The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the traction control, Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Keep Assist, and auto high-beam warning lights were illuminated. The contact also stated that the four windows failed to function as needed. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 156,000.
2016 Kia Optima visibility complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 38 of 38, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that on four occasions while the vehicle was parked and the window switches were depressed on all the windows, the windows failed to roll up or roll down as intended. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the driver's side window regulator had become dismantled, allowing the glass to move up and down. The contact was informed that the window regulator and panel assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired each time. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 21,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, there was a loud knocking sound coming from the engine, with the check engine, oil, and battery warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the contact noticed that all four windows failed to function properly and failed to roll up. The dealer was contacted; however, the cause of the failure was not yet determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacture was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 124,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she became aware that the driver's side window was not functioning. After which, all the windows in the vehicle failed to operate as needed. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with all four window regulators. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 70,000.
2 of my windows drop when i go over a speed bump....i have already gotten the motors replaced for the windows (front driver, and back driver sides)....i don't even use the POWER up/down FOR the back windows AT ALL because i am the only one that drives my car (wondering why this is happening for this)....when i took my vehicle for these windows to be replaced, even my mechanic says there should be a recall on these windows and that this should not be happening....NOW my back passenger window is doing the same thing and again i don't even let the BACK WINDOWS down...someone can break in my car by just literally SLIDING the window down (OMG!!!!!!!!)....there are no warning lamps for this..i noticed this happening when KIA fixed one of my recalls
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the rear passenger’s side window failed to roll up as needed. The contact’s spouse pulled the window up manually. The contact stated that months later while driving approximately 65 MPH, the rear driver’s side window fell into the door. The contact’s spouse manually pulled the window up. The contact stated that several months later while driving approximately 75 MPH, the failure occurred with the driver’s side window. The contact took the vehicle to a certified mechanic and was informed that the window regulator failed and that the window panels needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 107,000.
Both rear windows, independently and at different times, have needed to have the gear inside the door panel that rolls the windows up and down replaced due to spontaneous stripping and total failure. The dealer has replaced the offending parts, which are sold only as part of a much larger / very large component panel, i.e. it is not possible to replace only the small plastic stripped-out gear. My safety was at risk both times because the window would not go up, resulting in my inability to lock and secure my car. If I had small children who ride in the back seat (I don't, but surely others who have this car do), I would not be able to secure their safety inside the vehicle. The problem has been inspected, confirmed, and repaired by the dealer. It is a known recurring problem by the manufacturer Kia, but they refuse to issue a recall. The first time it happened the car was still under warranty so there was no charge to me. With the second window the car was no longer under warranty and I had to pay the full cost of the repair. There were no warnings of pending failure; the windows were rolled down and just failed to roll up. I wish to state for the record that although this is a 2016 model and therefore is now 7 years old (in 2023), it has only 14,000 actual miles on it, i.e. I drive the car only around town for errands, etc. From 2017 (when we purchased the car) through mid-2020, I drove it 18 miles per week to my part-time job very near my home. I retired in mid-2020 and drive the car even less now. Furthermore, I've had riders in the back seat probably less than a dozen times in 7 years, my point being that the rear windows are rarely used. Mostly they have been used by me as the driver when I want to release built-up heat from the car when it has been sitting all day in the NC summer sun and I'm going out once or twice a week to drive it somewhere (like the grocery store). This failure should not be happening with a car with so little usage on it!
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.
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 MPH, the sunroof fractured without impact. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the sunroof needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact learned of a lawsuit regarding the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 70,000.
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.
Three power window regulators have failed over the course of a year. Without warning the window suddenly drops down and cannot be let up. On each occasion, the regulator gears appear to have just desecrated. The car windows are rarely let down. The passenger side rear was the first to fail. The driver's side rear failed 4 months later. The passenger side front was the third to fail 3 months later. It seems like this is a very common problem, but Kia has not set up a recall. Instead, they are raising the price of the window regulators. Interestingly enough, the new regulators have a blue gear instead of a white gear.
Complete power window failure (driver and 2 rear windows). Estimated repair cost is $2,084.90. This model has a history of power window defects that Kia Motors is well aware of. Over time, this defect becomes increasingly severe until you have a complete without warning failure like in my case. Kia Motors refuses to acknowledge problems and stated there is no recall by the federal safety agency. I want a full reimbursement for my out of pocket payment for untimely repair cost.
Driver window back window (driver side) passenger window won’t let down and need window regulators. I’ve had one replaced before
Right passenger window dropped down. It came off regulator track for no reason with a child in a car seat sitting at that window putting that child's safety at risk.
All 4 windows in my car has dropped down and won't go back up. Have to put a car cover over it to keep it from raining in it or to keep anything else out of it. I rarely rolled my windows down in this car every since I have purchased it and all of a sudden all the windows just drops down. This is a defect on the company part and not mine and i want to find out why I never received a recall letter to this effect for I have seen and read that there were cars recalled for the same problem that I am having with mine.
The contact's grandmother owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at 25 MPH, the rear driver’s side window inadvertently fell. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road and pulled up the window manually. She then inserted a piece of paper in the upper right corner of the window to keep it in place. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred while driving. The front and rear driver’s side windows and the rear passenger’s side window also inadvertently fell. The contact inserted pieces of paper in the upper right corner of each window. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed. The dealer informed the contact that the vehicle would be repaired at her expense. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but did not provide any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 83,500.
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the daytime running headlight would inadvertently blink on and off and turn off. The contact was unable to drive the vehicle at night due to the failure. Also, the rear driver’s and passenger’s side windows were inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the dealer could not replicate the headlight failure. The dealer replaced both rear windows. However, the failure recurred with the front driver’s and passenger’s side windows. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact to take the vehicle to the dealer but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
Without heavy use (I don’t often have passengers in the back seat), driver side rear window regulator/motor failed in May, causing the rear window to fall into the door while driving. This is a major safety issue as anything can go through the car - rain or debris. It was roughly $600. This weekend, the same thing happened to another window out of the blue while having my dog in the back who nearly jumped out after it fell into the door. Now, the part is backordered and the Kia dealership has said it could be months before the window can be repaired and they offer no solution on how to keep the window up in the meantime. This is an expensive safety issue and should not be failing in multiple windows. My car only has 65k miles on it.
The contact owns a 2016 Kia Optima. The contact stated the passenger's side and rear driver's side window became inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact called the local dealer however, the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The contact removed the door panels and noticed that the power window regulator was corroded. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 48,000.
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.
Tl* the contact owns a 2016 kia optima. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the driver's and passenger's side rear windows started to roll down independently. The contact was unable to roll the windows back up. 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 the window regulators to be replaced. The vehicle had been repaired but continued to experience the failure. The manufacturer had not been informed of failure. The failure mileage was 37,222.
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 a 2016 kia optima. While driving approximately 55 MPH, a loud explosion was heard. The contact stopped the vehicle and discovered that the glass sun roof had exploded and shattered without warning. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 27,000. *bf
Tl* the contact owns a 2016 kia optima. While the vehicle was parked outside the residence, the sun roof exploded. The vehicle was driven to classic kia carrollton (2920 n interstate 35e, carrollton, tx 75007), but was not diagnosed or repaired because the vehicle was out of warranty. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 80,500.
When the car encounters a hill and needs to downshift, either to climb or to hold back the speed when it descends, the cruise control remembers the downshift and will not return to high gear until a) it is manually overridden, but will still downshift up to 2 gears, when the lever is placed back to automatic or, b) when the cruise control is turned off. The cruise control also belatedly reacts to loss of speed control and overcorrects with too much power, resulting in a crude ride, as well. The workload is increased dealing with getting the car to attain top gear on flat roads, and is creating unsafe conditions, in my opinion. I have attempted to get this attended to at the dealership, and they continue to not fix the issue, as well as inform me I shouldn't be using cruise control on hills. My 2014 kia optima did not exhibit these issues, nor any other of my cars which had cruise control. There is a problem and these people will not fix it. The consumer stated the heat does enter the foot well area.
Tl* the contact owns a 2016 kia optima. While driving approximately 40 MPH, the contact heard an explosion. The contact pulled into a parking lot and noticed that the entire sun roof had shattered. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 5,039.
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