2013 Kia Optima: brake failure

Filed Mar 10, 2025 · Engine · 147,000 miles · OK

The contact owns a 2013 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that the power steering assist and brakes failed when the vehicle stalled. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the engine had seized and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact had been advised by the dealer that the VIN was not included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 17V224000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 147,000.

Filed Feb 27, 2024 · Brakes, Electrical · CA · crash

I was driving up the [XXX] north and where [XXX] merges to [XXX] I'm going 65mph on the far left side, and my dash starts beeping and reads WARNING STOP VEHICLE CHECK BRAKES. MY brakes go out, pedal to the floor sounding like grinding gears and doing some major damage, my acceleration stopped working. The [XXX] is merging on the left side so i had to avoid major traffic. I am a driver with skill as i dodge slowed and stopped vehicles, and get to the shoulder before [XXX]. I call for roadside assistance because kia says its free and its not. I was looking around the engine to see what the heck and unplugged the hybrid fuse and battery from back and suddenly it worked again and drive it home and right before I park I made a right turn, and it started beeping again, and this time it stayed this way. I almost lost my life, and I did lose my job because of it. GLENDALE'S CARSPRO KIA SERVICE DEPARTMENT IS THE WORST DEPARTMENT EVER!, they would not help me get a tow, I paid for the tow. THEY CHARGED CLOSE TO 5 GRAND FOR A REPAIR, Hydraulic brake booster module, AND A COUPLE HUNDRED FOR THERE HIGHEST SERVICE OPTION (Changing fluids, wipers, wash, detail, etc) this was a huge mistake and took nearly two months! My car had dust on it THEY DID NOT EVEN CHECK THE PRESSURE I HAD IN MY ALL 4 TIRES (EMPTIED UNTIL 25PSI) I started the vehicle and it started to hiccup as I idle I asked for the manager (a tall husky middle eastern guy with long hair and glasses). He replied "DOES YOUR CAR HAVE A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON" I said "no" he said "comeback when it does." I have received paper work from KIA corp stating that i could be reimbursed. I sent that document in and never herd from them again. I call customer service i even went to the Service dept and THEY ERASED MY SERVICE RECORD! Finally happened, with my car still Hiccuping, Rare ShutoffAlarm. I exit fw on green Light, made left; Alarm, No brakes, No gas, Hit curb, Near PEDESTRIANS, Trans Leaks, Part Recalled, No Results, New problem! INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FR

Filed May 28, 2023 · Brakes, Electrical · FL · fire

My car is a total lost. Car caught fire while I was driving with my 2 Daughters. Brakes went out had to jump out of car.

Filed Apr 23, 2022 · Brakes · IA · crash · 1 injury

When leaving work on 1/6/22, I didn't let my car warm up for more than 1 minute because I was in a hurry to get home. It was very cold - I think -10 if I remember right - and I had just passed through an intersection about 2 blocks from work where road construction closed the road to one lane. The car in front of me stopped because someone in front of him was turning. I had plenty of time to stop & hit my brakes but had no response, much like not having power brakes, but the pedal felt very firm. As cold as it was, there was no ice or snow & the road was dry. I had no traction control or ABS lights come on & ended up rear-ending the car in front of me. The police came & made a report & I came home & checked KIA forums to see if this had ever happened to anyone else but didn't find anything. I explained it to my KIA service advisor but they found nothing wrong & had no explanation. I thought I had maybe imagined it until it happened again, also on a very cold morning, about 2 weeks later in my own driveway. Just no response of the brakes. I couldn't push the pedal hard enough to stop the car. I also mentioned it to my insurance adjuster who just said to let them know if I found out anything further, which I didn't. I never thought to report it here until my husband had an issue with his car recently & was advised to do so. Even extreme cold should not affect a system as important as the brakes on a car & I believe this is a major safety concern. My accident was minor because I was not traveling at a high rate of speed & was at a safe distance, but the brake failure was still the cause of the accident. When the failure happened in my driveway, I had braked when pulling onto the road but didn't stop. If another car was coming or I was pulling out at the end of my street where there are 4 lanes of 45mph traffic, this could have been disastrous! Please notify me of any steps taken by KIA to remedy this issue. Thank you.

Filed Sep 9, 2021 · Engine · SC

My car said warning ⚠️ do not drive and my brakes went out when I was able to stop I cut off the car then back on and it wouldn't move .I was on the highway when this happened.

Filed Jul 2, 2019 · Engine · 95,000 miles · OH · fire

My brakes felt like they locked up and gas pedal went to the floor so I pulled into a parking lot. I wasn't sure of the problem at all. I left it there for approximately 4hours before coming back to it. I wanted to see if the problem still existed before calling a tow truck. After I hit the ignition to start my car it began to smoke in the engine. I called 911 and by the time they got there it began to shoot flames from the engine. All the damage was in the engine and it was completely melted to nothing. My insurance adjuster said she had never seen anything so bad like that in an engine. The man at the collision center told her that it looked like it was fueled by gasoline in the engine. Obviously there was something wrong in the engine for this to happen. I am just glad I wasn't driving down the road when it happened. I don't understand how a vehicle can be sitting stationary and catch on fire. My car is at a total loss according to my insurance adjust today. I am very frustrated with what happened and now I am without a car. I want some answers as to why my engine caught on fire and I feel that kia needs to take responsibility for what happened. This was the first car I have ever purchased on my own and I have not even had it a year and this happens.

Filed Oct 3, 2018 · Engine · 8,000 miles · CA · fire · 1 injury

My car (kia optima 2013) was part of the recall in 2017 and in december 2017 my car came to a complete stop on a very busy freeway in california. I had my car tow to the dealership. They replaced my engine because it was part of the recall. 9 mos later september 16th 2018 my fiancee was driving down a hill on a california freeway and he had no brakes and other drivers were honking and yelling your car is on fire. He used the emergency brakes to try and slow down to exit the freeway he was picking up speed because he was going down hill the car was was starting to fill up with smoke. He was hoping the windows would go down and they did he start exiting freeway pushing on the emergency brake slowing down approaching a curb turning the wheel towards the curb still rolling he jumps out oft the car running away from vehicle. Just seconds after he gets out he said the car just was in flames burning from the engine tires popping and windows breaking out. The car has only 8,000 miles on new motor the whole car had 108,000 the was a 2013 5 years old

Filed Feb 19, 2015 · Acceleration, Brakes · 13,131 miles · OH

Vehicle in reverse backing up on steep driveway, foot on fuel pedal, car began its automated hill holding function, while in reverse, heard high RPM, transmission was slipping into neutral, car began rolling forward, put foot on brake, brake failed, car accelerated rapidly, and engine died, then hit the wall inside the garage. I estimated, speed at time of impact approximately 10 to 15 MPH. Noticed another entry filed similar to this,had same fuel, brake fail symptoms.