Kia Optima wipers problems

Filed May 19, 2026 · Engine · 75,309 miles · IN · fire

The contact owned a 2015 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while driving at 65 mph and slowing down to enter a parking garage, she observed black smoke emanating from under the hood, and the vehicle stalled. The contact then observed flames near the windshield wipers coming from under the hood of the vehicle. The contact exited the vehicle and called 911. She observed flames coming from under the hood and under the vehicle, and the vehicle became engulfed in flames. The contact stated that the garage manager attempted to extinguish the fire but was unsuccessful. The police and fire department arrived shortly after the attempt, and the fire department extinguished the fire. The contact did not sustain any injuries. A police report was not taken, and she was not aware of any fire department report being filed. The vehicle was bulldozed out of the parking garage and towed to a tow yard. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a complaint was filed. The failure mileage was 75,309.

Filed Feb 8, 2025 · Brakes, Driver assistance · MI

Sometimes when I drive it will say my forward collision is blocked so it will disable but it normally shuts off. Tonight I'm driving on the freeway a steering wheel pops up then blind spot abs traction and a few more lights come on then it say check headlights those are dimming the radio is cutting off. The wipers aren't working but the car is still accelerating then all of a sudden the car goes from 55 to 0 the wheel locks and I have to coat to the side of the road.

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 Feb 23, 2023 · Engine · 117,843 miles · GA

Purchased 2017 Kia Optima from DriveTime in 2021. Car burns a lot of oil, as I am constantly getting the oil changed or adding oil. A few months after purchase, all of a sudden it loses power & decelerates while I’m driving on the interstate. Had to pull over & let car sit for a few minutes. Every 10 mins I had to do this. Had it checked out the next day at Kia dealership & was told nothing was wrong. I let the car sit for about a month b/c I was afraid to drive it. Finally decided to drive it & the issue seem to resolve itself. Now almost 6 months later it happens again. Car wouldn’t accelerate over 40 mph. Car warranty agent advised to take to Firestone( in-network repair shop). Mechanics say the engine is gone & they called warranty company , & then they say take to Kia dealership. Dealership states if it’s the engine there are 75 cars with same issue ahead of me. They ran diagnostics 2 weeks later & said it’s not the engine but gave me a long laundry list of other issues. Said new wiper blades needed (not true , the new blades were just put on 1-2 months prior, said oil change needed, but that was fine 3 days before I took it to them , & more issues with a invoice total of over $6500!! They kept my car over 2 months with no call to update me after I advised everything they said was wrong actually wasn’t. I called daily & left messages with no return call. Finally got someone on the phone in the Service dept & was told it still isn’t the engine but just needed a software update. I still don’t trust it & afraid to drive it. But yet & still the VIN # is still not on the recall list. Regret the day I walked on the DriveTime parking lot. Nothing but issues from day 1. Too bad I couldn’t list them all here.

Filed Sep 19, 2022 · Engine · 95,000 miles · FL · fire · 1 injury

The contact owns a 2015 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving at 35 MPH, smoke was coming inside the vehicle. The contact had to stop the vehicle and turn off the vehicle, when the contact restarted the vehicle, he saw flames coming from the windshield wipers. While opening the hood of the vehicle to see where the flames were coming from, the contact burned his hands. Medical attention was not required. The vehicle burst into flames. The fire department was able to extinguish the fire. The vehicle was towed to a repair facility. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 95,000. The VIN was not available.

Filed Feb 24, 2022 · Steering, Visibility · 20,000 miles · TX · fire

The contact owns a 2013 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving at 55 mph during rain, the windshield wiper where violently wiping and there was a burning odor coming from the steering wheel. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 200,000.

Filed Sep 18, 2021 · Body · CA

I understand this will not sound like a safety issue, as I felt the same initially, but it is. My paint has been peeling off my Kia Optima for almost two years and sometimes the paint comes off in little pieces and other times it peels off in 6-12 inch sheets. Paint will come off during driving and while being washed. When driving the paint will fly to the back of my car and land of the ground, looks like snow is flying thru air. I have had safety issues to date. First tIme was on my way to work and a large section of paint came up from the bottom of the windshield area and stuck to my windshield. Not only did it scare me, but it blocked my vision.windshield wipers would not move it. I had to quickly pull over to remove it. Second time the same thing happened, but it landed on the windshield of the car behind me. I was unaware it happened until they pulled up next to me at the red light and got out of their vehicle to yell at me and removed the paint sheet. I understand this might not sound serious, but when something comes flying out of nowhere and lands on your windshield blocking your sight it is quite terrifying. I am not sure if this has happened to others with my same paint defect, but I know by researching my paint defect over the past two years, there are thousands of complaints on the internet about paint peeling off. When I contacted Kia in 2019 (corporate in Irvine, Ca), they informed me it was definitely a paint defect that originated during the painting process. Since there was not a recall isued, they were not going to pay for the car to be re-painted. At that time only the top of my car was affected, but now the majority of my car is losing paint. At this time I am wanting Kia to pay to have the car repainted, refund the cost of the vehicle or provide a credit to put towards a new car. At this point my vehicle is basically worthless because I can't sell it as is and trading it in results in me only getting approximately 30% of what the value is.

Filed Jul 20, 2021 · Visibility · AL

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.

Filed Apr 10, 2021 · Engine · 100,000 miles · AR · fire

I had just left the construction zone on I-30 eastbound in benton, ar. I was in the left lane when the car began acting jerky as if it was trying to accelerate. I started to cross over to the right lane when I noticed smoking coming out the back. I got on the right shoulder, parked in front of exit 118, and turned off the vehicle. I was in my vehicle calling a ride when I noticed a gentleman running towards me yelling, "your car is on fire!" I got out of my vehicle, went around to the passenger door to retrieve my purse and laptop bag from the front passenger seat, and moved as far as possible to the rear of the vehicle. By the time, I had retrieved my items out of the front seat, there was smoking coming from the hood of the vehicle. By the time, I had begun walking to the rear of the vehicle, you could see flames coming from the hood. I was calling 911 as I walked to the rear of the vehicle. The cause of the vehicle fire is unknown. However, the vehicle was serviced the day before by k & a tires in malvern, ar. The camshaft was replaced, an oil change was completed, and the windshield wipers were replaced. Unfortunately, the invoice was in the glove department of the vehicle. The owner was given information that the vehicle was/is under an the federal safety agency recall# 20v519.

Filed Dec 3, 2019 · Visibility · 75,000 miles · GA · fire

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