2012 KIA OPTIMA — Complaint #1987871
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING filed April 30, 2024
NHTSA complaint #1987871 (ODI reference 11586122) concerns a 2012 KIA OPTIMA and was filed on April 30, 2024. The owner reports the failure occurred on February 20, 2024. The vehicle had 222,100 miles on the odometer at the time of the incident. The report was geocoded to Texas based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as engine and engine cooling, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.
The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: no, fire: yes, injuries: 0, fatalities: 0. A complaint that flags a crash, fire, or fatality is escalated on NHTSA's internal review queue and factors more heavily into any Preliminary Evaluation decision on this make and model. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.
Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same KIA OPTIMA cohort independently describe similar engine and engine cooling failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 2012 KIA OPTIMA shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Optima. The contact stated while at a complete stop at the traffic light, she noticed that there was smoke coming from underneath the driver's side of the hood. Additionally, the vehicle stalled and failed to restart. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact exited the vehicle. The contact stated that there were flames coming from underneath the hood. The fire department extinguished the fire but declined to provide a copy of the report to the contact. No police report was filed. There were no injuries sustained. The vehicle was pushed into a parking lot. The vehicle was then howled to the residence the following day. The dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V652000(Service Brakes, Hydraulic) and 17V224000(Engine and Engine Cooling). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and sent a field inspector, who inspected the vehicle at the
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 1987871 |
| ODI Number | 11586122 |
| Date Filed | April 30, 2024 |
| Failure Date | February 20, 2024 |
| VIN | 5XXGN4A73CG |
Similar ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING Complaints for 2012 KIA OPTIMA
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the engine was knocking at startup. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V224000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); and the VIN was inc
Dear NHTSA, I am submitting a formal complaint regarding my 2012 Kia Optima, which experienced an engine fire directly related to the defects identified in Kia Safety Recalls SC147, SC200, and SC201.
See attached document for complaint.
The contact owns a 2012 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving downhill at approximately 40-45 MPH, the vehicle shut off. The battery, oil, and check engine warning lights were illuminated. The
The contact owned a 2012 Kia Optima. The contact stated that while at a stop light, smoke and flames were suddenly present coming from the engine compartment. The fire department was called to the sce
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.