Wiper Problems of Kia Motor Optima - part 1

My 2015 kia Optima has always had issues with the passenger side window getting stuck. Apparently there was a technical service bulletin, and recalls for the 2016 model but not 2015. My son was driving the vehicle the window got stuck and then shattered into 3 pieces. This is a huge safety issue and kia does not want to take any accountability for this. A recall needs to be issued immediately to protect people from shattering glass!!!!! I did open up a case with kia and so far nothing case#[xxx]. Meanwhile my car has been sitting at beck and masten kia in tomball waiting to be repaired. Why must we pay for this when I complained for months it was a problem and my warranty just expired!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! this is not safe. Please issue recall and investigate immediately! information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

See all problems of the 2015 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

All 4 of my windows regulators went out within a week without any warning the two front windows went down and I can’t get them back up the two back windows are up but I have something holding them up which is dangerous because I can’t put the child lock on for my children because I can’t let the windows in case I have to get them out.

See all problems of the 2016 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

This is about paint damage on my Optima is a known factory paint defect. This factory paint defect, specifically paint delamination causes bubbling, peeling then flaking off in large chunks while driving, has been reported on 2015 kia Optima with white pearl paint. The damages ares are exposed to the metal, subject to rust and corrosion. On 5/30/35 kia in ontario, CA. Body shop manager yvonne ramirez inspected my vehicle and immediately confirmed the paint damages to the exterior of my vehicle is a known factory paint defect on 2015 Optima with white paint. Yvonne instructed me to contact corporate kia, report the case, receive a claim # then contact her to schedule an appointment for the repair. On June 3, 2025 kia reopened case number [xxx] originally reported on June 11, 2024. No claim # issues, no repairs made. Safety concern: the paint damage has affected both sides of the adhesive inside the glass securing the windshield. This is a nation wide problem. Owners have documented and continue to keep reporting this problem to kia, NHTSA, autoline and bbb. Several class-action lawsuits have been filed against kia in USA and canada. This is also happening to Toyota, Honda & Subaru. It’s basically all the car manufacturers who are using this pearl white paint. The amount of Optima owners dealing with the massive rapidly spreading paint defect to their vehicle is over whelming. December 2023 my 2015 kia Optima sxt pearl white beautiful exterior paint began to bubble, peel, flake followed by large chunks of paint falling off even while driving. This started on the roof top right and left of the rear window. February 2024 - the same paint damages started on the right and left sails/pillars next to the front wind shield and is causing damage, bubbling and spreading through out the left and right side of the glass. It is a safety concern. March 2025 - the same paint damage started on the top right truck with huge chunks of paint falling off while driving. Help information redacted pursuant to the freedom of inf.

My 2013 kia Optima sunroof exploded as I was at a stop, about to turn into work. I experienced a pop and had glass falling on me within seconds. There were no recent rock experiences and the road was completely clear. After dealing with the initial clean up, I drove to an auto glass shop to have it professionally removed. The glass was bowed and left with a large hole, almost like it had just exploded due to pressure or a faulty piece. I almost always have my daughter with me and I’m so grateful she was not in the vehicle. This could have resulted in injury or even a collision due to the terrifying nature of glass shattering above you. My insurance does not cover comp, however I do work for an insurance agent and he did view the damage. No claim can be filed as the repair and replacement for the damage has to come out of pocket.

See all problems of the 2013 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

My complaint is regarding the rear windshield, which came with the vehicle when I purchased it new in 2016 from a kia dealership (santa fe kia, santa fe, new mexico). The Optima has never been in an accident. Over the last several years, the rear windshield has become increasingly blurry making it difficult to see traffic behind me. This situation is worse particularly at night. The blurriness is both from the outside looking in and inside looking out. I have called several kia dealers and they claim that they are not aware of the problem, and have told me that the windshield is not warranted.

3 of the 4 windows have had failures in the window regulators and the windows do not work.

Was driving vehicle on freeway, around 65 mph, smooth road, no bumps, no indication of any road debris and suddenly heard a loud cracking/exploding noise which was extremely startling. After hearing some outside wind noise and the sound of glass pieces rattling, I realized that the glass panoramic sunroof must have broken somehow. Luckily I had the interior fabric shade closed, so no glass pieces entered the cabin to injure anyone. After getting out of the car, I could see around a 12 inch diameter hole in the sunroof glass. The remaining glass that was still attached was full of cracks. I have created a case with kia consumer affairs and waiting to hear back from them. The vehicle has not received any outside inspection as of yet for this incident. There was no prior warning to this issue, no creaking noises or visible cracks.

See all problems of the 2018 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

Three of the 4 window regulators have unexpectedly failed leaving the window partially open. The passenger rear failed on 11/2022. The driver's side rear failed on 8/2022. The passenger front failed on 3/2023. On each occasion, the window failed where it was partially open. And none of the windows were in the process of being raised or lowered. The gears on each of the regulators had basically disintegrated. The window regulators are around $200 each for just the parts and they are not covered under the warranty. The new regulators come with a blue gear instead of the original white gear.

Window regulator failed. Broke while it was 4 degrees outside and middle of snow storm. Seen this is a common problem that should be recalled . As repairs will cost me $600 that I dont have . !!!.

I have owned my kia Optima for several years and I've had issues with the windshield wipers not going fast enough. I work from home so I do not travel that often but just recently went on a trip & was on the interstate when it started raining very hard. I could not see the car in front of me at all, not even their tail lights. I understand visibility is always worse when it rains but all the other cars were still going at a steady pace & passing me. I had to pull over on the side of the interstate until the rain slowed down to just a sprinkle before I could see well enough to drive. This caused me a great amount of anxiety because I didn't know if I was going to run into someone or if I was even in the right lane. I have several friends that also have the kia Optima 2015 & 2016 models and they have said the same thing. The speed on the windshield wipers is extremely slow compared to other cars we tested this on & I feel this is a major safety concern. I pulled up google reviews on this issue & there are a lot of people complaining about the speed not being fast enough.

I was driving on the freeway at about 70mph when my panoramic sunroof suddenly exploded. It was not hit by a rock or any sort of debris, it exploded completely on its own without warning. The loud explosion caused me to swerve and panic brake as glass shards rained down on me from the broken sunroof.

See all problems of the 2012 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

I constantly have to replace headlight bulbs,brake light bulbs and fog light bulbs like 2 to 3 times a year and my lights on dim is too dark and not aligned correctly,for the headlights one side shine up and the other shine down on several occasions I had to replace the whole headlight fixture because the bulb got so hot it melted into the fixture around it.

See all problems of the 2011 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

The right rear window suddenly rolled down while driving. Checks reveal that the motor that controls the upward/downward movement was inoperable. I took it to the dealer and they confirm the motor needed changing. I explained to them that I am the only user of the car and the back seat has never been used, they still charged $650 to replace the motor. Six months later the same thing happened to the rear left window. I am not in a position to pay another $650, so I tried to place paper in the space to hold the glass in place. Now today the right front glass just rolled down while driving. I spoke with a kia driver I saw in the parking lot at walmart and he stated that he had similar problems.

While driving about thirty miles per hour in traffic I heard a bang and my sunroof exploded. Thankfully the sun shade was closed or shards of glass would have hit me. The car behind me swerved probably to avoid the glass. It was scary and I initially thought an accident had occurred. The manufacturer needs to figure out how this happened and change the design to prevent it.

The paint is defective/chipping. Now, rusting has occurred.

See all problems of the 2014 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

Front of sunroof glass panel shattered vehicle was stationary in a parking lot.

My low beam lights have no visibility and I have been researching online used headlight assembly because it costs $400 for both sides that I dont have I replaced my low and high beam bulbs the high beams work just fine but as I was doing research a high percentage of this make and model have the same reoccurring problem I seen where they have recalled 2011 and up for this problem but I guess decided to not worry about the older models I can understand that but that is my only means of transportation for work and my daughters now it is getting darker earlier and I can't afford to drive around with my bright lights on and the air bag light will not go off.

See all problems of the 2007 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

Tl-the contact owns a 2012 kia Optima. The contact state that when driving at 65mph the vehicle stalled intermittently and engine light and tire sensor light illuminated while the failure occurred. The contact was able to move onto the road shoulder inspected under the hood and found smoke and within a moment the flames was under the hood and the vehicle was on fire. The contact stated that before the engine failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to doug smith kia 495 w main street american fork, ut 84003 phone (801) 692-4390 to have NHTSA campaign number 18v907000 (engine) performed. The contact also stated that a recall for under frame corrosion protection was also performed. The dealer checked engine and was unable to see any problem with the engine and provided a free oil change, and replaced dip stick to the orange color, the calilfornia fire department extinquish the fire. The California state patrol departmen was also present a police report was not filed. The contact suffered smoke inhalation and scrapes from glass. The vehicle was towed to the contact home. The contact also stated that the air conditioning system did not work properly after recall was performed and caused the defrost system failed. The failure mileage was 130,000. Li.

Headlights very dim no matter what bulb you put it. Cannot see more than 3ft in front of you when driving at night. Visited do not stay up fall down blocking view.

I can not see the car on the right if I want to switch lanes on a high way. In traffic I get not zoom in and out of lanes, either I (the driver) or the passenger needs to turn their head in order for the driver to turn right. I tried the little mirrors that you stick on but that did not work. When I test drove it, I did not realized it for I drove it regular roads.

See all problems of the 2017 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

2012 kia Optima ex with 48000 miles now driver-side headlight stopped working, so as of now I am driving with passenger sidelight in combination with parking lights. Buying kia Optima is the biggest mistake I have ever done, it seems every month something goes wrong with this vehicle. Surprisingly NHTSA has not taken any action as per kia Optima well known defects.

The rear view mirror is situated too low, creating a large blind spot in the center of the windshield. Often, at a 4-way stop, the car approaching from the right is completely blocked out. Driver is forced to crouch down so as to look under the mirror in many driving situations. This has nearly caused an accident a number of times.

Tl the contact owns a 2016 kia Optima. The contact stated that all four window regulators failed. The contact was unable to get the windows to move upward and close. The contact took the vehicle to kia delray (located at 2255 s federal hwy, delray beach, FL 33483, 561-637-5500) who stated that the window regulators failed for all four windows and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and provided authorization to repair the rear windows. The manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: 13306734. The approximate failure mileage was 72,000.

Tl- the contact owns two 2016 kia altima. The contact stated while driving 60 mph, when the both rear windows started to roll down independently. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated he was unable to close the window. The vehicle was taken to local dealer rick case kia located 14500 w sunrise blvd, sunrise, FL 33323, (954) 715-7580, where it was diagnosed with needing window regulator to be replaced. The vehicle had been repaired but continued to experience the failure on October 2019. The contact stated he had experience the same failure with both vehicles. The manufacturer had not been informed of failure. The failure mileage was 37,222. Dp.

Windshield wipers smoking after fuse changed not working causing burning smell from wheel reported at 75000 miles at 115000 day out of warranty. . If my airbag or car catch on fire due to this issue I am coming for kia.

Tl-the contact owns a 2019 kia Optima. The contact stated that while the driver drove at 40mph the vehicle fix pane glass abruptly fractured. The vehicle was taken to an unkownd dealer. There was no injuries to report. The manufacturer was contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure milege was 3,100. Li.

See all problems of the 2019 Kia Motor Optima 🔎.

Oil is completely empty before 1000 miles after an oil change. Have switched to synthetic oil and used additives. Nothing has helped and I am adding at least 6-8 quarts for 3000 miles. Also the headlights are horrible. I can not see 10 feet pass my front end at night. This is extremely dangerous and new bulbs do not help. It is a known problem, but kia could care less. Not only can I not see but I'm driving a death trap that will most likely catch fire like thousands of the 2013 have already. How do these car companies get away with this?.

When winter (the cold)comes my back up camera stops working. I looked it up online and lots of people have the same problem with kias.

Tl the contact owns a 2015 kia Optima. The contact stated that the window was jammed in the down position. The failure occurred without warning. Prestige auto sales (n8890 WI-57, brillion, WI) diagnosed that the window regulator failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 74,620.

Was driving through a tunnel when I heard a loud pop, and then the sounds of glass shattering and wind. The sun roof of my car was completely cracked. The interior sun shade was the only thing that prevented me from having a glass shower.

My wife was driving on the freeway at 6:20 p. M in the slow lane at 65 mph when she heard a loud explosion and the sunroof shattered. There were no vehicles in front of her or around her that could possibly have kicked up a rock or debris from the road. She was also not passing under an overpass or bridge. Luckily, she was able to control the car and was not physically hurt in the incident. This vehicle has a panoramic sunroof and the moving part of the glass sunroof shattered.

Driving home and my entire back window shatters out of no where. Looks like it cracked around the edge.

The engine seized while driving on the highway. This has als resulted in the climate control system including the defrosters and radio to malfunction.

The contact owns a 2013 kia Optima. While the vehicle was being driven highway speeds, a pebble struck the windshield and caused a minor crack. Upon trying the clean the area, the contact noticed the film on the windshield was starting to detach. The dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000.

My four year old daughter and I were in the car and while driving, the sunroof exploded. It was so loud, almost like a gunshot. A small amount of glass entered the car. I was driving straight, southward, near the osceola exit on I 55. There was absolutely no sign or evidence of anything hitting the glass. Weather conditions were clear and the temperature in osceola today was a high of 76 and low of 68 degrees fahrenheit.