGED THE CRANK SENSOR AND TIMING BELT. TWO WEEKS LATER THE CAR STARTED HAVING IDLING PROBLEMS. THE CAR WOULD SHUT OFF IF LEFT TO IDLE. THE CAR JERKED WHEN TAKING OFF AND IT SOUNDED LIKE THE ENGINE WAS BOUNCING AROUND UNDER THE HOOD. SO I HAD IT TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP TO HAVE IT FIXED. IT IS NOW 2 WEEKS LATER AND MY CAR IS STILL AT THE KIA DEALERSHIP. THEY HAVE CALLED ME 4 TIMES TO COME GET THE CAR IT IS READY. NO IT WAS NOT!!! SO 4 TIMES I DROVE AN HOUR TO THE DEALERSHIP AND AN HOUR HOME TO GO DOWN TO THE DEALERSHIP, CRANK UP MY CAR, REALIZE IT STILL HAD THE SAME PROBLEM, GIVE THEM BACK THE KEYS, AND DRIVE HOME. I AM NOW AT THE POINT WHERE KIA CAN KEEP THE PIECE OF SH*T AND EITHER GIVE ME MY MONEY BACK ON MY SUPPOSEDLY NEW CAR OR GIVE ME AN ACTUAL NEW CAR. I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!!!@!