2013 Kia Optima Hybrid problems
NHTSA has received 92 complaints about the 2013 Kia Optima Hybrid, and 24% of them involve electrical system. Next are brakes (17%) and engine (16%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 92 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 24% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 3 and 2
- Injuries and deaths
- 3 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 67,000 miles 73 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 11 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 7 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 15 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 16 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 8 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 7 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 3 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 2 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 3 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 1 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 73 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 67,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 51,000 miles (17 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 3 complaints mention a crash; 2 complaints mention a fire; 3 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2013 ranks 2nd most-complained-about out of 5 model years of the Kia Optima Hybrid with enough data (47 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 2 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Vehicle surged forward while in motion to park in a parking space. Brakes failed to stop vehicle from a very slow speed of 5-10 MPH approximately. Has done this on occasion at highway speed a sudden surge so a braking would relieve problem.
To whom it concerns, I have a great safety concern related to the optima 2013 hybrid braking system. I am not sure if the behavior I am going to describe is typical or defective. When traveling at speed, with the cruise set, I find that any sudden and hard hit to the brakes will activate some type of automatic braking system. The braking system feels like ABS and sounds very mechanical however the braking system does not deactivate after I remove my foot from the brake.
The vehicle has had a hybrid safety warning lighting up. It goes on and then the vehicle powers down to 25 MPH. This happens at random when driving specially in cold weather.