[pw4x3r]

The Terrible Problem:

I purchased a 2004 Kia Optima 2004, LX V6 2.7L, used with 14490 miles from a Kia dealership, financed, paid off in four months. I am a full-time delivery driver. While working I delivered to a neighborhood that had a semi-flooded entrance. The result of my driving through it was a hydrolocked engine. Lesson learned. This was immediately reported to my insurance company. My car was towed to the nearest shop, and my insurance company, after my $1000 deductible, financed the remainder of the new motor installation.

At some time after the succesful motor replacement, the check engine light came on. I took my vehicle back to the shop that installed the motor and had them diagnose a P0171 engine code. After failing in the diagnosis, the shop asked if my vehicle was under warranty, and suggested I had my vehicle taken to the dealership for diagnosis. Unaware of the fact that any kind of submersible damage would void my warranty, I took the car to the dealership, requesting a diagnosis of the check engine light. The dealership provided diagnosis and repairs on parts on numerous occasions both before and after the information of the new motor installation and the water accident that had occurred. The dealership also never mentioned to me that a new motor or submersible damage would void the warranty. The closest they came to saying was, "Well we don't even know if it's a KIA engine," But the VIN on the motor will tell you that it is from a 2004 Kia Optima. (The motor was a salvaged 12000 mile used motor) In fact, the dealsership had assured me that they would continue to help me after my 60,000 miles were up, for the same problem.

After months of back and forth diagnosis and a few repairs, and believing my warranty would still be honored, due to the work performed previosly, I went back to them again, stressing the problems my car was having were worse than ever; stalling while driving under normal circumstances such as red lights, speed bumps, parking, and even just slowing down to a toll booth on the highway, and check engine error code still remains the same after all previous work performed. The dealership then told me someone had seen my car smoking tires. I told them my car can't even smoke tires, and told them something is in fact wrong with my car mechanically and it is irregardless of how I may or may not have ever driven the vehicle. (To state for the record I have been full-time delivery driver in this town for 3 years without a single pull-over or complaint except from a drunk guy.) At this point my car had been scanned and was coming up with SEVEN check engine codes. Being told I was no longer being covered under warranty regardless of the past issue and code or not, I still chose to pay them $100 for a diagnosis, and I asked for a road test with a mechanic. They accepted. After the road test and a computer diagnosis, I picked up my car and was given a receipt stating I was seen driving wrecklessly, them stating my vehicle is in proper running order and that any problems I was having were due to my driving habits and their final decision was that there was nothing more they could do for my vehicle.

The following morning, I took my car to an entirely different shop to have my car diagnosed. One hour later they immediately pointed to corroded spark plug wires and a broken coil pak, which coicidentally or not was missing a ground wire completely. I was given a repair estimate and had them fix my car the next day. The only check engine light code that remains is the code I have had for nearly 7 months now; P0171.

While this dealership is located in a 55mph zone, and I drive an unmodified Kia Optima, the manual shifting is something that I have chosen to take advantage of and passing their store many times a day one could only imagine that I would be shifting the gears of the car depending on however millions of circumstances come in to play on the road all day long. Clearly I have done nothing out of pre-programmed settings to affect anything the car wouldn't normally be doing.

If they are trying to tell me that they think I'm beating on the car, wouldn't that be all the more reason to suspect something mechanically wrong, and not magic from previous driving that causes a car to stall etc.

Regardless of the financial provider (Kia warranty) of any of the past work that the dealership did to my vehicle, one thing remains clear time and time again. The problem is still there and my car is in worse shape than ever stalling on my all throughout the night on almost every delivery.

After the long history I have had with the dealership in trying to resolve this problem, one would think it rather odd for them to tell me that my vehicle is fine and refuse further work after giving them one payment for a diagnosis out of warranty.

The other definite in this situation is that my car has problems, I have done nothing but try to solve the problem, and not only have I found no luck anywhere, I have been given this terrible treatment from a so-called respectable dealership.

I would love some help from anyone who can advise me on - what do i do? who is responsible for fixing my car?

Furthermore, I can not let this treatment by the dealership go unnoticed, and, would they ever try to bill me for what I have now only come to find out as out of warranty work, for a still unresolved problem.

This is a complete list of all the replacement parts my car has had installed:

Throttle Body
Fuel Pressure Switch
Injectors
All Spark Plugs
Fuel Sending Unit
Purge Valve
Spark Plug Wires
Coil Pak + Ground Wire