2019 Kia Optima: What to check before buying

Oil disappears between changes with no visible leak. This is the dominant pattern, and most reports cluster around 92,000 to 107,000 miles. Owners describe the oil light flickering while driving, dipsticks nearly dry well before the next change, oil-fouled spark plugs, misfires, limp mode, and stalling in traffic. Shops often recommend a new engine or long block. Owners just past warranty coverage say Kia declined to pay. Two complaints describe engine fires, one in a car whose engine had already been replaced.

Fires are the most serious issue here. Three reports describe smoke and then flames from under the hood, one shortly after the car was parked, with no warning lights beforehand. Burned cars were totaled. More often, the check engine light flashes, the car shakes and loses power, and dealers point to the ECU. Some cars light up with ABS, traction, and collision warnings at once, then stop in traffic or lock the steering. Other complaints cover USB connections that drop, repeated battery failures, and A/C electrical faults.

Heavy oil burning with shaking, misfires, and oil-coated spark plugs and coil packs leads this category, usually past 100,000 miles. Some cars stall or fall into limp mode repeatedly despite several dealer visits. Others develop engine knocking or fail outright, with metal shavings found in the oil. Transmission complaints include shudder when pulling away from a stop, repeated dual-clutch replacements, and a car that lunges forward instead of engaging reverse on a downhill. One owner reports harsh, clunky downshifts after an engine software update.

Snow White Pearl paint bubbles, chips, and flakes off without any impact, usually starting on the hood, trunk, or roof. Small spots spread across the body and expose primer or bare metal, and one owner reports rust. Onset ranges from about 34,000 miles to 100,000. Owners say dealers and Kia refuse repaint requests because the paint warranty has ended. A separate complaint says a skid plate screw can puncture the oil pan, draining the oil and risking a seized engine.

Airbags fail to deploy in serious crashes. Reports include head-on impacts with a pole and a parked car, side impacts at intersections, and a highway rear-end collision. Of 12 complaints, 9 involve crashes, and 11 people were injured, with a fractured sternum, a concussion, and neck and back injuries among them. Other owners see the airbag warning light come on with a passenger airbag circuit fault. One owner's car sat parked for months waiting on a backordered passenger airbag module.

The brake pedal sinks to the floor or the brakes fail to engage, and several drivers hit guardrails, poles, or other vehicles. Other complaints describe the opposite problem: the car brakes hard on its own with nothing ahead, often after forward collision, blind spot, ABS, and traction warnings appear. One dealer traced these warnings to a rear wheel speed sensor at about 20,000 miles. Dealers sometimes find nothing wrong. Four reports involve crashes, with 3 injuries.

Automatic emergency braking activates with nothing ahead, at highway speed or mid-turn, and in one case caused a rear-end crash that totaled the car. Other drivers report the system failing to brake on ice or showing a blocked-sensor warning before a crash. Warning lights also come on at startup. Dealers blame a sensor obstruction or a failing hydraulic control unit, or cannot reproduce the fault. Five of the 10 complaints involve crashes, with one injury.

The car hesitates or fails to accelerate, sometimes with a flashing check engine light, and can stall while merging. Several cases start early, at 8,801 and 15,000 miles. One dealer replaced a knock sensor harness, while another could not duplicate the problem. On one hill, the brakes grabbed and locked, and the car rolled backward while in drive. Another owner needs new spark plugs and coils every 4 to 6 months because of oil burning. One crash report describes brakes locking and the car leaving the road.