general problems of the 2012 Kia Motor Optima - part 1

Sudden engine failure while driving with no warning. Vehicle began jerking, shaking, and losing power. Rpms dropped unexpectedly and the engine stalled intermittently. Multiple misfire codes were present (cylinders 1, 3, and 4), and the engine was found to have low or no compression in cylinder 1. The condition rapidly worsened to near complete engine failure. The vehicle was operating normally prior to this incident. This failure is consistent with known kia engine defects involving internal engine damage, including rod bearing failure. This is a safety concern due to sudden loss of power while driving.

The failure involves the component covered under the active safety recall campaign. The affected part/system is still installed on the vehicle and is available for inspection upon request by the manufacturer, dealership, or NHTSA. Recall number : 23v6552 while driving in traffic, the vehicle suddenly began to slow down without warning, started jerking, and lost normal operation. I was forced to pull over to avoid a collision. This sudden loss of power and control placed me, my passengers, and surrounding drivers at risk of an accident. Yes. The issue was confirmed by an authorized dealership. The dealership acknowledged that the problem is directly related to the active safety recall but refused to perform the repair due to vehicle mileage exceeding 150,000 miles. The vehicle has been inspected by an authorized dealership representing the manufacturer. No inspection has been performed by police or insurance representatives at this time. No warning lights or messages appeared prior to the incident. I had not received the recall notification letter at the time I purchased the vehicle. The first occurrence happened suddenly on 12/10/2025, when the vehicle began slowing down and jerking in traffic. After I pulled over and parked, multiple warning lights and messages appeared, and the steering wheel stopped moving normally. This vehicle has an open NHTSA safety recall. Safety recalls do not expire based on mileage or ownership. The dealership acknowledged the issue is recall-related but refused to perform the repair due to mileage limits, which is inconsistent with federal safety recall requirements.

Subject: recall violation: kia on the boulevard (philadelphia) - refused remedy, charged $199, returned unsafe vehicle vehicle information: [year] kia Optima hybrid dealership name: kia on the boulevard dealership address: 11295 roosevelt blvd, philadelphia, PA 19154 complaint description: 1. The safety incident: while operating the vehicle, I experienced a catastrophic engine failure. Thick smoke poured from the engine compartment, followed by immediate stalling. This presented a severe fire risk and safety hazard. 2. Dealer misconduct & illegal charges: I towed the vehicle to kia on the boulevard (11295 roosevelt blvd, philadelphia) for the active engine recall remedy. The dealership: * refused to perform the recall repair free of charge. * forced me to pay a $199 "diagnostic fee" just to look at the recall-related defect, which should be covered by the manufacturer. * threatened me with $45/day storage fees if I did not pay the $199 and remove the vehicle immediately. 3. Current status: under the threat of accumulating storage fees, I was coerced into paying the $199 and towing the vehicle back to my residence. The dealership knowingly released a vehicle with a catastrophic engine failure (smoke/fire risk) back to the owner without performing the federally mandated remedy. The unsafe vehicle is now sitting at my home unrepaired. 4. Conclusion: I request an immediate investigation into kia on the boulevard's refusal to honor the recall and their practice of charging customers for recall-related inspections.

Power train and engine failure and causing my kia to catch on fire at 11:30 coming back home from work. I was driving home and smell smoke and car was shaking and when I stopped at the highway to open and look fire was on while driving and I had to call 911 and stop the fire. I had some fire extinguisher in the car I stopped the fire and towed the car and I replaced engine and powered train for over $9000 between repairs and labor and transmission and engine.

The contact owns a 2012 kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. The check engine warning light eventually became illuminated, and the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The mechanic retrieved a fault code for the engine variable valve timing solenoid. The contact was informed that the engine variable valve timing solenoid needed to be replaced. The contact called a dealer and was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle for the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.

2012 kia Optima engine oil lights flickers on slowing . . I have checked the oil and the filter they look excellent and to the correct level.

Every time I stop at a light my car starts to shake and vibrate. Now the check engine is on and my car is making weird noises, going at higher speeds.

My engine failed. Dick withams here in waterloo, IA was paid by kia to replace engine for free due to my warranty. Dick withams rushed the process and allowed me back on the road with no coolant plug( which was detected immediately) I returned the car and dick withams attached a plug so my coolant wouldn't spill over on the ground. Every time I pressed my brakes there was a horrible sound like my drive axial was not put together when putting the engine back. Kia is allowing mechanics to fix these recalls of major safety issues for myself and my family. I then returned vehicle to cedar falls, IA dick withams to fix issue Friday morning. They have yet to communicate anything with me. Now I'm just without a vehicle even though it's covered under warranty. It should be against the law for the car dealership to return a recalled engine without driving the car to see if they rushed the service and failed to put vehicle back together correctly.

My wife had been complaining that while driving 2011 Optima hybrid at highway speeds the car would suddenly lose power and slow to 30 or 40 mph while the pedal is floored. Took it to the dealer who said we needed a new battery which did not solve the problem. 2nd time came with a warning on the dash to check hybrid system, back at the dealer they said it appears to be some special fuse in the trunk ($300)…problem sill persist however this time the car completely shut down on the road, dash was lit up like a christmas tree. Had to get it towed. Now dealer says its the hpcu and that’s going to run almost $6000. Dealer was willing to install a used one I got on ebay, they charged $1300 for the install they tell me the problem still exists.

Tha car shut down in the middle of the road would not start all lights came on and could not steer gave the car gas on gas pedal nor could I brake to get out of the road. Has been towed to demontrond kia to see if under warranty for repairs almost lost my life on highway.

Kia Optima ex 2012 with 57000 miles transmission is stuck on r (reverse) and it doesn't release even with the shift lock release engaged. The backup camera is on, brake is very stiff, the car ignition can be on/off but don't starts the engine. Dash and shifter indicator shows r and it does not change to any other status. Vehicle is inoperable.

While driving my 2012 kia Optima hybrid on the farthest left lane of the freeway, a warning message popped up on my dash board that was something similar to "saftley pull over and do not drive vehicle. " I began to change lanes to be able to exit the freeway and as I was approaching the edits stop light the moving hehicle seemed to lack much power. I was lucky enough to have the car roll far enough on momentum to get me out of the way of a very busy road. It was a miracle that the car rolled to the spot it did because that happened to be the only place the shoulder could fit my car. I had it sent to kia dealership and it took them almost an entire week to finally have an idea of what the problem could be. Engine seized as the major problem and offered to replace it for above $8000! the car isn't even worth that much! come to realize there was a recall on my engine so I am now waiting until kia tech support reaches out to my mechanic for the approval or denial. I bought this used car about 30 days from today's date with 80k miles.

The contact owns a 2012 kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving on the highway, the vehicle failed to accelerate above 45 mph. There was white smoke beginning to come from underneath the hood of the vehicle and the exhaust. The contact stated that it had gotten to the point where they would have to add oil to their vehicle every 100 miles. The check oil warning light would illuminate intermittently. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer (valley hi kia 14644 valley center dr, victorville, CA 92395; 877-305-9865). The vehicle had too high levels of the oil. The contact took the vehicle to a certified mechanic who changed the oil and changed the crank sensor. The contact was told that rod barring material was found in their oil. The vehicle had not been repaired and the failures persist today. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 129,000.

Vehicle shut down with low power at 50 mph with all lights working. Computer has car shut down and can not start.

Car will not get out of immobilization phase, with either key fob will not unlock to use push to start. Issue is waste gate activator failure or needs adjustment.

There is metal in the bottom of the engine, there is no sludge build up and the engine has less than 90,000 miles on it.

I stopped the car and tried to put the shift lever to park, the car indicated that it was still in drive. The car was stuck in drive even though the shift lever was in the park position. I turned the vehicle off. I tried to restart but it would not because the car thought the transmission was in drive. I could not move the shift lever from park without use the shift unlock. Upon investigation I found that the transmission shift cable came detached from the shifter lever. It appears that a plastic retainer disintegrated.

I was on the interstate traveling at approx 70 mph changed lanes and when I went to accelerate the vehicle stalled lost power I coasted to the breakdown lane and attempted to start the vehicle. It would not start. I had aaa tow it to a hardings garage in fairfield. The technician said this morning the vehicle started but stalled as soon as he tried to move it. He told me that there was a kia recall 17v224000 that applied to the engine so I got aaa to tow the vehicle to charlies kia in augusta, me. They tell me that there is no recall on my VIN. Why would I have the same stalling as indicated in the recall if my VIN does not apply???.

Steering column coupler.

Failure date: 06/25/2019 my 2012 kia Optima engine shut off while I was driving and luckily I didnt get into accident and was able pull off the road to wait for a tow truck. This is very scary and dangerous. I had it towed to an auto repair garage they changed out the started and changed out the battery it just made a clicking sound but wouldn't start. I started reading on line that this exact situation has happened to other kia Optima vehicles. My vehicle has 99189 miles so it falls within the power train warranty of 100,000 miles.

Car engine died and lost power on highway putting me at risk of getting into an accident. I had to pull over on shoulder quickly and then blew out a tire a I ran over a unavoidable object on the side of the road.

I have a 2012 kia Optima hybrid at 80,xxx, and have always kept up with the scheduled services/maintenance. I barely drive my car nowadays, and just ride my bicycle to take public transportation that is 1-mile away. My wife and I were driving on the freeway, going 65mph, 47-miles into our drive, our car started jerking. We have about 3-4 miles left to our destination. When you pressed on the gas, it sounded like it was just accelerating and not shifting to the next gear. There were no warning lights or notification as to why that was happening. We exited from the freeway and stopped at a local plaza to try and reset the car, and gave the car about 20-mins before driving again. When we tried driving about the last 10-mins, even at 20mph, it was still jerking and still sounded like it wasn't shifting to the next gear, and still no warning lights. We ended up towing our car back home because we didn't want to risk getting stuck on the freeway at 1-2am. Unfortunately, I am the 2nd owner, however, I do have extended warranty, so I hope this issue is not that serious. I will definitely contact kia and raise this concern because it is a safety hazard.

Engine light came on while driving. When starting car, it's not starting as it should and staking lugging and sluggish while driving. Country road driving approximately 45 mph. .

April 2018 was driving heard loud nose from engine, hybrid system came on , hybrid system warning turn off engine. Engine locked up. Towed home. Pulled oil pan. Brass bearings bottom of pan. Crankshaft and piston rod bearnig were in pieces. Had engine rebuilt. May 2018. Filled 2 complaints then. Only 73,000 miles. Company's getting away for insufficient engines. Tried to sell car. But not going to give away. I don't want it. I think I deserve compensation.

Kia has now settled their class action suit for all the other vehicles, yet the hybrids are still being left out of any recalls. There is plenty of evidence in the complaints here that something is wrong. I sunk $7000 that I didn't have to spare into getting a new engine put in this car. Only to have the transmission blow right after I got the car back from kia after waiting 6 months for an engine. The transmission cost another $5000, and it took them three transmissions to install a non-faulty transmission. I almost lost my job because I couldn't reliably get to work on time, if at all. Kia themselves have said that the engines weren't manufactured correctly and that labor being done in kia dealerships wasn't being done correctly. Hybrid engines should absolutely not be blowing rods at 60000 miles, or 80000 miles, and not even 100000 miles. Kia is knowingly delaying any sort of recall and forcing people to go into further debt or lose jobs.

My kia Optima abs system will randomly make a crunch sound when I step on the brakes, and I lose some engine power immediately after to the point that my car will not accelerate past 40 mph. It has happened several times on busy highways where I have to fear causing a major accident. Kia dealer cannot figure out the issue, they had my car for a day and repaired the steering column and sent me home, only for the problem to occur again the following week.

I was driving down the highway and my 2012 kia Optima lost power with no warning signs. I had it towed to a mechanic only to find that the motor was locked up. Did I mention that I had just bought the car from boyles auto sales in jasper, alabama on February 3, 2017 and the car quit on February 26, 2017 not even 30 days since the purchase of my car. Unfortunely, since we paid cash for the car the dealer basicly told us he wouldn't do anything. So now I am without a vehicle and having to find more money to replace the motor in the car that this dealer sold me. After further research I have learned that kia has problems with the kia Optima's for several years and the 2012 that I purchased is included. The mechanic told us that all the components of the car that should have oil, water, any type of fluid was fine but that something internal had stopped operating and caused the motor to lock up.

I took car in for the clicking noise in steering wheel. While car was up inair on stands. The rep stated their was a small leak coming from the turbo oil feed line. However it was not cover under warranty because its not the turbo. I told the it is if its feeding the oil. I did some research on the problem and found that it is a common issue with all of their cars and they are refusing to fix the issue. I told the rep that if the oil causes a burning smell it can cause a fire. I was told the manager would call me but now they are not taking my calls about replacing the line to the turbo.

While driving approximately 65 mph on a highway, the engine shut down without warning. The vehicle was coasted to the side of the road but would not restart. It was towed to a mechanic who diagnosed a catastrophic engine failure. The shop maintained that the engine seized due to apparent improper oil change. The vehicle was purchased less than 30 days prior to the event. The vehicle was subsequently towed to a kia dealership where they, too, were unable to manually turn the engine over. Kia service center removed the valve cover and found heavy sludge built up in engine causing it to fail and lock up. Kia motors of America denied claim due to lack of proper maintenance. However, Hyundai sonata engines were recalled due to metallic debris in engine which restricted oil flow and presented the same manifestations of engine sludge. Kia Optima sedans were built using engines manufactured at the plant cited in the Hyundai recall.

I have a knocking sound in my steering wheel. The noise happens when I turn the wheel back and forth. Also, I have noticed an odd grinding/slipping sensation in the front left wheel when I accelerate on a right turn from different elevations. Pulling out of a parking lot on a "decline" while accelerating to the right to enter traffic is a good example. 73,000 miles currently but I've noticed the grind/slip a lower mileage.

Car will jerk hard when changing gears. It happens while going in speeds below 45 mph. The car will jerk really hard while driving and the rpms will jump from 2-3 straight up to 6. It has happened several times in the last week. I am taking it to the kia dealer to see if they can locate and fix the problem. Based on what I have read here, there doesn't appear to be a fix. I am really concerned it will accelerate and cause me to have an accident.

Vehicle had random abnormal jerking, bucking and clunking by the transmission during normal acceleration, which causes abnormal deceleration. This could cause an issue with normal driving and can cause a rear end accident. The cause of this after vehicle was taken to the dealer, is the transmission temperature relay. Apparently the mechanic advised that other vehicles have been brought in with the same relay issue and there has been no recalls on the part.

While driving my 2012 kia Optima sx t gdi I lost accelerations on the highway. I was driving at 55 mph because the car wouldn't accelerate, but it did decrease in speed to a dangerous 20 mph. I tried to use my paddle shifters in hopes that would work, to no avail. I depressed the gas pedal to the floor and the speed did not change. I eventually reached a safe place and shut the car off, waited several minutes and attempted re-starting the car. The car sputtered and paused before eventually starting, then allowed me to drive approximately 100 yards before having the same decreased speed situation again. I was fortunate to drive home at 45 mph and avoid being run off the rode or rear ended by another vehicle or worse . . . A truck. The next morning I took the car to the dealership and after a diagnostic was informed that the fuel pressure sensor needed to be replaced. Not such bad news but I was shocked that the price quoted to me, by the service manager, is $900. 00. Unbelievable!!! I searched all over the internet and found all the parts that are related to this type issue and nothing, not one part, cost $900. 00. The proposed cost to repair my car is greater than the car payment. As a matter of fact, it cost more than the car payment for my wife's ml500. I have visited kia forums that speak to problems with the kia and it seems that a manufacturer is in order. Incidentally, the part is no longer covered by the warranty because I recently passed the 60,000 mile mark. I feel like I am being ripped off to have the car repaired for what will be less than an hour of work to replaced a minor part, that incidentally has a cost of $900. 00. I will be willing to provide any other additional information related to my experience with my 2012 kia Optima. I should be purchased and Audi.

After warming up engine I drove onto the road and onto a freeway entrance ram a quarter mile from my home. While entering the freeway, the car "lost power", ie no throttle response, car would not go faster than 60 mph. Rpm was peaking over 3,000 rpm (higher than normal). I put the auto/manual floor-shift into manual and the dash showed 4th gear. I shifted back and forth between auto and manual with the same results several times, 4th gear, over 3,000 rpm, loss of power (no throttle response), max speed 60 mph. I nearly got rear ended, cars were dodging me. I was about to pull off the road and everything returned to normal. I read a similar report a few months ago from another "new" owner of an Optima and the dealership "couldn't find" anything wrong. I now have read lots of warranty-denied horror stories with kia. This seems like a transmission problem. I imagine it could be a "computer problem" as there are lots of computers in these new cars. I can't find any TSB's listed for transmission related problems, but am wondering how many others have this "elusive" condition?.

Problems start in 2012 engine recall in 2017 was replace,steering recall in 2018 steering coupling was replace how ever my rack and pinion was affected and needs to be replace. We call them in 2012 regarding the steering wheel witch they didn't fix at that time which caused rack and pinion to wear out. We went to three different dealer ships regarding this car and nothing was done. This car is still giving us problems and we want the manufacture to either give us our money back or fix this problem this car is a hazard to our family, if something is int down some one is going to get hurt in this car!!! . This car stop on us in traffic someone could of gotten hurt ,aaa had to pull this car to the selma dealer ship at that time. On the freeway the steering wheel would pull side to side that's dangerous. From 2012 until now this car is still giving us problems. We have all the paper work that was done on this lemon. Why don't someone help these consumers out here with these problem on the kia. I need help as ASAP. Sincerely, [xxxxx] parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).