Problems with 2008 Kia Optima ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

December 28, 2011, i noticed that my airbag light located on the dashboard continuously stays illuminated. i have taken it to the dealer to get it checked out. i was told that the airbag sensors are located in the driver/ passenger seats. the mechanic at kia dealer tried to fix the problem, but was unsuccessful. the service representative informed me that they would have to replace the sensors. i've viewed the complaints of people that own kia optima 2008. it states that these cars were recalled because of significant amount of defects. (i only have 43,000 miles) in addition, a week ago i've started hearing a ticking noise coming from the engine area when i accelerate going up in a roller coaster climbing position. thank you for your expeditious response. *tr

My 2008 kia optima stalled, without warning, while driving approximately 35-40 mph on a busy highway near an exit. the car lost all power, including steering. the car ended up riding a guardrail and landed on top of it. the end result was, for me, a broken neck! there was absolutely no warning prior to this happening. i was on my way to pick my 3 year old son up from school. had he been in the car, this may have been catastrophic! my airbags did not deploy! this is unacceptable. the car is undergoing bodywork repairs and i am scared to death to step foot in this death trap ever again. calls to the kia dealer where i bought the car go unanswered, as they usually do. this is serious! if your optima has stalled while driving without warning please post a complaint. this needs to be a recall! *tr

2008 kia optima 4cyl automatic. i live in florida, hot all the time, use air almost all year. car will stall out while in motion within first few minutes while ac is on when i am slowing down to stop signs or when crossing intersections where i have to get across quickly then let off gas to make turn. car becomes hard to steer when engine cuts off, worse than a car without power steering, sometimes it feels like it wont make it through the intersection to the median safely. can start the car again, but it takes a few seconds to throw car into neutral, turn ignition, and put back into drive. as i said this happens a lot while going through the turn of intersection/ divided highway and those few seconds make the difference between a safely timed turn and a potential collision. problem occurs frequenlty for a week or two, then goes away for a while and comes back. once the engine has warmed up and has been moving for 5 minutes or so, it doesn't happen. took it to kia dealership since this vehicle has 45000 miles on it and is still under manufactures bumper to bumper warranty, dealership service department said they were aware of the issue with that generation of optimas and that it was only with the 4cyl motors, the v6's were fine. service department said at this time there is not a fix for it and would not replace any parts since they don't know which part(s) are causing the malfunction. was told to let my car warm up longer and to hope that kia/hyundai comes up with a recall on it soon. *kb

2008 kia optima stalls while in motion. vehicle will shut itself off. it is as if someone reaches over and turns the key off. it has happened with the car standing still and with the car in motion. stalling usually occurs within first few minutes of operation and with hot outdoor temperatures. first visit to kia resulted in replaced fuel tank (codes for bad roll over valve). problem went away for about a year then came back. car has been in the shop 4 times over the last month and a half. shop can't duplicate the problem, so therefore, can't fix the problem. the car is subject to shutting itself off at anytime with no warning, the last occurrence happened just before my wife was to merge onto a busy highway. apart from fuel tank, dealer has done nothing substantial to repair the issue (computer update, tightened loose wires). *tr

2008 kia optima exv6, since new, when lightly braking while decelerating from 40 mph, the car downshifts and has an acceleration surge at around 25 mph. when complaining to the dealer, they said the kia's were made that way. this is an unsafe condition that can cause a rear end collision. the car should have normal engine braking that allows for continuous deceleration as long as the accelerator pedal is not touched. thank you for your consideration of this complaint. *tr