2013 Kia Sportage Engine Failure at 77,000 miles

Wife and I purchased our 2013 Kia Sportage EX 2.4L (DOHC MPI Theta-II) new from a Kia Dealer in early 2013. I has been a great car with no need to return to the dealer for any warranty work. The car has 77,000 miles, oil changed every 3500- 4000 miles. Garaged and is immaculate in and out. About 3 weeks ago my wife was driving the car and without warning it began making a loud knocking sound from the engine. She found a place to pull over (after exiting the interstate) to stop and called me almost in tears as the sound was so loud it alarmed her. I went to her location and started the car and could tell right away it was a major interrail engine failure. We had the car towed home and started doing some research on the vehicle. I learned, for the first time, there had been a recall on the motor in the vehicle a few years back. We had not received any notifications from Kia or anyone else about this recall. We have the same address now as when we bought the car. I called the Kia Dealer Service Department and I was told there was the recall but based on our VIN he could see that we had not had the "Knock Sensor" recall performed so we would not be eligible for any warranty assistance from Kia. I thought about this for a couple of days and my wife and I came to the realization that we had never received any mailings of recalls from Kia. My wife has a file on the car starting with the original sales invoice, window sticker and receipt for every oil change, new tire replacement etc. but nothing from Kia. I called Kia Customer Service to inquire about the engine warranty. The Customer Service person asked me for my name, the VIN and then she asked me to verify my mailing address. I paused and thought to ask her what she showed in Kia's system for our mailing address and the address she gave me had the spelling of our street incorrect (she was unable to pronounce it so she spelled it out) and I realized that we had never received any recall notices from Kia due to the incorrect address issue. We spoke for about 45 minutes and after consulting her "supervisor" she told me that due to the mailing address issue they would honor the warrantee on the engine (under their "Goodwill Program") if it was taken to a Kia Dealer, diagnosed and determined / confirmed to be the bearing / connecting rod issue as described in the initial recall. She provided me with a case number and told me to decide on a Kia Dealer, have the car towed there and provide the dealer with the Kia case number and then to call Kia Customer Service back to advise which dealer the car was taken to. I did so. There is a dealer closer to us (about 20 minutes away) but we decided to have the car towed to the Dealer where we bought the car. That dealer is 2 counties away and about a 45 minute drive but we had it towed there anyway. The Dealer Service Department completed their diagnosis of the cause of the engine failure and confirmed it was caused by the inherent defect in the motor (when we purchased the car) and the issue related to the engine recall. Fast forward about 2 weeks and Kia has now decided to deny our warrantee claim despite one of their representatives telling me in our initial phone conversation they would honor it under their "Goodwill Program" if the motor was diagnosed to have failed due to the warranty issue. She advised she had spoke to her supervisor and since they had our mailing address listed incorrectly it would be handled under their "Goodwill Program." Kia Customer Service advised the warranty claim is being denied because we did not have the "Knock Sensor" recall done and because of a Class Action Lawsuit settlement. Once again, Kia did not have our address listed correctly in their system so we never had the opportunity to participate in any recalls on the car nor join a Class Action Lawsuit. I did not record my initial call with Kia Customer Service but I have asked subsequent Customer Service Representatives (and one supervisor) why I (or any reasonable prudent person) would have my car towed 45 minutes away to a Dealer if I had not been told it would be taken care of under their "Goodwill Program" if the engine failure was due to the original engine recall issue, which we now know it is. if I was not under the impression that the engine would be repaired under their "Goodwill Program" (and how would I know Kia has a "Goodwill Program" if the Kia representative had not told me about it) why would I have the car towed to a KIa dealer 45 minutes away (and conversely if the Customer Service Representative had told me it could not be covered under their Goodwill Program in our original conversation I would not have had it towed to the dealer 45 minutes away.) Has anyone else had any similar issues? We continue to attempt to resolve this amicably with Kia.

2013 Kia Sportage Engine Failure at 77,000 miles

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