2020 Kia OPTIMA PHEV: complaints, problems and recalls
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
1 owner complaints analyzed
0 distinct recall campaigns
Not available median reported failure mileage
Scope: 2020 model year. Data updated: . 0 complaints include usable failure mileage. View data status.
This selection has limited data. It remains available for lookup but is excluded from search indexing.
Owner-reported patterns
Most common problems
Unknown Or Other is the most frequently named component, appearing in 1 of 1 complaints (100.0%). A complaint can name multiple components.
Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic
Matching reports
Share of complaints
Braking behavior
1
100.0%
Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
Unknown Or Other
1
Component breakdown data
Category
Count
Unknown Or Other
1
Unknown Or Other: 1
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
Under 25,000
0
25,000 to 49,999
0
50,000 to 74,999
0
75,000 to 99,999
0
100,000 to 149,999
0
150,000 and above
0
Reported problems by failure mileage data
Category
Count
Under 25,000
0
25,000 to 49,999
0
50,000 to 74,999
0
75,000 to 99,999
0
100,000 to 149,999
0
150,000 and above
0
Under 25,000: 0; 25,000 to 49,999: 0; 50,000 to 74,999: 0; 75,000 to 99,999: 0; 100,000 to 149,999: 0; 150,000 and above: 0
No usable failure mileage is recorded. 1 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.
Complaints over time
Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.
2022
1
Complaints over time data
Category
Count
2022
1
2022: 1
Pattern summary
Unknown Or Other leads the component reports. Braking behavior appears in 1 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.
Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.
Examples from the source records
Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.
Vehicle dash warning light started flashing and told me to turn off vehicle. There were no shoulders on the road where I was. I smelled a burning smell (like a belt -not brakes). I stopped and turned the car off. Very dangerous!!! Not impressed that the dealership or manufacturer allowed this vehicle to be re-sold! I turned the vehicle into the service department. Do NOT want this vehicle back! Lemons should not be on the road!!!
0 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.
No recall campaigns are recorded in this snapshot.
Explore the data
Vehicle analysis explorer
Inspect model-year patterns, reported mileage, monthly activity and the evidence behind each signal.
Data completeness
1 unique complaints in this selection. Analysis snapshot: 2026-10-01.
0.0%Usable mileage0 / 1 records
100.0%Valid incident date1 / 1 records
100.0%Valid filing date1 / 1 records
100.0%Ordered incident and filing dates1 / 1 records
Missing, zero and invalid mileage is excluded. Dates after the snapshot are excluded. Examples are limited selections, not a representative sample.
Problems by model year
Model-wide comparison of the eight most reported components across the model. Cells show counts and shares within each model year. Open a cell for source examples.
Component complaint heatmap
Component
2017
2018
2019
2020
Engine
1147.8%ODI 11193782
I HAVE 2017 KIA PLUG IN I HAD TO REPLACE BATTERIES SYSTEM TWICE WITHIN A YEAR. I ALSO HAVE A ENGINE KNOCKING AT 26000 MILES THAT THE DEALER CLAIMS IS A THAT WAS CAUSE BY SERVICE DONE TO OIL FILTER THAT DON'T MAKE NO SENSE. NO OIL LIGHT OR ENGINE LIGHT WENT OFF. FURTHER MORE AFTER THAT HAPPENED THE ELECTRICAL WENT OUT. THE KIA COMPANY'S REFUSE TO FIX IT. THE VEHICLE HAS 5 YEAR WARRANTY.
ERROR MESSAGE "CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM. TURN OFF ENGINE" WITH YELLOW CAUTION TRIAGLE SHOWING EXCLAIMATION POINT AND HEV" CAME ON, AT HIGHWAY SPEED VEHICLE DROPPED TO FROM 65 MPH TO 40 MPH SUDDENLY, EXITED FREEWAY, TURNED CAR OFF AND RESTARTED...VEHICLE HAD LOSS OF PROPULSION, WOULD NOT GO OVER 20 MPH. STOP, AT STOP SIGN, AND WHEN I APPLIED GAS, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT GO OVER 10 MPH...ONCE SAFELY OFF THE ROAD, I TURNED ENGINE OFF, TOWED TO DEALER. DEALER COULD NOT DUPLICATE. 1 DAY AFTER PICKING UP THE VEHICLE FROM DEALER, SAME PROBLEM OCCURRED. …
For several years my 'check hybrid engine' followed by turn off engine. The dealership can not figure out the cause. Twice in the last month the engine has automatically shut off when the "check hybrid engine' warning light displays. I nearly had an accident because the brakes are much weaker when the engine shut off. Kia dealership is unable to find the source of the problem and says the car is functioning normally and to continue to drive it.
WHILE DRIVING MY KIA HYBRID A NOTICE CAME UP ON THE DASH BOARD TO IMMEDIATELY PULL OVER AND SHUT OFF MY ENGINE AND I WAS ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY GOING ABOUT 75 WHEN I LOST TOTAL POWER AND MY VEHICLE BEGAN TO LOOSE POWER. I WAS ABLE TO GET IT OFF THE ROAD AND IMMEDIATELY CALLED MY DEALER. I HAD KNOW ABOUT THIS BECAUSE A RELATIVE AND I BROUGHT THE CARS THE SAME DAY AND SHE EXPERIENCE THIS 3 TIMES.THE DEALER SAID IT WAS A SWITCH THAT GOT STUCK WHEN THE CAR GOES FROM ELECTRIC TO GAS. I SPOKE WITH KIA AND THEY SAID THERE IS NO FORMAL RECALL. BUT THIS …
WHEN I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY ON 2/14/2011 A "CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM" WARNING CAME ON, CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, TRIANGLE HEV LIGHT, A RED BATTERY LIGHT CAME ON AND CAR LOST ENGINE POWER. AFTER MY VEHICLE SLOWED TRAFFIC DOWN DUE TO NOT HAVING POWER I WAS BARELY ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD BY COASTING THE CAR TO THE SHOULDER. IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE WHAT SO EVER NOT EVEN WITH JUST THE ENGINE POWER. WHEN I PULLED OVER THE BIG CHECK HYBRID SYSTEM WARNING DISSAPEARED AND ONLY THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND TRIANGLE HEV LIGHT STAYED ON. I HAD M…
I LEASED A NEW #KIA #OPTIMA #PHEV FROM YOU IN JULY OF 2018. IN JULY OF 2020, THE CHARGING CABLE LODGED IN THE CAR AND IT TOOK 4 HOURS FOR ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE TO REMOVE IT. ON DECEMBER 2, 2020, I GOT A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND MADE AN APPOINTMENT FOR SERVICE, BUT BEFORE I COULD BRING IT ON DEC 3, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT BECAME A TURN ENGINE OFF NOW LIGHT, AND THE CAR STOPPED DEAD IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY HIGHWAY WITH A WISP OF SMOKE FROM UNDER THE HOOD, A DANGEROUS SITUATION. I HAD IT TOWED TO KIA OF DELRAY. IT'S STILL THERE, THEY HAVEN'T TOLD …
Vehicle dash warning light started flashing and told me to turn off vehicle. There were no shoulders on the road where I was. I smelled a burning smell (like a belt -not brakes). I stopped and turned the car off. Very dangerous!!! Not impressed that the dealership or manufacturer allowed this vehicle to be re-sold! I turned the vehicle into the service department. Do NOT want this vehicle back! Lemons should not be on the road!!!
While driving the car on the highway, when I try accelerating, the car suddenly acts as if it's in neutral and the engine roars without engaging a higher or lower gear and the car start losing power/speed. It takes like three to five seconds to engage a gear again; I have to lift my foot from the pedal a little bit and wait for it to lock on a higher or a lower gear for me to accelerate again.
I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALERSHIP THAT MY 2018 KIA OPTIMA PHEV WAS REPAIRED BUT AFTER I DROVE IT OFF THE LOT AND GOT ON THE FREEWAY THE WARNING LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN AND LOST ALL POWER. I ALMOST GOT INTO ANOTHER ACCIDENT BECAUSE OF THIS. THE DEALERSHIP SAID THEY WORKED WITH KIA TECHNICAL SUPPORT TO FIX MY CAR BUT APPARENTLY KIA DOESN'T KNOW WHAT'S WRONG WITH THEIR OWN CAR. THE VEHICLE HAS ONLY 19K MILES. I'M AFRAID FOR MY SAFETY AND MY FAMILIES THAT THIS WILL CONTINUE TO HAPPEN.
The contact owns a 2017 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the air bag and seat belt warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer for a scheduled repair of NHTSA campaign number: 18V161000 (Hybrid Propulsion System). After performing the recall repair the mechanic cleared the warning light however, the warning light returned soon after. The contact took the vehicle back to the same local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the driver’s and passenger’s side frontal airbags needed to be r…
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 KIA OPTIMA HYBRID. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 18V161000 (HYBRID PROPULSION SYSTEM). THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE CONTACT CALLED A LOCAL DEALER (JIM BONE KIA, 1255 SANTA ROSA AVE, SANTA ROSA, CA 95404, [phone removed]) AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. PARTS DISTRIBUTION DISCONNECT.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 KIA OPTIMA PHEV. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH, THE "CHECK BRAKES" WARNING MESSAGE ILLUMINATED. ALSO, WHEN THE CONTACT DEPRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL, IT TRAVELED ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE FLOORBOARD AND THE VEHICLE DID NOT STOP. WHEN THE CONTACT WAS TRAVELING ON AN INCLINE, THE VEHICLE ROLLED BACKWARDS TO A COMPLETE STOP. THE VEHICLE WAS ENGAGED IN PARK AND THEN TURNED OFF. THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED AND OPERATED NORMALLY. THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN TO GERALD KIA OF NORTH AURORA (201 HANSEN BLVD, NORTH AURORA, IL 60542) TO…
For several years my 'check hybrid engine' followed by turn off engine. The dealership can not figure out the cause. Twice in the last month the engine has automatically shut off when the "check hybrid engine' warning light displays. I nearly had an accident because the brakes are much weaker when the engine shut off. Kia dealership is unable to find the source of the problem and says the car is functioning normally and to continue to drive it.
Darker cells indicate a larger share of submitted complaints. Components overlap. This measures complaint composition, not failure probability.
Failure mileage by component
Median and middle 50% of usable owner-reported mileages. Ranges require at least five records.
Component failure mileage distribution
Component
Mileage range (25th–75th percentile)
Median
Usable records
Examples
No usable records for this analysis.
Complaint and recall timeline
Explore monthly filing activity alongside recall announcements. Up to ten years of monthly history is available.
Solid line: filed complaints. Dashed amber lines: recall announcement dates for this vehicle selection; markers include all recall components. The latest month is partial. Temporal proximity does not establish causation.
Monthly counts, recall campaigns and complaint examples
Monthly complaint and recall timeline
Month
Complaints
Campaigns announced
Examples
2024-11
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2024-12
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-01
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-02
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-03
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-04
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-05
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-06
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-07
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-08
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-09
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-10
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-11
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2025-12
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-01
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-02
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-03
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-04
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-05
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-06
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-07
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-08
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-09
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
2026-10 (partial)
0
None
No examples available for this selection.
Emerging complaint spikes
Complete months in the latest six months with at least 10 complaints, at least twice the preceding 12-month average, and at least three square-root deviations above that average.
This is a descriptive screening rule, not a statistical defect finding. Publicity and reporting changes can increase submissions.
No complete months meet the spike thresholds for this selection.
Equal-age model-year comparison
Model-wide cumulative reports during the first three or five calendar years, starting with the model year (age 0). Only fully elapsed windows are compared.
2019: 0 complaints · 2020: 1 complaints
Equal observation windows
Model year
Through age 0
Through age 1
Through age 2
2019
0
0
0
2020
0
0
1
Date coverage across each selected cohort
Date basis for all complaints in selected model years
Year
Incident dates used
Filing date fallbacks
Excluded dates
2019
1
0
0
2020
1
0
0
Incident date is preferred when valid and no later than filing; otherwise filing date is used. Model year approximates age. Equal observation time does not adjust for sales, distance driven or reporting delays. One complaint linked to multiple model years can appear in each cohort.
Components reported together
Each cell counts unique complaints naming both components. Open a nonzero cell for examples.
Component co-occurrence matrix
Component
Unknown Or Other
Unknown Or Other
—
Co-reporting does not establish that one component caused another concern.
Recurring narrative patterns
Specific keyword mentions beyond broad component labels. Matching includes negations and comparisons and does not confirm a diagnosis.
1 patterns with matching reports.
Warning lights and dashboard alerts
1 mentions · 100.0% of complaints
Median mileage: Unavailable (0 usable records).
ODI 11459106
Vehicle dash warning light started flashing and told me to turn off vehicle. There were no shoulders on the road where I was. I smelled a burning smell (like a belt -not brakes). I stopped and turned the car off. Very dangerous!!! Not impressed that the dealership or manufacturer allowed this vehicle to be re-sold! I turned the vehicle into the service department. Do NOT want this vehicle back! Lemons should not be on the road!!!