2013 Kia Optima Exterior lighting Problems

Paint on car is coming off from hood and doors headlights are not bright had to change to aftermarket to make it brighter

NHTSA ID

11723669

Incident

Mar 10, 2026

When I turned the ignition on the car wouldn't start. But the ABS light and all other lights flickering when trying to start the car. The alarm kept going off. Passenger side front and rear windows won't function. Smell like something was burning. This is the second incident ([XXX]). Fuses had to be removed to silence the alarms on the first incident on [XXX] because the lights were still flickering on and off when car wasn't on. I had my car serviced at the West Broad Kia Dealership in Richmond, Va. Thank you! INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11647455

Incident

Mar 10, 2025

THE HEADLIGHTS ON THIS VEHICLE IS EXTREMELY DIM. I have changed the bulbs and you can not see out of this vehicle at night. I have checked to see if there is a recall or something. A lot of people have issue with this year make and model of this vehicle. The other problem I am having is the paint peeling with the Snow white color of my vehicle. Large spots of paint is coming off and missing. this vehicle is kept under the carport. Yet, large spots of paint comes off.

NHTSA ID

11552750

Incident

Oct 1, 2019

The hid headlights. Specifically low beams go dim.They are so dim you can not drive safely at night. Change the bulbs and still the same issue.My understanding the reflector housing on the projector gets worn out and does reduce the light output of low beams. This is a driving hazard at night.this issue affecting the sx and sxl models with hid projector headlights.

NHTSA ID

11531499

Incident

Jul 10, 2019

The center console power supply is faulty, does not charge or hold usb port. The white paint on my car began to chip in large amounts.

NHTSA ID

11525324

Incident

Mar 16, 2023

Vehicle body damage. Vehicle car parts damage.

NHTSA ID

11524170

Incident

May 20, 1989

The reflectors on the low beam headlights have degraded to the point it has failed Virginia state inspection. The safety of myself and others is impacted by reduced nighttime visibility. Distance of vision at night is reduced to only as much distance as the parking lights provide. The dealer has inspected and rejected the vehicle from passing Virginia State inspection and is now not lawfully allowed to be driven. There were no warning lamps to indicate a failure.

NHTSA ID

11518881

Incident

Mar 27, 2019

Headlights are dangerously dim. Won’t pass inspection and I’ve changed bulbs multiple times

NHTSA ID

11506086

Incident

Feb 6, 2023

The contact owns a 2013 Kia Optima. The contact stated while driving at night, the low-beam headlights failed to properly illuminate the roadway, causing a driving hazard. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact made several unknown local dealers aware of the failure; however, the vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 53,000.

NHTSA ID

11502278

Incident

May 17, 2022

Mileage

53,000 mi

I have been having electrical/lighting issues for about a year. It initially started with the inside lights intermittently flashing when opening the door or attempting to use the interior lights; however sometimes the automatic interior lights did not come on at all when set to automatically turn on when a door opened, but now the lights don’t come on at all when opening the door. I have also had some headlight and dashboard lights going on and off while driving. I have experienced this on at least 3 occasions since last June or July. I have done some of my own testing by switching the lights to different functions, on and off, etc. Because it has only happened 3 times I’m not sure exactly what the issue is and scared that at some point, they won’t work at all. This is very concerning and obviously a safety issue. In addition, just recently my interior speaker system began having issues when using the hands free call option. With every call I make or take while using the hands free option, the call goes in and out constantly and consistently. It doesn’t happen to those on the other end of the line. It does this every time for about the past month. The speakers work fine when listening to the radio. My phone works perfectly through the regular calling option or on the speaker option but that is not ideal while driving. As new issues continue to pop up, increase, progressively get worse, I’m concerned there could be other current or future electrical problems in the engine or in regular safe functioning of the car leading to melting, fire, or a malfunction while driving, causing catastrophic results.

NHTSA ID

11497588

Incident

Jan 20, 2021

The chrome finish on the inside of the low beam headlight reflectors has disintegrated resulting in very dim, almost unusable headlight light output. The dealer states while the manufacturer has a tsp and warranty extension (WTY014) on Korean-built Optimas for this MY it does not apply to American-built Optimas - despite the headlight being manufactured in Korea on the US models and it having the exact same issue. This extension should apply to all Optimas during the covered MY that have this issue.

NHTSA ID

11487206

Incident

Sep 29, 2022

The vehicle’s headlights have been extremely dimmed for years and my wife has just “dealt with it”. We’ve had all the bulbs replaced and the issue persisted. Given recent medical conditions paired with this technical oversight, this could lead to severe injury or death if not resolved. Let me also add that the headlights no longer turn on as of this morning and Kia refuses to acknowledge or claim responsibility for this because “the issue stems from identical vehicles manufactured in South Korea and not Georgia” … even though the symptoms very identically line up to TSB Number: WTY014.

NHTSA ID

11487022

Incident

Oct 8, 2021

The issue is with the front turn signal harness. After, changing the right side turn signal bulb twice I brought my Kia to West Hills Kia in Bremerton, WA…The technician informed me that the front turn signal harness was not the correct harness for this type of vehicle. The service person at West Hills suggested that I contact Kia Corporation. I had emailed Vice President Mr. Shamit Choksey, Kia corporation for the above issue.

NHTSA ID

11477436

Incident

Aug 3, 2022

I own a 2013 Kia Optima. The low-beam headlight was not providing proper illumination while driving at night, making it difficult to see the roadway. Took the vehicle to the local dealer, the mechanic was able to see the failure, but stated that my car was made in the US. So the Recall that is out for dimming headlights from cars made in South Korea does not apply to my car. Stated it would cost $720 per headlight assembly plus labor. The car was not repaired. The manufacturer should cover cars made in the US also if the ones in South Korea have the same problem and are being fixed.

NHTSA ID

11474759

Incident

Jul 19, 2022

My paint has been chipping really bad. Also I had a few recalls taken care of at modesto Kia once I got my vehicle back and drove it back home (about an hour and a half away) I started smelling something burning, I looked under the hood and couldn't find anything wrong so then a few days later I smelled the same thing but this time I heard a loud pop I got out and noticed my fog light had shattered, and the housing is completely burned. So now my fog lights won't work and I have to make sure the fog lights are turned off because I don't want there to be power going to the loose wires, the head lights get extremely hot to the touch the fog light got so hot it burned a hole through the bumper. Then about two weeks ago the airbag light turned on and it won't turn off, I did some research and found out that when the air bag light is on there is a huge chance the airbags won't deploy. I have a baby so I really hope that isn't the case, because if a hair on his head gets harmed because of Kia I will be suing.

NHTSA ID

11461428

Incident

Apr 20, 2022

The contact owns a 2013 Kia Optima. The contact stated that the low-beam headlight was not providing proper illumination while driving, making it difficult to see the roadway. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 176,000.

NHTSA ID

11444186

Incident

Dec 1, 2020

Mileage

176,000 mi

WHEN I START THE CAR THE REAR BREAK LIGHTS FLICKER RAPIDLY WHEN I PRESS THE BREAKS THE 3RD BREAK LIGHT WON'T LIGHT UP AT ALL, SO THE ONLY TWO BREAK LIGHT STOP WORKING, IT CAUSES THE ANTI TRACTION CONTROL WARNING LIGHT AND THE AUTO-HOLD WARNING LIGHTS TO COME ON.

NHTSA ID

11406789

Incident

Feb 1, 2020

Mileage

20,000 mi

LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS EXTREMELY LOW COMPLETELY UNUSABLE AT NIGHT TRIED REPLACING HEADLIGHT BULB SAME ISSUE.

NHTSA ID

11402583

Incident

Jan 25, 2019

ON MAY 10, 2020 @7:32 AM I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK AND CAME TO A STOP LIGHT WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN MY CAR STALLED AND ALL THE LIGHTS ON THE DASHBOARD TURNED ON. I PULLED OVER AND STARTED THE BACK UP AND MADE IT HOME. THE NEXT DAY I DROVE ABOUT 10 MILES AND THE CAR SEEMED FINE BUT AS I GET TO THE STOP LIGHT THE CAR STARTED MAKING A GRINDING SOUND LIKE METAL AND I COULDN'T ACCELERATE SO I PULLED OVER AND THE CAR DIED IN A RESIDENTIAL AREA. THE NEXT MORNING I CALL AAA AND HAD CAR TOWED BACK TO MY HOME. THE NEXT DAY AAA CAME OUT AGAIN AND CHECKED MY BATTERY, STARTER, AND SYSTEM SOMETHING AND THEY WERE ALL WORKING GOOD. I CALLED STEVE SCHMITT KIA ON HALLS FERRY ROAD AND ASKED WAS THERE ANOTHER RECALL ON MY CAR FOR THE ENGINE, THE LADY PAUSED AND THEN SAID "WE DON'T HAVE THE PARTS YET, " SHE THEN SAID HOLD ON AND CAME BACK AND SAID "WE DON'T HAVE ANY RECALLS ON THIS CAR. ON OCTOBER THE 1 , 2019 I TOOK MY CAR TO KIA FOR A RECALL ON MY MOTOR AND LOOKING AT THE RECEIPT THEY REPLACED ELEMENT AIR FILTER, ADJUSTED ALIGNMENT FOUR WHEELS, MOUNT AND BALANCE 2 TIRES, REPLACED CABIN AIR FILTER PLUS A OIL CHANGE WHICH I PAID FOR. MY CAR HAS BEEN SITTING SINCE MAY 13, 2020 . I FREQUENTLY GO OUT AND CHECK IT AND IT STARTS AND I HEAR A KNOCKING SOUND .( ENGINE FAIL) *TR *BF *AS

NHTSA ID

11326079

Incident

May 10, 2020

Mileage

84,000 mi

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD, AT NIGHT, MY FOG LIGHTS START GOING ON AND OFF. I NEVER REALIZED HOW MUCH THEY ACTUALLY HELP. CAR ISN'T UNDER WARRANTY SO KIA WILL NOT REPLACE. GOOGLE SEARCH SHOWS LOTS OF PEOPLE WITH THE SAME PROBLEM. FOUND OUT IT COULD BE THE LCM - $80. FOR WHAT LOOKS LIKE A [XXX] PLUG IN. REALLY? COME ON KIA. ADDITIONALLY, I WAS INFORMED OF A HEADLIGHT RECALL. CALLED RICK CASE KIA, AGAIN, TERRIBLE SERVICE/CUSTOMER SERVICE. THEY DISMISSED ME, JUST KEPT SAYING "THERE'S NO RECALL FOR THIS VEHICLE." PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

NHTSA ID

11315514

Incident

Feb 6, 2020

Mileage

172,000 mi

HEADLIGHTS ARE CONSTANTLY GETTING DIMMER, CAN ONLY SEE ABOUT 2 FEET IN FRONT OF THE CAR WHEN DRIVING IN THE RAIN, FOG AND AT NIGHT. I HAVE CHANGED THE BULBS SEVERAL TIMES THINKING THIS WAS THE PROBLEM BUT CLEARING IT IS NOT. THERE IS A PROBLEM AND I FEAR DRIVING AT NIGHT AND IN FOG AND RAIN FOR FEAR OF SAFETY. THIS NEEDS TO BE RECALLED FOR THE SAFETY OF THE DRIVER AND THE PUBLIC. THIS ALL STARTED ABOUT A YEAR AGO. I THOUGHT MAYBE IT WAS MY VISION BUT MY HUSBAND AND SON BOTH AND A MECHANIC HAVE CONFIRMED THE SOMETHING IS CLEARLY WRONG THIS THE LIGHTING SYSTEM IN THE CAR.

NHTSA ID

11308482

Incident

Feb 15, 2019

MY BAKE TAIL LIGHT KEEP MOISTURE AND HOLDS WATER WHEN IT RAINS, WHICH HAS CAUSED ME TO REPLACE BAKE LIGHT OFTEN. THE SEALS ON THE LIGHTS AREN'T AIR TIGHT. IS THERE A RECALL ON THIS.

NHTSA ID

11231506

Incident

Feb 1, 2017

Mileage

80,000 mi

PASSENGER HEADLIGHT KEEPS BURNING OUT.

NHTSA ID

11209167

Incident

May 20, 2019

OIL IS COMPLETELY EMPTY BEFORE 1000 MILES AFTER AN OIL CHANGE. HAVE SWITCHED TO SYNTHETIC OIL AND USED ADDITIVES. NOTHING HAS HELPED AND I AM ADDING AT LEAST 6-8 QUARTS FOR 3000 MILES. ALSO THE HEADLIGHTS ARE HORRIBLE. I CAN NOT SEE 10 FEET PASS MY FRONT END AT NIGHT. THIS IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND NEW BULBS DO NOT HELP. IT IS A KNOWN PROBLEM, BUT KIA COULD CARE LESS. NOT ONLY CAN I NOT SEE BUT I'M DRIVING A DEATH TRAP THAT WILL MOST LIKELY CATCH FIRE LIKE THOUSANDS OF THE 2013 HAVE ALREADY. HOW DO THESE CAR COMPANIES GET AWAY WITH THIS?

NHTSA ID

11193745

Incident

Apr 4, 2019

Mileage

99,000 mi

BRAKE LIGHTS WILL NOT GO OFF AFTER I TURN OFF MY CAR. SOMETIMES THE BRAKE LIGHTS AND BACK LIGHTS POPS ON EVEN WHEN THE CAR IS OFF AND WILL NOT TURN OFF. THE SLIPPERY WHEN WET LIGHT STAYS ON AT ALL TIMES. WHEN I AM DRIVING THE CAR AND I HAVE TO USE THE BRAKES TO STOP AT A RED LIGHT OR STOP SIGN THE CAR MOVES VERY SLOWING AND STALLS. SOMETIMES WHEN I AM DRIVING THE CAR LOOSES POWER. I WAS DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE TWICE AND THE CAR JUST LOST POWER AND BEGAN TO SLOW DOWN. THIS WAS A HUGE SAFETY CONCERN. NOW THE CAR HAS NO POWER.

NHTSA ID

11186700

Incident

Mar 8, 2019

Mileage

7 mi