general problems of the 2002 Kia Motor Optima

The contact owns a 2002 kia Optima. The contact stated that after he replaced all four tires, the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for an alignment; however, the mechanic was unable to perform an alignment due to the subframe corrosion. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 09v183000 (suspension) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 111,000.

The contact owns a 2002 kia Optima. While driving 50 mph, the front driver side lower subframe detached due to corrosion inside the subframe. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 09v183000 (suspension). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 180,000.

Driving up the road ,put on brakes ,axle and subframe broke causing my car to slide and stop in middle of road. Thank god no one hit us.

Driving down the road, stepped on brakes and front frame broke into two pieces, in the middle of the road, nearly caused a pile up on the road.

My tire had started bending inward at the top, and outward at the bottom. My car started going out of alignment. I took it to a shop, and they found out my sub frame was rusted and worn out. They also found out that the sub frame had been recalled in 2009, but apparently not on my exact vehicle.

Subframe is rusting out and my tires are getting abnormal wear and my front tires are angled in.

The contact owns a 2002 kia Optima. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to drive in a straight line. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but refused to provide any assistance since the vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 09v183000 (suspension). The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 95,000.

We have had ongoing problems with a 2002 kia Optima, including tire wear, brake problems, electrical issues, excessive battery wear. This week we were notified by our auto shop that there is excessive rust on the subframe and that a recall exists for this condition. When I contacted both our local dealer and kia corporate, I was told that this particular VIN is not included in the recall, although the recall clearly states that it does meet the parameters. Upon further research, it appears that many others have experienced the same problems and been given the same information. Currently, we are left with a car that is a danger to drive and enormous personal expense to resolve.

While I was driving I had noticed that the car was pulling to the right. I had new tires and an alignment done 5-6 weeks prior, so I returned to the shop and they looked at everything and the front end was out of alignment. The shop looked further to see what caused this and found that the right front frame area was rusted and cracked. They advised me that the car was not save and that I should contact kia. I was driving the car home and the car pulled drastically to right and I heard a crushing noise from the right tire area. I pulled off the road and saw that the tire was not positioned properly. I had the car towed to my residence and am in the process of contacting kia. I was lucking to not have caused an accident, after reading some of the other similar complaints it should have been a national recall on this situation. According the records that I had checked I am only the 2nd owner of this vehicle. I hope that kia makes good on this situation.

The vehicle was driven and at one point there was a noticeable difference in steering and the car pulled to the right. Within a few days of this event, the brand new tires that were purchased just a few months earlier, wore from the inner edge to about 1/3 of the width of the tire, exposing the belts. This caused one tire to pop, while the car was being driven. A spare was placed on the vehicle to get it to a tire repair location and after approximately 30 miles of driving, the spare lost all tread and also popped. The vehicle was then towed to the tire repair shop and the rusted and broken subframe was detected. The area was so rusted that portions of the frame broke and the tires were no longer running straight. I called kia and they told me although there are recalls for this very problem on kia Optimas from 2001 to 2004, my car was not in the recall because I live in kansas. The recall does apply to kias in missouri, which is 15 minutes from where I live. The kansas city area is both missouri and kansas and the area where I live. The rusting is attributed to salt used during inclement weather in missouri and not only is the same salt used in kansas, but I also drive in missouri. The kia representative still refused to recognize that my vehicle should be part of the recall even though the exact same issue that caused other kia Optimas to be recalled has happened to my vehicle. The recall needs to be extended to kansas because we deal with the same elements as missouri and iowa which are included in the recall. My son was driving this vehicle when the damage occurred and he could have suffered serious injury if he had been on the highway instead of a side street.

Car was making strange noise. Took to mechanic to have check. It was discovered that the subframe is completely rusted through on passenger side at frame mounts and almost rusted through on drivers side. Mechanic determined that due to the severity of problem vehicle is unsafe to drive and will not allow back on road until necessary repairs are made. I contacted kia and was told that this particular year vehicle was in a recall due to this problem. However, this particular VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle was orginally purchased in the state of west va, as stated in the recall. Vehicle is still parked at mechanics garage and I would greatly appreciate communication regarding this matter. I was told by kia representative that I would need to contact your organization.

The contact owns a 2002 kia Optima. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to a local mechanic for routine service when he was advised that the sub frame was corroded. The manufacturer was contacted but denied any assistance with the repairs because the vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign id number: 09v183000 (suspension: front). The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 64,148.

The contact owns a 2002 kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 mph, the vehicle veered to the right in a jerking motion. The failure occurred whenever the brakes were depressed. The contact stated that the failure recurred several times. The vehicle was maneuvered to the side of the road. The contact noticed that the passenger's side tire was positioned outwardly. Also, both front tires had prematurely worn due to the defect. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer and repaired under NHTSA campaign id number 09v183000 (suspension). The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 120,000.