Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||||
| 034 | 01/30/2004 | 10005649 | Voluntary service campaign sc034 to reprogram the engine control module (ecm). vehicles experiencing stalling during idling or at near stopping conditions. letters to kia service managers, dealers and questions and answers sheet. *tt | 03/09/2004 | |
| 034 | 01/01/2004 | 10005653 | This bulletin provides information on service campaign to reprogram the engine control module (ecm) on certain models produced from 5/4/00 through 10/31/02. *tt | 03/09/2004 | |
| 034R | 02/01/2004 | 10005614 | This revised bulletin provides information on service campaign to reprogram the engine control module (ecm) on certain models produced from 5/4/00 through 10/31/02. *tt | 03/08/2004 | |
| 013 | 10/01/2003 | 013 | 10004001 | Low ambient hard start in all 2003 and some 2004 1.6 dohc models. revised. *tt | 11/12/2003 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE - BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | |||||
| 82 | 01/01/2005 | 10015272 | Improved timing belts for the kia rio and optima. *tt | 07/13/2005 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | |||
| 02/22/2007 | 52067 | 2 | 01/01/2007 |
| 2003 kia rio with defective engine. customer states that the dealership told her that a new engine was put in the car in june 07 but it continues to smoke, overheat and cut off**cc the consumer was told the head gasket needed to be replaced. the tail lights were inoperative. the dealer replaced the bulbs. the lights inside the vehicle were inoperative. they replaced the main wiring harness. the consumer had to place the gear into neutral, in order to start the vehicle. the dealer adjusted the transmission range switch. *jb the consumer stated that her vehicle is at the dealership yet again being fixed. updated 08/23/07. *tr | |||
| 07/14/2006 | 47144 | 1 | 06/28/2006 |
| While driving on the highway at approximately 60 mph, the car lost total power without warning. the driver was able to steer and control the car and coasted to the side of the road. several cars had to swerve out of the way as they were going the speed limit but the car concerned was going significantly slower. upon inspection, the timing belt sprocket was hanging outside of the plastic cover which was burning from melted plastic. the car is within the limits of the warranty and we are awaiting a final diagnosis from the dealer and coverage determination from the manufacturer. *jb | |||
| 09/09/2004 | 1 | ||
| Consumer noticed that the engine light appeared on the dashboard and remained on. consumer drove vehicle to dealer for inspection, and mechanic replaced the sensor inside the vehicle. *ak | |||
| 08/10/2004 | 7800 | 1 | 11/17/2003 |
| While driving up a hill, the vehicle temporally lost power. the dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak | |||
| 05/01/2004 | 5000 | 9 | |
| While driving 70 mph vehicle decelerated to 30 mph. no impact reported. *ak | |||
| 09/15/2003 | 0 | ||
| In june i was having a over heating problem. if i went up a hill the car would heat up to the peg. it needed a new thermostat. the engine blew up & i had to have a new one. now their is something wrong with the transmission, so kia has sent for a new transmission. i'm afraid to go anywhere for fear that something else will happen to it. i'm alone, therefore i needed something i can rely on. | |||
| 07/15/2003 | 1800 | ||
| In april 2003 i bought a 2003 kia rio cinco for my family. when i try to start it in the morning it will not start. it takes about six to ten tries to get it started. then it runs bad for miles. it also runs very hot and it seems the more i drive it the less preformance i been geting. my brakes are also bad when i first drive it after it sits for hours. kia told me that it all has to do with the reformuladed gas we use in milwaukee and chicago. after months of people at kia not calling me back and tring to resoulve this with kia i am interested in a class astion law suit. | |||
| 05/15/2003 | 1000 | ||
| The car cuts off while driving the car has a hard start, it takes at least 3 tries for it to stay on the brakes squeak loud when coming to a stop | |||
| 02/23/2004 | 1 | ||
| While driving vehicle stalled. driver tried to restart the vehicle, and the engine light appeared on the dashboard and remained on until the vehicle was turned off. consumer was able to drive the vehicle to the dealer for inspection, and mechanic determined that sensor needed to be replaced. *ak | |||
| 09/17/2003 | 5 | ||
| In cold weather the vehicle was very difficult to start. anytime the vehicle was left to warm up it would stall out. the vehicle has not been to the dealer. *nlm | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||
| 04/07/2009 | 11462 | 1 | |
| While driving down the road with my two year old in the car, the engine seized up and stalled. the car currently wont start and had to be towed to the repair shop. however, we just had all of the routine maintenance to the car less then 300 miles prior to the engine seizing. the check engine light never came on. as of today, they don't know what the problem is except that the engine seized. there was no prior incidents with the car and it was always serviced on time. *tr | |||
| 09/26/2008 | 72000 | 1 | |
| Timing belt broke at 72000 miles without warning. kia says change at 60000 miles in ky, but warranty in ca allow for 105000 mile change. kia refused to honor warranty. stranded for 45 minutes. had to pay diagnostic testing at kia dealer. *tr | |||
| 05/21/2008 | 112000 | 1 | |
| Bought 2003 kia rio new. in jan 2005 at about 53,000 miles i heard a rattle at about 50 miles per hour. in a few seconds the engine just shutdown (timing belt broke which destroyed the engine) kia replaced under warranty. may 21 2008 while driving about 45 miles per hour we heard a squeal and again the engine shutdown. coasted to a stop, once again the timing belt which means another engine (58,000 since the last engine) no longer under warranty (an engine cost almost as much as the car itself). *tr | |||
| 09/01/2003 | 260 | 4 | 09/04/2003 |
| The consumer took the vehicle to dealership to check for a strong odor inside of the vehicle. the fumes/odors became very heavy when driving which caused the driver to become ill. the consumer was informed by the mechanic that the odor the driver was smelling was called kosmoline and would eventually disappear. *ak there was a nauseating smell of burning rubber or plastic from the time of purchase. the consumer was allergic to the smell after breathing the melting kosmoline and or undercarriage for over 3k miles. the smell had come from the vents as well when the vehicle was stopped. the vehicle experienced a hard start from a cold start the dealer was unable to duplicate the problem. *sc *jb | |||
| 10/03/2003 | 250 | 3 | |
| While driving 35 mph steering wheel would pull to the right, and a loud noise would be coming from the steering wheel. also, vehicle would stall for no reason while driving. driver would maintain control and pull to the side of road. had vehicle towed to dealership, and mechanic could mot determine the cause of either problem.*ak | |||
| 2 | |||
| While driving vehicle would run hot. dealer has replaced the engine once, and replaced automatic transmission twice. however, problem continued. dealer had not found a solution for the problem. *ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE - BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | |||
| 02/18/2006 | 109000 | 1 | 07/21/2003 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while attempting to turn a corner at 10 mph the timing belt broke. the vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop where it was determined as being the timing belt rendering the engine inoperable. no repairs have been made. | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - EXHAUST SYSTEM | |||
| 04/17/2011 | 80020 | ||
| I bought my 03 kia rio in 04 and within a mo. have had problems ever since. i took it to the dealership every month for the first 2yrs when it was still in warrenty. there was always something constantly wrong or breaking. the tail pipe raddled extremely loud to the point of slightly shaking the car, randomly when i would came to a stop. it was so loud that people in other cars could hear it and stare. of course the repair shops could never find the problem. i finally gave up ever having it fixed. ive paid 7 times to have the auto windows fixed but finally gave up because they would only work about two days before braking again. the car always had issues accelerating and would stain making noises shake a bit then after 10 seconds make a pop pop noise and finaly start moving faster. which again could never be fixed. the car also had horrible suspension. every little pump made the car bounce and squeek loudly. also could never be fixed. i think ive spent more time in the shop having the car repaired then i actually did driving it. every time i blinked something else was broken i replaced almost ever peice of the car; battery twice, all four tires twice, head lights, etc those are just the small things ive also had the car completly brake down about 6 times with major repairs. now my car is completly dead 4/17/11 the timing belt snapped and destroyed the engine so i have to buy a new engine and timing belt all which cost more then the car itself the car only has 80,000 miles on it so that tells you how much i actually got to drive it in the last 8yrs. i made sure to constantly keep up on maintance as well. i will never buy a kia again its a weight of my shoulders to get rid of such a peice of $hit. kias are made with such cheep materails and made so poorly that everything on them brakes and falls off. please anyone reading this dont buy a kia you will regret it. i just want to save someone else from a nightmare | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - EXHAUST SYSTEM - EMISSION CONTROL - CATALYTIC CONVERTOR | |||
| 08/16/2003 | 50 | 1 | |
| When it rains the vehicle fails to start. also, the catalytic convertor is giving out a rotten egg odor that comes through the air vents. dealership was not willing to service the vehicle. they were only saying it takes a year before the smell goes away. *ak *nm | |||