Eight problems related to seats have been reported for the 2012 Kia Motor Optima. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2012 Kia Motor Optima based on all problems reported for the 2012 Optima.
2012 kia Optima ex with 67000 miles driver-side seatbelt dash warning goes off even it is buckled securely while driving.
The front driver's seat bolts loosened and came completely off the track. This could have caused me to crash as the seat was no longer stable and shifted about the car until I could get to a safe location. If I had gotten into a crash I would most likely not survived as there was nothing that held me in the car despite having my seat belt on. The vehicle is at the dealership now. There were no warnings that this seat was malfunctioning and the bolts were loosening.
Brakes do not work properly,changed pads but still same problem. A noise on engine and the vehicle does not speed more than 65-70 mph. Drivers seat don't work properly.
The car will not accelerate at a safe time frame. For example if I need to cross a busy street. I have to wait until there are absolutely no cars coming because when I accelerate my engine revs but doesn't move. I've been almost rear ended several times because the transmission will not go into gear. The engine will hit 8 or 9 thousand rpm then the transmission decides to catch and throw my head into the seat. Which if there is a car in front of me I have to be careful not to rear end them because of the sudden acceleration.
The seat has completely ripped open just from getting in and out of the car. Now I have duct tape the seat so it looks very trashy.
The drive and passenger seats are to low in this car. Almost had an accident because my wife who is 5' tall cant sit higher than the sideview mirrors, and they block her view. I test drove the car when we bought it, so didn't sit to low for me being 6' tall. This is a serious safety issue.
The front passenger seat is as low as it can go and there is no adjustment to heighten the seat. The vehicle is not cheap and you would think that the passenger would be able to adjust the height of the seat. Passengers can slide down easily with this feature/option gone. Not all passengers are under 5'10 and this is not good.
Front passenger seat is mounted far too low in all 2011 and 2012 kia Optima cars. A passenger will easily slip under the seat belt and could be seriously injured. Kia USA has been contacted and refuses to acknowledge this design defect, although it has been noted repeatedly by owners of these cars when posting on kia Optima forums online.
| Seats problems | |
| Front Seat Head Restraint problems |