Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION | |||
| 04/18/2008 | 107695 | 1 | 01/10/2008 |
| Vehicle started to vibrate like wheels were out of balance. turned into driveway driver side rear wheel fell off with brake drum still attached to wheel . vehicle came to stop. kia customer service line contacted, because there was no active service bulletin offered no help. vehicle repaired at local firestone tire store. wheel spindle and inner and outer bearings replaced. *tr | |||
| 11/27/2006 | 25 | ||
| 01 rio is a lemon & safety hazard. many major repairs done including the timing belt & valves rebuilt, new cooling system, both control arms & boots. wheel defect recently recalled caused excess wear/ tear on control arms, boots, alignment, tires, costing thousands of avoidable repairs. fuel intake did come lose, nearly causing an engine fire due to defective part which was recalled. it continuously misfires, engine knocks, stalls. ecm was recalled but didn't fix the problem. replaced spark plugs & wires (3 times in 6 months), ignition coil, sensors (oxygen, knock, crankshaft, temp). it stops for a 1-2 days, then comes back. annoying & dangerous. also has acceleration problem. at times, it won't go over 40 mph & also accelerates by itself. brakes have completely failed, though there's no crack in the line, no leaking fluid. the car is a complete lemon. online, there are hundreds of similar complaints. dealers are aware but conveniently can't seem to diagnose the problems especially misfiring. consumers get nickel & dimed doing needless repairs that don't fix the problem. the optima had similar problems w/crankshaft pos. sensor which was recalled, but dealer denies any relation to problems with the rio. another problem - lack of availability & high cost of parts. its bait/switch to sell a car with known problems, then guess at needless repairs & sell parts at an astronomical markup. it's cheap to buy, but repair costs make it very expensive. research shows misfiring/engine knock has also led to engine fires. also problems with air bags. my airbag light has been on since purchased, but dealer has yet to fix it. also door locking problems, people being locked in vehicles. my drivers door locks by itself (manual locks). in case of engine fire or accident, a lock malfunction could cause unnecessary death/injury. these are known problems with hundreds of complaints, yet kia has done nothing to address them. the 01 rio is a lemon and safety hazard. *jb | |||
| 02/13/2002 | 4000 | 1 | |
| Steering wheel wobbled. this vehicle was replaced with a new vehicle, butproblem started again, dealer told consumer to have tie tires and the suspension checked. *ak | |||
| 06/07/2004 | 36279 | 1 | |
| Problems with 2001 kia rio.*mr the consumer's vehicle experienced multiple fuel system problems. the consumer received a recall notice in reference to the fuel distributor and main fuel tube assembly. the consumer contacted the dealer who indicated that the problems were not related. the vehicle also had other problems. the engine would hesitate while driving. the dealer replaced the spark plugs and wires. the rear end vibrated. the dealer replaced both rear dampers. the consumer heard a clunking noise during acceleration. the dealer determined that he motor mounts were cracked. the rear wheel bearings were worn excessively. *nm | |||
| 04/25/2002 | 9000 | 10 | 04/24/2001 |
| I have had my kia for 3 years now (bought on april 24,2001), after only having it one year(april 25, 2002) my two front tires were shredded all the way to the metal. the dealer said that my tires were only covered for a year so i had to replace them, come to find out it was caused by the alignment that showed no sign of being off. right after that the cooling fan shorted causing the engine to smoke and the car to be in the shop for 2 weeks because kia couldn't order the right part. soon after that both of my sunvisors broke to the point they are not usable. kia told me that it would be $35 each to replace, not covered under warranty considered normal wear and tear. my alignment has been fixed 4 times in 3 years with normal driving conditions and regular maintenance. the shifter ( automatic) has gone out twice. once resulting in kia having to replace the whole shifter. the car is constantly vibrating, really bad when a/c is on. the brakes have always made noise and occasionally stick dealer said there may be a recall coming out, that was 3 years ago, haven't heard anything yet. *jb | |||
| 1 | 08/17/2002 | ||
| Engine check light comes on repeatedly with cause unknown. the only corrective action dealership did was to change a code in the vehicle's computer system. faulure caused vehicle not to exceed 5 mph. *ak the brakes were making a loud noise, the air bag light was on, the left window was acting erractically, the regulator had to be replaced, the rear view mirro was inoperative, all 4 door seals were leaking water, there was a shimmy in the steering wheel, the shift indicator strip was out of poistion, the trim around the windshield was loose for the second time, there was a noise coming from the exhaust due to the shiled on the midpipe being loose.*jb | |||
| 04/15/2002 | |||
| While driving engine light came on, causing vehicle to vibrate, vehicle almost caught on fire. *ak | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT | |||
| 08/22/2008 | 81000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 kia rio. the contact stated that the wheel bearings on the vehicle are defective. while driving approximately 60mph and changing lanes she heard a rumbling metal type noise and then a loud clunking noise. at that point the driver lost all control of the vehicle. she got it to the side of the road and it was towed to a kia dealer. they informed her that a new spacer was needed. it was replaced and the remedy lasted approximately 6 month. the vehicle has been repaired eight times for this failure to date. the failure mileage was 45,000. the current mileage was 81,000. vin unknown. rd | |||
| 07/01/2004 | 7 | ||
| Problems with vehicle's engine. *mr when the consumer attempted to accelerate from slowing down, the vehicle jerked into gear. the dealer could not find anything wrong with the vehicle after several visits. many people have experienced this same problem per dealer. the front end made noises, and the vehicle had been taken to the dealer on five occasions for the air bag. *sc *jb | |||
| 06/24/2003 | 1 | 06/20/2001 | |
| Continuous problems with heavy vibration in the front portion of the car while driving over 40 mph. also, insurance has sky rocketed, can't afford it due to kia rios' reputation as a non-reliable car and hazardous. this was told to me by several insurance locations.*ak | |||
| 01/15/2002 | 1 | 02/16/2001 | |
| Airbag light has been on since january 2002. dealer found no problem. then on may 15 2002 consumer hit a mailbox at 45 mph, and neither airbag deployed. $ 4500.00 damage to vehicle. *ak the consumer replace front tires several times possible suspension problem. *yh | |||
| 08/28/2001 | 0 | ||
| When driving and without prior warning vehicle will shake and vibrate. dealership is aware of problem.*ak | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - CONTROL ARM - LOWER BALL JOINT | |||
| 06/09/2001 | 1 | ||
| While trying to get out of a parking space steering wheel made a very loud grinding noise when ever turning steering wheel real hard. took to dealer. dealer replaced ball joint and hub. next morning while driving on highway, steering came loose. ball joint and hub disintegrated. *ak tape player inoperatve. vehicle runs rough in mornings. trunk hard to unlock, dealer replaced trunk lock. right rear door lock stuck. rattle was present due to dash rubbing against carrier frame, dealer added insulation, noise ceased. *slc | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - HUB | |||
| 03/15/2005 | 69400 | 1 | 08/15/2002 |
| Wheel came apart while driving down the highway at 55 pmh. there was a noise before the wheel came. the car was repaired by the owner replacing the entire hub assembly on the front driver side. now the other side is making a clicking noise and may need to be replaced. | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - SPRINGS - LEAF SPRING ASSEMBLY - U-BOLT, LEAF SPRING TO AXLE | |||
| 08/05/2004 | 1 | ||
| Consumer heard a squealing noise in the right front side of vehicle. she was not sure whether it was a tire, tie rod or suspension. when she took vehicle to kia, they could not find anything wrong or where that noise was coming from. consumer insisted noise was getting worse.*ak | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - WHEEL BEARING | |||
| 02/09/2007 | 52595 | 6 | 08/03/2005 |
| Driving in traffic, made right turn into driveway at 30 mph and the engine died, steering was now unassisted. i rolled the car into a parking spot. the car started upon my return to the car. this has happened at least 6 other times since i've owned the vehicle. the car has less than 60, 000 miles and has amassed numerous repair issues: failure of automatic transmission; rear wheel bearing replacement; defective side mirror that screams at high speeds/freeway driving w/windy conditions; sun visors which do not adhere to placement; and windshield washer pump failure. upon acquiring the vehicle this was the first problem i took the car in for repair. and on subsequent visits, it has been an issue, but the problem persists. *nm | |||
| 09/14/2006 | 90400 | 1 | 01/01/2004 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while the tires were being rotated at an independent repair shop, it was determined the front wheel bearings were loose. the repair shop tightened the front wheel bearings. after the initial front wheel bearing tightening, during normal maintenance, the left rear wheel bearing was loose as well. the rear wheel bearing was tightened by an independent repair shop. there were no previous warning indicators for the wheel bearing looseness. the manufacturer was notified. | |||
| 04/24/2006 | 15 | 10/08/2000 | |
| Purchased car, 2001 kia rio, in october of 2000. within a few days airbag light came on. this occurred several times over a one year period and had to be taken back to dealer for repair at least four times. recall was received for fuel system. this was replaced without problem. next problem occurred with wheels, which was also a recall. i had to order the wheels which took at least a month to come in leaving me to drive to and from work, 65 miles each way, on violently vibrating wheels. wheels were finally replaced. problem occurred in winter 2005 with door latch. driver side door would lock and stay locked. vehicle was taken to original dealer for repair only to have old part repaired while being charged for new part and labor. within a few days, door latch failed again. took vehicle to another dealer who ordered new part. in the meantime i waited for part to arrive, and drove around in a car whose door didn't lock, leaving my car prey to thieves, who stole things constantly from me. finally this was fixed but, the passenger side door lock did the same thing. i look the car back to the dealer who told me that they could not fix it since my warranty was up and to fix it would cost me $700 or more. i've also noticed a problem with the car stalling in traffic. this is a new problem. example: i stop to get gas, start the car and turn out into traffic and the car shuts down. during the winter of 2005 while waiting for door locks to come in, my driver side wheel bearing went out. this was repaired but subsequently the next day after repair while driving into work, wheel bearing literally crumbled. had car towed to dealer who informed me that an old part was mistakenly put back on the car. this was repaired and replaced with a new part. these are all safety and quality control issues. *jb | |||
| 10/01/2004 | 15000 | 2 | |
| Deficient wheel bearing on kia rio. *bf recurring problems with the wheel bearings. the current wheel bearing problem was diagnosed as the tires. the noise still exists. the consumer requested reimbursement. *sc *jb | |||
| 5 | 11/24/2000 | ||
| While driving at highway speeds, engine stalls out. dealer said it was caused by corroded wiring under the hood. *ak the consumer states that two weeks after purchasing the vehicle, the vehicle died and would not start when traveling on the highway. a week later the vehicle wouldn't go in reverse, consumer was told that vehicle needed a new transmission. the vehicles airbag and engine light would stay on. replaced/repaired the following; replaced input speed sensor, repaired the open circuit/driverside airbag, replaced left front hub bearings,inner/outer seals, front brakes replaced, and the rotors machined. *scc | |||
| 05/01/2002 | |||
| Vehicle was making a lot noise. took vehicle to dealer ,and they stated that chunks of metal from wheel bearing were in brake drum. consumer stated wheel bearing had been replaced. please provide any further information.*ak | |||
| 02/26/2002 | 3 | 10/01/2000 | |
| Wheel bearings have failed 3 times in 6 weeks...twice rt rear, once lt rear...brakes have been making noise since car was nearly new, have been adjusted numerous times | |||
| SUSPENSION - REAR | |||
| 09/14/2006 | 90400 | 1 | 01/01/2004 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while the tires were being rotated at an independent repair shop, it was determined the front wheel bearings were loose. the repair shop tightened the front wheel bearings. after the initial front wheel bearing tightening, during normal maintenance, the left rear wheel bearing was loose as well. the rear wheel bearing was tightened by an independent repair shop. there were no previous warning indicators for the wheel bearing looseness. the manufacturer was notified. | |||