2012 KIA OPTIMA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 1,024 complaints · 0 recalls

Verdict & Safety Summary

Most-reported system: ENGINE (376 complaints · 36.7%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 29
  • Fires 82
  • Injuries 36
  • Deaths 0
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution ENGINE appears in 376 of 1,024 owner complaints (36.7%) in this vehicle snapshot. ENGINE: 376 complaints, 36.7% of reports ENGINE 376 · 36.7% · 4 crash reports 45 fire reports STEERING: 174 complaints, 17.0% of reports STEERING 174 · 17.0% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports SERVICE BRAKES: 66 complaints, 6.5% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 66 · 6.5% · 3 crash reports 6 fire reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 55 complaints, 5.4% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 55 · 5.4% · 2 crash reports 9 fire reports POWER TRAIN: 47 complaints, 4.6% of reports POWER TRAIN 47 · 4.6% · 1 crash reports FUEL SYSTEM: 40 complaints, 3.9% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 40 · 3.9% · 3 fire reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 30 complaints, 2.9% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 30 · 2.9% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 27 complaints, 2.6% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 27 · 2.6% · 2 crash reports AIR BAGS: 23 complaints, 2.3% of reports AIR BAGS 23 · 2.3% · 5 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 195 complaints, 19.0% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 195 · 19.0% · 5 crash reports 19 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
ENGINE 376 36.7% 4 crashes · 45 fires
STEERING 174 17.0% 2 crashes · 1 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 66 6.5% 3 crashes · 6 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 55 5.4% 2 crashes · 9 fires
POWER TRAIN 47 4.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 40 3.9% 0 crashes · 3 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 30 2.9% 2 crashes · 1 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 27 2.6% 2 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 23 2.3% 5 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 195 19.0% 5 crashes · 19 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Oct 2011. 2011-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2012-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2012-Q2: 17 owner reports 17 2012-Q3: 14 owner reports 14 2012-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2013-Q1: 9 owner reports 9 2013-Q2: 9 owner reports 9 2013-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2013-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2014-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2014-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2014-Q3: 12 owner reports 12 2014-Q4: 9 owner reports 9 2015-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2015-Q2: 12 owner reports 12 2015-Q3: 14 owner reports 14 2015-Q4: 10 owner reports 10 2016-Q1: 23 owner reports 23 2016-Q2: 27 owner reports 27 2016-Q3: 29 owner reports 29 2016-Q4: 19 owner reports 19 2017-Q1: 12 owner reports 12 2017-Q2: 32 owner reports 32 2017-Q3: 29 owner reports 29 2017-Q4: 20 owner reports 20 2018-Q1: 24 owner reports 24 2018-Q2: 24 owner reports 24 2018-Q3: 33 owner reports 33 2018-Q4: 30 owner reports 30 2019-Q1: 41 owner reports 41 2019-Q2: 37 owner reports 37 2019-Q3: 40 owner reports 40 2019-Q4: 32 owner reports 32 2020-Q1: 31 owner reports 31 2020-Q2: 22 owner reports 22 2020-Q3: 31 owner reports 31 2020-Q4: 25 owner reports 25 2021-Q1: 34 owner reports 34 2021-Q2: 20 owner reports 20 2021-Q3: 17 owner reports 17 2021-Q4: 12 owner reports 12 2022-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2022-Q2: 13 owner reports 13 2022-Q3: 12 owner reports 12 2022-Q4: 16 owner reports 16 2023-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2023-Q2: 13 owner reports 13 2023-Q3: 9 owner reports 9 2023-Q4: 29 owner reports 29 2024-Q1: 28 owner reports 28 2024-Q2: 20 owner reports 20 2024-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2024-Q4: 9 owner reports 9 2025-Q1: 11 owner reports 11 2025-Q2: 9 owner reports 9 2025-Q3: 11 owner reports 11 2025-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2026-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2026-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2026-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 Owner reports Oct 2011 Jul 2026 Investigation RQ17003 ● Investigation RQ17003 Investigation DP18003 ● Investigation DP18003 Investigation DP18003 ● Investigation DP18003 Investigation PE19004 ● Investigation PE19004 Investigation PE19004 ● Investigation PE19004 Investigation EA19001 ● Investigation EA19001 Investigation DP21003 ● Investigation DP21003 Investigation EA21003 ● Investigation EA21003 Investigation EA21003 ● Investigation EA21003 Investigation DP22003 ● Investigation DP22003 Investigation DP22003 ● Investigation DP22003 Investigation DP22005 ● Investigation DP22005 Investigation AQ23002 ● Investigation AQ23002 Investigation AQ23002 ● Investigation AQ23002
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2011-Q4 Owner reports 2
2012-Q1 Owner reports 7
2012-Q2 Owner reports 17
2012-Q3 Owner reports 14
2012-Q4 Owner reports 7
2013-Q1 Owner reports 9
2013-Q2 Owner reports 9
2013-Q3 Owner reports 5
2013-Q4 Owner reports 5
2014-Q1 Owner reports 7
2014-Q2 Owner reports 6
2014-Q3 Owner reports 12
2014-Q4 Owner reports 9
2015-Q1 Owner reports 8
2015-Q2 Owner reports 12
2015-Q3 Owner reports 14
2015-Q4 Owner reports 10
2016-Q1 Owner reports 23
2016-Q2 Owner reports 27
2016-Q3 Owner reports 29
2016-Q4 Owner reports 19
2017-Q1 Owner reports 12
2017-Q2 Owner reports 32
2017-Q3 Owner reports 29
2017-Q4 Owner reports 20
2018-Q1 Owner reports 24
2018-Q2 Owner reports 24
2018-Q3 Owner reports 33
2018-Q4 Owner reports 30
2019-Q1 Owner reports 41
2019-Q2 Owner reports 37
2019-Q3 Owner reports 40
2019-Q4 Owner reports 32
2020-Q1 Owner reports 31
2020-Q2 Owner reports 22
2020-Q3 Owner reports 31
2020-Q4 Owner reports 25
2021-Q1 Owner reports 34
2021-Q2 Owner reports 20
2021-Q3 Owner reports 17
2021-Q4 Owner reports 12
2022-Q1 Owner reports 5
2022-Q2 Owner reports 13
2022-Q3 Owner reports 12
2022-Q4 Owner reports 16
2023-Q1 Owner reports 8
2023-Q2 Owner reports 13
2023-Q3 Owner reports 9
2023-Q4 Owner reports 29
2024-Q1 Owner reports 28
2024-Q2 Owner reports 20
2024-Q3 Owner reports 7
2024-Q4 Owner reports 9
2025-Q1 Owner reports 11
2025-Q2 Owner reports 9
2025-Q3 Owner reports 11
2025-Q4 Owner reports 7
2026-Q1 Owner reports 8
2026-Q2 Owner reports 8
2026-Q3 Owner reports 4
Defect investigation 1 RQ17003
Defect investigation 1 DP18003
Defect investigation 1 DP18003
Defect investigation 1 PE19004
Defect investigation 1 PE19004
Defect investigation 1 EA19001
Defect investigation 1 DP21003
Defect investigation 1 EA21003
Defect investigation 1 EA21003
Defect investigation 1 DP22003
Defect investigation 1 DP22003
Defect investigation 1 DP22005
Defect investigation 1 AQ23002
Defect investigation 1 AQ23002
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (0)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

Zero safety recalls recorded for this model year in official NHTSA records.

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot Aug 21, 2026
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 1,024 complaints · page 1 of 41

No complaints match the current filters.

EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot Aug 21, 2026
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources