Problems with the Optima Hybrid?

[Dad]

Yeah I'm thinking that it may not have been worth it, as the car is still at the dealers and they still haven't got the mystery solved....
They are starting on the secnd week of having the car.
Everything they've tried hasn't panned out for them.
I'm going to start asking for a different car soon, since they've had the car longer than I have.

[fitmom]

If you have not purchased one yet - I would advise against it. i purchased mine on Sept. 2, 2011 and have had many problems with it. It pulls hard to left and is very hard to steer at times. I have to really hold on to the steering wheel or it will jump to the side, it is not consistent and happens when driving regular or when braking.... AND it surges badly, bucking and jumping at times. Mine has already been to the dealer 3 times and is going back tomorrow. The mechanic agreed, that it did these things, but later the service manager called, claiming that it was a characteristic for this car... WHAT! and it only gets 25-23 MPG and getting worse by the day.
I hope the lemon law applies and I can get my money back.

[My13OptimaSXL]

On the other hand, I've had mine since July 25 (now with 4800 miles on it) and have had absolutely none of the issues that people here mentioned ~ go figure!

[mass_hybrid]

Originally Posted by My11OptHyb

On the other hand, I've had mine since July 25 (now with 4800 miles on it) and have had absolutely none of the issues that people here mentioned ~ go figure!

I too have had my hybrid since July and only have 3K miles on it and the only problem I am having with it is the MPG. Granted I don't usually drive it on a normal day more than 11 miles in any direction so I understand that my mileage will be well below what people driving more get. I am averaging about 24MPG over my 8 times I have had to fill it up. Not the best but if I take it on the highway on the weekend I can get it up to 29MPG but by Friday it will be back down to 22 or 23MPG b/c of the stop and go driving.

I am getting the 3 TSB's done on Wednesday. I notice the surging and low speeds of around 5-10mph but not a big deal for me.

[mom2mtl]

Originally Posted by spuddy98

A couple complaints. A kind of rattle of sorts from the left front. not a loose part but a rattle like a cv joint or a strut. Also when you slowly accelerate and go from 20 to 30 mph the car has a bucking feeling. We took it back to the dealer and they did not feel it. Guess they have a lead foot because if you accelerate quickly you don't really get the bucking. Guess I just have to accelerate up to speed and never drive below 30 mph? Anyone else have this problem?

YES! I have this problem! We test drove a 2011 Optima Hybrid for an entire weekend (Friday evening to Monday morning), but decided to buy a brand new one instead - full warranty, same money. I found a 2012 online that was just like the 2011 that we liked so much, but it was 2 hours from our house at a very reputable dealer. We called and set up an appt to look at it, my husband went without me to look at it, everything looked just like he expected. We did not test drive the brand new one we bought, since we had spent so much time in the used one, why did we need to? It was exactly the same car only a year newer. I drive it every day to work and the 3rd day I owned it I noticed it bucking and reving when accelerating and idling hard when in park. It even sounds as though my car dies while sitting at stop signs - not just the motor shutting down for the battery, but a sputter and my passengers feel this also and get nervous. There is a hesitation in the acceleration which makes me a bit nervous. I am so glad that I found this forum so I know that I am NOT crazy. My husband never drives it enough to notice and we have talked to the dealership and they claim that they have never heard of these problems.

[darkwraith]

I bought a 2012 Kia Optima Hybrid. I was debating the Camry Hybrid, a Prius and the Kia. Kia dealer gave me a great price so I went with it. Here are the issues I had within 2 months of owning the car:

-Tire Pressure Monitoring System faulted out and the light started blinking when reaching high speeds on the interstate

-UVO and phone sync would cut out in the middle of calls and while playing songs. Also had issues getting it to work sometimes. Would have to pull over and restart to get the USB connect to work

- Had issues with the battery drive to engine drive when starting out from a fresh start. No matter how you did it it buckled and bumped.

- As the buckling and bumping got worse desided to take to dealer after a road trip. I was on my way to dealer to have looked at when the display said Hybrid Drive Failure. Come to a stop and Do not operate vehicle. I managed to make it to the dealer. They said it was ok and to bring it back tomorrow (it was close to closing time i guess and the dealer service was crap) So, I went home (5 miles away from the dealer) and the car completely shut off 3 times while driving back. Had to pull over and restart. Got home and when I came out the next morning the car would not start up and the oil pressure light, engine light, hybrid drive error light and maintenance light all were on. Had to tow to dealer. Talked to the tech and he said it is saying there is a lose connection somewhere but he hasn't found it. He assumed they would have to replace the power cable and see if that worked.

After that, I told them to keep it and I went to their sister Toyota dealer and took a loss to get out of it. Bought a Prius V. I travel a lot for work and a car that will break down like this after 2100 miles (that is typed correctly 2100 MILES) is not dependable enough for me. I couldn't risk not being able to make a trip because my car broke down... especially a new car. If you check out on the net about this failure you will find there is more related to these types of situations. I should have never left Toyota but I guess I paid for that mistake!