2008 Kia Optima: engine stalls while driving

Filed Apr 11, 2017 · Engine · 145,000 miles · FL

My 2008 kia optima stalls randomly. It does not matter if the car is stationary or in motion. There are times that I start it and it will stall immediately and sometimes it will stall as I am backing out of my parking space. There are also times when I will be driving and it will stall which has nearly caused an accident. The problem does not produce a check engine light and no one has been able to successfully diagnose the problem. The issue that I am experiencing sounds very familiar to the newer optimas that have recently been recalled. The most recent stalling occurred yesterday, 04/10/2017, and there was a knocking sound along with the stalling out.

Filed Sep 24, 2014 · Electrical, Engine · 62,000 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 kia optima. While driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle immediately restarted and resumed normal operation. The failure occurred numerous times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but the cause of the failure could not be diagnosed. The manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 62,000.

Filed Jan 31, 2014 · Acceleration, Engine · 86,464 miles · OR

Engine started making a clicking sound when the car was accelerating. Took my car in to kia and found out that one of the rods in the short engine block was failing. My engine only has 86464 miles on it and its an 2008. Bought the car with 69000 miles on it, only had the car for 7 months before the engine began to fail. I took this problem up with the dealership and kia headquarters. Was told they would not honor the 100,000 mile warranty because the car was not certified. I was not offered a warranty/ did not obtain an extended warranty, was not disclosed to that the 10 year 100,000 mile warranty did not extend to the next owner, nor was I told that they could not certify it. Was not offered a car fax, buyers guide or told about any type of warranty information. Kia dealerships do not certify cars after 60,000 miles even though there is still 40,000 miles on the original warranty. There way of getting around having to honor the original warranty and offer this to the next owner(s). Very angry with kia, they are deceitful, liars, and do not stand behind their product. They should not be able to sell any cars with out the original warranty being offered! With a history of there engines failing and having major mechanical problems I find it very disgraceful how they operate and enforce policy. If my engine actually fails while I am driving, I could easily get into a major accident and be critically injured. I drive a major freeway every single day, and to me this is very dangerous. If my engine failed and stalled going 70 miles an hour, I could easily be killed or get into a major accident. Please recall 2008 optimas or complain to kia regarding there policy. They should have to offer and stand behind the original warranty or be required to disclose there policy to customers up front. Commercials and parking lot advertise per owned certified cars and 100000 warranty.

Filed Nov 1, 2013 · Engine · 96,000 miles · WI · fire

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 kia optima. The contact stated while traveling approximately 35 MPH, smoke emitted from under the hood and the vehicle stalled. The contact also mentioned that the vehicle failed to restart. The failure was not diagnosed nor was the vehicle repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was 96,000.

Filed Jan 16, 2012 · Engine · 36,000 miles · PA · crash · 1 injury

My 2008 kia optima stalled, without warning, while driving approximately 35-40 MPH on a busy highway near an exit. The car lost all power, including steering. The car ended up riding a guardrail and landed on top of it. The end result was, for me, a broken neck! There was absolutely no warning prior to this happening. I was on my way to pick my 3 year old son up from school. Had he been in the car, this may have been catastrophic! My airbags did not deploy! This is unacceptable. The car is undergoing bodywork repairs and I am scared to death to step foot in this death trap ever again. Calls to the kia dealer where I bought the car go unanswered, as they usually do. This is serious! If your optima has stalled while driving without warning please post a complaint. This needs to be a recall!

Filed Aug 2, 2011 · Engine · 45,000 miles · FL

2008 kia optima 4cyl automatic. I live in florida, hot all the time, use air almost all year. Car will stall out while in motion within first few minutes while AC is on when I am slowing down to stop signs or when crossing intersections where I have to get across quickly then let off gas to make turn. Car becomes hard to steer when engine cuts off, worse than a car without power steering, sometimes it feels like it wont make it through the intersection to the median safely. Can start the car again, but it takes a few seconds to throw car into neutral, turn ignition, and put back into drive. As I said this happens a lot while going through the turn of intersection/ divided highway and those few seconds make the difference between a safely timed turn and a potential collision. Problem occurs frequenlty for a week or two, then goes away for a while and comes back. Once the engine has warmed up and has been moving for 5 minutes or so, it doesn't happen. Took it to kia dealership since this vehicle has 45000 miles on it and is still under manufactures bumper to bumper warranty, dealership service department said they were aware of the issue with that generation of optimas and that it was only with the 4cyl motors, the v6's were fine. Service department said at this time there is not a fix for it and would not replace any parts since they don't know which part(s) are causing the malfunction. Was told to let my car warm up longer and to hope that kia/hyundai comes up with a recall on it soon.

Filed Jul 16, 2010 · Engine · 28,000 miles · TN

2008 kia optima stalls while in motion. Vehicle will shut itself off. It is as if someone reaches over and turns the key off. It has happened with the car standing still and with the car in motion. Stalling usually occurs within first few minutes of operation and with hot outdoor temperatures. First visit to kia resulted in replaced fuel tank (codes for bad roll over valve). Problem went away for about a year then came back. Car has been in the shop 4 times over the last month and a half. Shop can't duplicate the problem, so therefore, can't fix the problem. The car is subject to shutting itself off at anytime with no warning, the last occurrence happened just before my wife was to merge onto a busy highway. Apart from fuel tank, dealer has done nothing substantial to repair the issue (computer update, tightened loose wires).

Filed Jul 29, 2008 · Transmission · 700 miles · NV

My new kia has about 700 miles on it, and when I park it on an incline such as the one entering my garage and I shut the engine off and place it into 1st gear (it is a standard shift), the car slips backward. Upon taking it to the dealership, they informed me that the engine compression in the car is too low to hold the car in 1st gear alone, and that the emergency brake must also be applied. My question is: I have a 3 yr old grandson, but let's suppose he is 5 and he wants to go out and play, which he could do unsupervised, and he decides he wants to get in grandma's car and play and accidentally lets the emergency brake off. My car would then begin slipping backward with the child inside. I consider that to be a big safety hazard. Further I have always been taught that if your parking brake fails, the gear box would still keep the car from rolling backwards. 2. My car stalls fairly frequently in 1st gear, and very frequently in reverse, both incidents occur when the car is inching up or out of a parking space. The dealership said they are looking into it and will let me know, but again, in heavy traffic this runs the risk of being rearended. If you can inform me on either of these items, I would appreciate it as the dealership doesn't seem inclined to do anything about either problem at the moment. It may just be a fuel to air ratio mix going into the engine on the stalling, which should be simple enough to fix, but surely the compression in the engine can also be adjusted so the car will not slip backward when in first gear.