2016 Kia Optima Complaint Log

In Sept the car oil light came on. The car was out of oil. Took it to shop and they could not find a leak. The car was filled with oil. Less than 1,000 miles later in Oct the same situation occurred again. The car was inspected an no leak was found but the oil was gone. In Dec after going 2 500 miles the same situation occurred again and another shop inspected and could not find out why. In all 3 situations the driver had to pull over immediately and be stranded until oil came.

This is a complaint about the paint chipping on my 2016 Kia Optima FE. I drove through some pretty heavy rain in December 2021 and ever since this my front bumper has been chipping away. Every time it rains, the paint chips get even larger. I'm very familiar with the class action lawsuit against Kia for their paint chipping (specifically on the Pearl White cars which is the color of my car). Attached are the pictures I took when it first happened. It is exponentially worse now.

#1Headlights & break lights going out often. Bulbs can’t be replaced anymore due to wiring burnt ( 1 headlight ) Took it in and they didn’t even look at it. Have do Documents to back that up #2 Engine light coming on, diagnostic testing indicated spark plugs need to be replaced . Had to do this two times with oil on plugs Took it in and they NEVER look at the spark plugs #3 car burning excessive amount of oil anywhere from 1 quart a week to 3 1/2 quarts after driving 600 miles. Took it into the shop for oil consumption testing only to be told that their warranty would not cover it and it needs a new engine. I have a 10 year or 100,000 mile warranty on my car! and at the present time I only have 88496 miles on my car I have documentation to back up my claim, I have been a loyal Kia owner for 18 years and they have absolutely treated me horrible in regards to this saying that it was lack of maintenance and they never checked the issues that led up to their findings. They indicated that there was sludge in my engine but could never prove or show me anything that they did to document the sludge and trying to blame it on me. This car is a safety hazard as I am aware of mini other Kia optima’s dad have either caught fire or repaired to have their motors replaced due to the same issues. Anything you can do to help me with this issue ! I’m 60 years old and know how to take care of my car

The contact's grandmother owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at 25 MPH, the rear driver’s side window inadvertently fell. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road and pulled up the window manually. She then inserted a piece of paper in the upper right corner of the window to keep it in place. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred while driving. The front and rear driver’s side windows and the rear passenger’s side window also inadvertently fell. The contact inserted pieces of paper in the upper right corner of each window. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed. The dealer informed the contact that the vehicle would be repaired at her expense. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but did not provide any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 83,500.

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving at approximately 60 MPH on the highway, the engine was shaking and the vehicle stalled. The contact pulled over and was assisted by her son who poured three quarts of oil into the engine. The contact restarted the vehicle and drove it to her residence. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 95,000.

Window regulator in the car 4 of them went out Oil light is flashing when but there is no leaks and just got a oil change

In November of 2021 at about 18500 miles the right rear window regulator drive gear disentigrated and the entire regulator had to be replaced. In Decemeber of 2021 at about 19700 miles the right front window regulator disintigrated and had to be replaced. The first 2 photos are the December failure the 3rd is the December failure I found it interesting that the same year model Kia has a recall for the exact same problem. Here is the link. https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2020/MC-10176915-0001.pdf I am attaching photos of both failures. I have in my posession the front regulator if you want to examine it I will not dispose of it until I hear from you.

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated and the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle after several attempts. The contact also stated that she smelled an abnormal gasoline odor. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that an engine cylinder had failed. The dealer informed the contact that the vehicle could not repair under NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V907000 (Fuel System, Gasoline, Engine) unless the engine was knocking. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the engine was misfiring while driving and the vehicle would not exceed 40 MPH. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine was misfiring and oil was leaking onto the spark plugs. The dealer informed the contact that she had to pay a repair fee for spark plug replacements, and then the dealer would determine whether the engine should be replaced under the recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000. The VIN was not available.

First my driver side back window wouldn’t roll up or down. It just sags and falls down everytime I drive so I duck taped it until I could afford to get it fixed. Now a month later, the passenger back seat is doing this exact same thing. There is over 100 articles of people talking about this exact problem with 2016-2017 Kia Optimas and I read apparently Kia is even aware as they sent out an alert to dealerships about it or something along those lines? Well that’s all great and dandy but what about the people who already have the car and are dealing with the problems? I have 2 kids under 2 and it’s a tough financial time. Even with the duct tape, it doesn’t always hold and the window will fall down on the highway and my son starts screaming crying cause its loud and the hard wind hits his face. This should be resolved. It shouldn’t take more than like 5 people complaining about the same thing for it to be deeply looked into and fixed. There’s well over 100 people talking about online like I said.

my engine started making a knocking noise so i get off the freeway and had my car towed to the dealership and they Confirm that the engine is making a knocking noise but they denied the engine replacement just because it didn’t have the software update done i have only had this car since july i had no idea of this or it would have been taken care of i make sure all my cars are up to date on every repair that it may need

Oil consumption

Misfire– oil on the spark plug caused misfire. check engine light came on. OBDII scanner show a P0302 trouble code. Eventually the engine misfired enough and lead to a backfire. This also led to Decreased Fuel Mileage, Catalytic Converter Damage, and Blue Exhaust Smoke.

My car has been burning oil and progressively got worse. The oil lamp light would only blink for a few seconds and turn off to indicate the oil tank was low. I would be around 3 quarts of oil low every 2,000 miles. I have taken my vehicle to the KIA dealership and started the process of a oil consumption test to build a case. After some maintenance work and coming due to check back with the dealer for the 3rd engine oil test, the engine light illuminated. I checked my oil level to make sure there was oil in there and after restarting my car the light turned off. 4 days later my car stalled when coming to a stop. After a few minutes I was able to power my car back on and drive it safely home. The car was taken to the Dealership I have been going to in San Bernardino. I let them know I had checked the oil dipstick after the engine light was on before the stall and they told me I would have to start the engine consumption test over for taking out the dipstick, altering the test. My car has been at the dealership for 4 days with no word on why my engine stalled but I can pick up my car today after they do an oil change to begin the oil consumption test again. They asked that I drive 1,000 miles and bring it back for a final check on the oil per KIA's instruction. In the meantime I have to hope that my car will not stall again possibly causing a wreck harming myself and others or that my engine will not fail before the 1,000 miles are up. If I make it to 1,000 I am hoping KIA will honor the powertrain warranty and fix the engine, but my hope is fading. Although a settlement for similar issues has been made in favor of KIA owners, my problems are occurring after the settlement date.

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The contact stated that the oil level warning light was illuminated. The contact also noticed that while following while his wife was driving the vehicle, a blueish color smoke would emit from the tailpipe. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer where he was given an estimate for an oil consumption test. The contact then took the vehicle to an independent mechanic where they confirmed that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The contact attempted to notify the manufacturer of the failure but received no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 66,000.

Oil light comes on after oil change. Check engine light comes on and the car feels like it going to quit or stall when going down high way.

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing excessive oil consumption. The contact stated that she had been adding oil in the vehicle every 1,000 miles. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who performed an oil consumption test and diagnosed that the vehicle was burning an excessive amount of oil. The contact stated while driving 55 -65 MPH, the vehicle went into safe mode and decelerated to 25-35 MPH. The oil pressure warning light was illuminated. The accelerator pedal was depressed and the vehicle failed to respond and failed to exceed 35 MPH. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The check engine warning light was illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that there was black smoke coming from the tail pipe. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not cover the repair of the vehicle due to the mileage. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 132,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The contact stated that the oil level warning light was illuminated. The contact also stated that upon depression of the accelerator pedal, the vehicle would independently enter Limp Mode with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to Quirk Kia Manchester (1300 S Porter St, Manchester, NH 03103) where they initially updated the knock sensor. The contact stated that the failure persisted and the vehicle was towed back to the dealer where the knock sensor was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The contact then took the vehicle to KIA at Nashua (107 Daniel Webster Hwy, Nashua, NH 03060) where he was informed that engine oil had entered into the cylinder head and damaged the spark plugs. The contact was provided an estimate for a new engine. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 76,000.

All the window regulators continue to turn but the windows stay down and won't go up. Leading cause, the gear that connects to the motor and window regulator wires is plastic and erdes over time causing it to shred itself. Now my windows will not go up.

There have been 2 occasions while driving at night with the headlights on auto that the lights have gone off for no apparent reason. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I was driving on a major highway and was not able to get to the side of the road. The entire dash went out. This was very dangerous as I could not see anything in front of me. After jiggling the turn signal switch the lights did come back on. I have taken the car into a dealership and also into an independent service center to have the problem addressed. Neither location was able to reproduce the incident. The best guess from the dealer was a headlight switch and from the independent service center their guess was possible an ignition switch. Both of the estimates were unable to confirm that replacing the switch would correct the problem. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms prior to the failure.

Suddenly, the warning lights on my dashboard resembled that of a christmas tree. I was seeing warning lights for the passenger airbag, blind spot warning/assist, auto-hold, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, etc - were all suddenly offline. After finally getting an appointment scheduled with my local dealership, I was told that the airbag module had gone bad and needed replaced. With that module out, the car could not communicate with the other systems and thus was the cause of the errors/warning lights.

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at 20 MPH, the oil warning light illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road and checked the oil level of the vehicle with the assistance of her son. The contact stated that her son noticed that the vehicle did not have oil on the dipstick. The vehicle was taken to Pep Boys who had previously refilled the oil and the oil was refilled; however, the failure reoccurred while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that no issues were found. The dealer advised the contact to bring the vehicle back after 1,000 miles. The dealer also advised the contact to not open the oil cap per the manufacturer's instructions. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring while driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that oil was leaking in the engine compartment and an unknown part needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but did not provide assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 141,000. Consumer stated mechanic put new oil valve gasket. Paid 300+ to put new gasket.

Since purchasing this car I’ve had to have electrical repairs done every year. If it’s not the seat it’s the window. If it’s not the window it’s the dash. A couple of days ago my husband said he noticed that the oil in the car was running low really fast. We had just done an oil change on the car not even 30 days prior to this. We were driving late at night back from a work trip when al of a sudden the check engine light came on and the motor started to shake and a thudding noise was getting louder. We were able to pull over and saw that there was literally no oil in the car. No warning nothing. Again we had just had an oil change not even 30 days prior. My father had to come tow us home an hour and a half away because he was worried with the sounds it was making that it might blow. There was smoke coming from the exhaust and the motor was shaking like it had no control. I’ve read multiple issues just like this one and of course my car just passed warranty. I’m not even done paying the car off. This should be an issue Kia has to fix by now with so many similar complaints. It’s dangerous and fraud. I’m just lucky the car was able to pull over safely as my husband and our 8 month old were in the car with me. Please help get this fixed. I’m now out of a car that’s only 5 years old and not paid off.

2016 Optima with 111K miles: 7/17/19 car received ECU upgrade for the KSDS system. After upgrade, on 5/23/2020 at 90K miles, the car started to shake/knock, engine light came on, car went in to limp mode, car was taken back to the Kia dealer, code was recorded as P1326, another update was performed, and due to excessive damage bearings were replaced. Car performed ok until 9/22/21, again the car started to shake violently (bucking), loud knocking sound, engine light came on, went into limp mode, was pulled over immediately, dealership contacted, car driven directly there (3 miles). Notified at 4:30pm "there was a complete failure of the 'Fuel Injector System' and needed replacement". Was told that the "entire fuel injector system failed allowing fuel to soak and flood into the cylinder and spark plugs". This was ALARMING. Luckily, we knew to pull the car over and keep the RPMs below 1500, and only traveled a few miles. Had we been driving for a while, or the engine had been hot I do not think a rupture of the entire fuel injection system that again is located in the cylinders of the engine would have ended well. Kia Service now telling me the "Lifetime Warranty" on engine is not applicable bc a code did not get captured. The fact that my car previously captured that code speaks to the fact that the engine was faulty on production, misaligned, allowing damage to occur from mile 1 on. ECU upgrades and replaced bearings do not remove the damage that was previously sustained by the migration of metal shavings throughout the engine compartment for the 90,000 miles before it was detected and repairs were made. While the "Lifetime Warranty" speaks to engine replacement and engine repairs the original class action suit was due to engine fires, which you all (NHTSA) determined in its reporting that the exact cause of the fires in all cases was “undetermined”; noting dealers should be looking at fuel and or oil leaks within the engine. This is alarming to say the least.

Pearl white paint peeling in chunks of hood. All four window regulators went out within six months. Transmission had to be replaced Hard shift rear end Motor replaced

I was driving the car on the high way when I suddenly heard a strange noise from the engine with a shake in the car then the car completely switched to the hybrid engine from the gas one. The hybrid battery was depleted within a minute or two but I was able to put the car on the side of the high was before it completely stopped moving. After that whenever I press on the gas pedal nothing happened there was zero propulsion. I took the car for inspection the hybrid battery was depleted so it got replaced but then the engine itself isn't working and apparently there is a metallic parts in the oil My car is available for inspection if needed It was definitely unsafe to break down in the middle of the highway I believe the normal non hybrid car had a recall issue with the engine and the hybrid has the exact gas engine the 2.4L one The car wasn't inspected yet by the dealership as it is hard to get an appointment The car had 2 codes before breaking they were P0014 and P0420 they appeared approximately 2 weeks before the incident

Without heavy use (I don’t often have passengers in the back seat), driver side rear window regulator/motor failed in May, causing the rear window to fall into the door while driving. This is a major safety issue as anything can go through the car - rain or debris. It was roughly $600. This weekend, the same thing happened to another window out of the blue while having my dog in the back who nearly jumped out after it fell into the door. Now, the part is backordered and the Kia dealership has said it could be months before the window can be repaired and they offer no solution on how to keep the window up in the meantime. This is an expensive safety issue and should not be failing in multiple windows. My car only has 65k miles on it.

Headlights, set in AUTO, randomly will briefly go dark at night while the vehicle is in motion, putting driver at risk of night-time crash. Headlights can be re-illuminated by turning the lights off and back on. This issue has not been by dealer, service tech, or any other party. The issue occurred twice 9/15/2021, and once previously on an unknown date. There were no warning signs, dashboard lights, or any other indication of malfunction.

A straight line crack about 4 inches long appeared suddenly on my dash. Upon doing some online research, I found that the crack is directly over the dash mounted airbag. I took the vehicle to the local KIA dealer and they said it was not covered by the warranty. My concern is that the crack may impede the deployment of the airbag in a critical situation. I feel it should be investigated because there are a lot of exact same complains on the internet concerning a crack at the same location.

I'm about to replace my THIRD window accuator on this car. The first one that failed was the rear passenger side at 54000 miles. The window was rarely if ever used, failed any way. The second failed at 60,000 miles.. driver side rear. Like the first, rarely used window. Now the third has failed at 66,000 miles. Cost to replace, over $300 because a $5 sprocket fails. Windows failing is definitely a safety issue.

I was driving at night lights turned on of course then all of sudden they turned off I couldn't see i had to slam my brakes on almost crashed and this is the 3 time this has happened I usually don't drive at night so I didn't notice this problem as a problem I was thinking maybe it was the street lights were to bright and caused them to turn off but on a very dark street with no lights and it happened again then I realized this is a serious problem but this has happened the times I have drove at night. This is very dangerous for this to happen it is going to cause someone to lose their life if it hasn't happened already. This really needs to be looked into a recall for this issue. Please fix

Here in Wisconsin Kias are being stolen at an alarming rate. It’s the most stolen car. It is being stated that this is due to how the cars were made and that Kia knew this but didn’t disclose it. My car was stolen at work, along with other coworkers. This is beyond insane. How many more cars have to be taken due to manufactures negligence for something to be done.

Air bag light came on after I also began having issues with blind spot detection warning lights. ABS lights on as well. Took vehicle to Kia Dealer in Gainesville GA and they told me it was the left rear wheel sensor. Wanted $800 to repair ( no longer under warranty). Took vehicle to my mechanic, who ordered the part and replaced sensor. ABS lights & BSD lights went off for almost 2 weeks, then came back on. Air bag light has not gone off.

I am experiencing window regulator failures on all four windows of my 2016 Kia Optima LX, which began in 2021 and continues to the present. The windows either do not stay up or operate irregularly. I have seen similar reports from other 2016 Kia Optima and 2017 Kia Sportage owners. This issue poses a safety and security risk due to potential distraction while driving and inability to secure the vehicle.

While driving at night with the "auto" function for the headlights on they turn off at random. This has happened numerous times during the past year. Very dangerous on dark roads. Dealer could not replicate situation to repair. No warning lights appeared.

As I was driving on the highway my vehicle started to decelerate without warning. I was able to move to shoulder and when the car came to a stop the temperature gauge immediately went from cold to hot and the engine light came on and the dash displayed engine overheating. While researching what to do if your engine overheats, I came across the issues Kia has been having with their engines. I had the car towed to the dealership for inspection and was told my vehicle would not be covered because I didn’t do the product replacement which I had no knowledge of. After calling the manufacturer and talking to several reps I was ultimately blamed for the defect and not knowing about the problem so therefore it’s not Kia’s responsibility to fix my vehicle. One rep told me that Kia sent out notices according to DMV records, which means I should have received a notice. Another rep discovered that they did not have a correct address for me on file and said that it was my fault because I am supposed to update my address when I purchased the vehicle. I was also told by a supervisor that customers that buy new cars get priority in being contacted and that used car costumers are supposed to notify the manufacture when they buy a car so that’s why I received no notification of the recalls or product replacement. I received less than adequate customer service, and being blamed for a problem that resulted for Kias negligence is totally unacceptable.

My dash told me I have a headlight out. The headlight seems to come on and off from time to time. Now it says both are out. Every now and again they both come back on. It seems as though I have an electrical issue going on all of a sudden. But could be due to the engine running poorly causing disconnections In the wiring harness. The engine is shaking pretty bad and awaiting my scheduled appointment.

Having trouble with my driverside window it let's down but will not let back up i called kia and they want over 200.00 to diagnose it plus labor to fix it from what I have been reading online alot of people are having the same issue

The engine is sputtering. Dealership can’t get my car in for two weeks due to their full schedule. They stated as long as the check engine light isn’t flashing it’s ok to drive. The motor sounds like a farm tractor.

About 3 weeks ago my headlight Auto dash notification would flash on and off for probably 8 times. It was day time so I didn't think anything of it. Last week I was driving in the dark and my head lights turned off completely. I was able to get them back on. I started doing research and other people have had the same issue stating that it is the multifunction switch. Again this morning driving in the dark they turned off completely again. This is dangerous for not just the driver and passengers of the car but also other drivers if you can not be seen. This needs to be recalled and needs to be fixed sooner than later. Please help.

When I was driving at 4:45am it was total darkness still out my exterior headlights shut off and I could not see. It is always set on auto. It just happened out of no where and I could not see. I could have had an accident. Now i have read that a few people have had this same problem. About a month ago they kind of went off then on again bit i thought maybe they were switching to daytime lights. Now today they just shut off in total darkness. This needs to be looked into! Especially if many people report same problem. Now i did pull over where I could then switched the lights to just the on mode and they worked fine tell I got home but I don't know what's happening. Does this mean they will work on the on mode or lights eventually wont work at all?? Is it a fuse or relay? Idk please check onto this.

Oil consumption 2 Quarts every 1000 miles /sudden engine failure/ miss firing cylinders/blue smoke/ very hot engine

When I turn on my blinkers my headlights sometimes flash off (without turning them off). Then come back on when I turn off the blinker. My trunk has also lost power and will no longer unlock.

All 4 of my windows have stoped working and fall down while driving it started pouring down my driver window fell down and I almost wrecked I see a lot of people having the same issue

Since 08/07/21 I’ve been having intermittent issues with my oil light and engine light coming on. I have had all repairs recommended by the Mark KIA Scottsdale, AZ dealership yet my oil consumption has increased significantly and the oil light continues to come on: On 02/14/24 I took my car to a local auto repair shop to get a second opinion due to the oil light coming off and on; they found the engine oil very low and only 1 quart came out when doing the oil change; they also recommended injection induction service which I’ve had done twice previously with the KIA dealership

The window regulator in all four windows gave out back to back with little use of windows to begin with. Apparently Kia knows of issue but won’t recall part.

All four of my window regulators/and or motors have died within months of each other. First it was my back two, now my front two have gone and don’t stay up. I don’t have children nor frequent passengers. I find it mind boggling that all four of my windows have to be repaired. It is completely unsafe that my windows just drop at any given moment, especially if it’s pouring raining or even at night when it’s locked my personal stuff isn’t safe inside.

The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving 40 mph, the vehicle would not accelerate when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed as engine failure. The dealer informed the contact that the manufacturer had not approved the vehicle for an engine repair because the software update had not been performed on the vehicle. The contact stated that she had not received a notice from the manufacturer for the software update. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and initially informed the contact that the engine would be repaired under the warranty coverage however, the manufacturer later informed the contact that because the software update was not performed, the warranty coverage would be declined. The failure mileage was approximately 111,000.

I experienced sudden acceleration while attempting to park our car. The car was double parked waiting for my husband to move a car so I could park in that space. I put my foot on the brake to put the car in drive. I start to pull forward and the car takes off and I eventually crashed into my apartment building. I remember having my foot on the break to stop the car and could not. The sudden acceleration caused damage to the building inside and out. I did do some research and saw there are others who have experienced the same thing across different models of Kia.

2016 kia Optima will not go in reverse. It will only work in drive. Tried to drive out of my driveway today. 07.22.2021 and the car would not go in reverse. Pulled back in the driveway and will not drive due to safety hazard.

I have a flashing check engine light while driving my vehicle was not trying to give gas or anything