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What 1,000 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Kia Optima

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (1,000)Crash / fire / injury (103)Engine (617)Electrical system (134)Brakes (89)Body & structure (76)Steering (68)Fuel system (54)Transmission & drivetrain (49)Speed control (35)Engine & cooling (29)Airbags (26)

2 of 1,000 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Sep 7, 2023Transmission & drivetrainEngineFuel systemCrash

I HAVE 2015 KIA OPTIMA GREY OR PLATINUM GRAPHITE EXTERIOR COLOR SINCE AUG 2019 I HAD AN TBONE ACCIDENT LAST DEC 26 2021 WHICH IAM NOT AT FAULT FOR NEVER RECEIVED ANY TYPE OF COMFORT CARE CLAIM IT WAS DURING COVID PANDEMIC I WAS IN THE PROCESS OF GRIEVIANCE BEING HATE LEFT IN DESPAIR ALSO JOB LOSS WITH NO INCOME UNSTABLE LIVING SITUATION WHICH I WAS LIVING ON MY PERSONAL VEHICLE BEEN GOING THROUGH FINANCIAL HARDSHIP UNTIL PRESENT I HAVENT BEEN DRIVEN UNTIL I BROUGHT TO KIA DEALERSHIP JAN 1ST OF 2023 DUE TO MY PERSONAL INJURY AND CAR ACCIDENT IT WAS LEFT PARKED GOT TOWED WITH BUSTED WINDOWS HAD MY PERSONAL BELONGINGS BEING GONE MISSING.... I HAVE ROUGH YEARS... IT WAS DIFFICULT FOR ME TO GET BACK UP IN MY FEET MY CAR HAS RECALLS ARENT BEING REPAIRED FAIRLY. THIS WILL BE MY FIRST TIME TO ADHERE MY CONCERNS I WOULD LIKE TO GET SOME ASSISTANCE IF POSSIBLE...I THANK YOU IN ADVANCE

NHTSA ODI 11543067

Dec 14, 2020Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemEngineFire

DRIVING NORTH BOUND ON THE 405 AT FREEWAY SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE SHOWED SEVERAL WARNING LIGHTS ON THE DASH. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, OIL LIGHT AND 2 OTHERS, THE VEHICLE LOST ENGINE POWER AND ONLY HAD BRAKES. I WAS ABLE TO SHUFFLE OFF THE MAIN FREEWAY TO AN OFF RAMP WHERE I PULLED OVER TO ATTEMPT TO POWER THE CAR BACK ON. THE SMELL OF ELECTRICAL FIRE STARTED TO BECOME APPARENT AND I WENT OUT TO LIFT THE HOOD AND SMOKE BEGAN TO COME OUT THE OPENING. I RUSHED TO GET MY KIDS OUT THE VEHICLE AND ATTEMPTED TO PULL THE BATTERY CABLE OFF TO TRY TO SALVAGE IT FROM CATCHING FIRE. I WAS ABLE TO WIGGLE THE BATTERY CABLE OFF BUT SMOKE CONTINUED TO COME OUT. THE VEHICLE WAS EVENTUALLY DROPPED OFF AT THE DEALERSHIP CAR PROS KIA IN GLENDALE AND IM BEING INFORMED THE STARTER WAS THE ISSUE AND WILL NEED TO BE REPLACED. IM UNCERTAIN ABOUT THE DIAGNOSIS SINCE THE EVENT OF THE VEHICLE LOSING ALL POWER OCCURRED DURING HIGHWAY DRIVING .

NHTSA ODI 11383416

Working with the data? Download all 1,000 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 19, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2015 Kia Optima verdict →