Two problems related to check engine light on have been reported for the 2018 Kia Motor Optima. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2018 Kia Motor Optima based on all problems reported for the 2018 Optima.
When I was driving on the highway on 2/14/2011 a "check hybrid system" warning came on, check engine light, triangle hev light, a red battery light came on and car lost engine power. After my vehicle slowed traffic down due to not having power I was barely able to pull over to the side of the road by coasting the car to the shoulder. It would not accelerate what so ever not even with just the engine power. When I pulled over the big check hybrid system warning dissapeared and only the check engine light and triangle hev light stayed on. I had my children in the car and almost caused an accident. It was towed to my home and after I connected it to the wall plug for an hour the lights dissapeared. I'm afraid that if I take the car to the dealership that they wont be able to replicate this issue since the warning lights are no longer on and they tell me they cant find the issue and this happens again in the future. There are several forums where people have this same issue from 2014 hybrid models and up and has happened to them numerous times and the dealership tells them they cant duplicate the problem.
I leased a new #kia #optima #phev from you in July of 2018. In July of 2020, the charging cable lodged in the car and it took 4 hours for roadside assistance to remove it. On December 2, 2020, I got a check engine light and made an appointment for service, but before I could bring it on Dec 3, the check engine light became a turn engine off now light, and the car stopped dead in the middle of a busy highway with a wisp of smoke from under the hood, a dangerous situation. I had it towed to kia of delray. It's still there, they haven't told me what's wrong. It is 2. 5 years old with just over 18k miles on it. I leased the car when I lived in CA, and now live in FL, which is also a problem, as the dealership here just doesn't seem equipped to service a phev. The lease is scheduled to end in July 2021 but the manufacturer has refused to offer me an option to return the car early, yet it feels unsafe to continue to drive it (and it's not operational right now).