2004 Kia Sorento Transmission Problems

I BOUGHT A 2004 KIA SORENTO IN 2006 FINISHED PAYING FOR IT IN 2010,OVER THE YEARS I HAVE HAD TO CHANGE THE LIGHTS SO MANY TIMES I CANT COUNT,I HAVE HAD TOPAINT IT TWICE,THEN THE DRIVING SHAFT BROKE,THE COMPRESSOR WAS CHANGED TWICE, THE CD PLAYER WORKS ON AND OFF THE AIR BAGS LIGHT CAME ON AND STAYED FOR MONTHS ON END THE ENGINE LIGHT DOES THE SAME AND MOST RECENTLY THERE IS SMOKE COMING FROM THE ENGINE, I AM HAVING TO STOP PARK AND LET IT COOL OFF BEFORE CONTINUING ON MY JOURNEY, AT THE MOMENT I GOT SCARED AND I NOW I HAVE MY VEHICLE PARKED AT HOME BECAUSE I AM SCARED TO DRIVE IT, IT IS A SHAME AND I AM VERY UPSET. IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE WHO IS TRYING TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THESE PROBLEMS US CONSUMERS ARE HAVING? I OWN MY VEHICLE AND HAS A CLEAN TITLE AND WOULD LIKE TO TRADE IN OR SELL BUT WITH ALL THESE PROBLEMS HOW CAN I PASS IT ON TO SOMEONE ELSE? I AM ASKING SOMEONE FROM KIA TO DO THE RESPONSIBLE THING AND GIVE US SOME ANSWERS BEFORE SOMEONE LOSES THEIR LIFE,THAT IS IF IT HASN'T HAPPENED ALREADY. DON'T LET THIS BE TOYOTA. *TR

NHTSA ID

10392580

Incident

Mar 21, 2011

2004 KIA SORENTO MANUAL TRANSMISSION TRANSMISSION LOCKS UP RANDOMLY. I AM UNABLE TO CHANGE GEARS. THE SHIFT STICK MOVES TO THE VARIOUS POSITIONS BUT THE CAR REMAINS IN GEAR. THIS OCCURS WHILE DRIVING OR STOPPED AND TRYING TO UPSHIFT OR DOWNSHIFT . I HAVE HAD THE VEHICLE TO THE KIA DEALER ON THREE OCCASIONS, BUT THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND HENCE, CAN DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. LAST OCCURRENCE, ON 3/27/2008, HAD VEHICLE TOWED TO THE DEALER, HOWEVER THEY SAID THAT IT WAS NOT LOCKED UP WHEN THEY DROVE IT. NO HELP FROM KIA CUSTOMER SERVICE EITHER. *TR

NHTSA ID

10222596

Incident

Mar 27, 2008

Mileage

30,930 mi

WELL, THERE IS AN ANNOYING, OVER TIME DRIVEN HISSING SIBILANT NOISE COMING FROM UNDER THE KIA SORENTO 2004 VEHICLE I WENT TO KIA, AND COMPLAINT ABOUT IT . THEY CLAIMED THAT THEY HEARD THE NOISE, BUT IT WAS NOT ENOUGH LOUD FOR THEM TO FIX THE PROBLEM. IN MY LIFE I NEVER HAD A CAR THAT MADE SUCH NOISE . COULD SOMETHING BE DONE ABOUT IT?*AK

NHTSA ID

10190173

Incident

Oct 20, 2003

Mileage

500 mi

TRANSMISSION OVERHEATED CAUSING OVERFLOW OF ATF ONTO EXHAUST MANIFOLD IGNITING A FIRE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10189393

Incident

Apr 29, 2007

Mileage

32,135 mi

I PURCHASED A 2004 KIA SORENTO TWO YEARS AGO. IT WAS NOT LONG BEFORE I BEGAN TO EXPERIENCE NUMEROUS PROBLEMS WITH MY VEHICLE. TAIL LIGHTS/BRAKE LIGHTS BURNING OUT FREQUENTLY WHICH IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE SINCE I DELIVER RURAL USDA MAIL. NOW MY TRANSMISSION IS BROKEN!! KIA-DULUTH ASKED IF I HAD HAD THE TRANSMISSION FLUSHED AT THE SPECIFIED MILEAGE AND THAT THEY WILL NEED VERIFICATION OF THIS. (I KNEW IMMEDIATELY THEIR OBJECTIVE WAS TO NOT HONOR THEIR WARRANTY (10 YEARS/100,000 MILE WARRANTY IF I HAD NOT FLUSHED THE TRANSMISSION). I FAXED THEM THE RECEIPT INDICATING THE TRANSMISSION HAD BEEN FLUSHED. I CONTACTED KIA-DULUTH THE FOLLOWING DAY BECAUSE I HAD NOT HEARD FROM THEM. HE SAID HE HAD NOT HEARD BACK FROM KIA YET TO AUTHORIZE THE REPAIR. THIS VEHICLE HAS CAUSED ME SO MUCH LOST WORK TIME, STRESS AND HAS BEEN EMOTIONALLY DRAINING FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS. KIA'S DECEPTIVE ADVERTISING - I BELIEVED THAT SINCE KIA WAS OFFERING A 10 YEAR/100,000 MILE WARRANTY, THEIR VEHICLE MUST BE REALLY GOOD. BOY WAS I WRONG! KIA IS BUILDING VEHICLES WITH DEFECTIVE PARTS AND MATERIALS AND HAS SET-UP THEIR WARRANTY PLAN TO BE ABLE TO VOID THEM FROM HAVING TO HONOR THEIR WARRANTY PLAN AND HAVING ANY RESPONSIBILITY. FOR FURTHER COMPLAINTS ON KIA VEHICLES, PLEASE CONTACT THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU AND ATTORNEY GENERAL OFFICES ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND YOU WILL FIND NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS. NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS BY CONSUMERS ARE ALSO LOCATED AT THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES: WWW.MY3CENTS.COM AND WWW.CONSUMERAFFAIRS.COM. KIA NEEDS TO BE INVESTIGATED AND PUT A STOP TO THEIR SCAMMING AND DEFRAUDING THE CONSUMER AND BEFORE SOMEONE GETS SERIOUSLY HURT OR KILLED DUE TO NUMEROUS DEFECTIVE PARTS IN THEIR VEHICLES. *NM

NHTSA ID

10182308

Incident

Feb 3, 2007

Mileage

65,000 mi

INTERMITTENT SHIFTING DEFECT THAT CAUSES THE GEARS TO GET LOCKED UP AND THE TRUCK WILL NOT SHIFT INTO FIRST GEAR, OR THE SHIFTER WILL GET VERY TIGHT AND IT IS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO SHIFT GEARS. *JB

NHTSA ID

10182228

Incident

Feb 10, 2007

Mileage

600 mi

SINCE BUYING MY SORENTO IN FEBRUARY 2004, I HAVE NOTICED THAT THE CAR SOMETIMES HAS TO "THINK" BEFORE GOING INTO GEAR AND THERE IS NO PREDICTABILITY AS TO WHEN THIS WILL HAPPEN. IN EXAMPLE I WAS IN THE CENTER LANE MERGING INTO TRAFFIC WHEN THE CAR JUST WOULD NOT GET GOING IT HESITATES AND THEN DROPS INTO GEAR. I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR IN AND THE SERVICE MANAGER SAID THAT HE HAS HAD SEVERAL COMPLAINTS LIKE MINE BUT THERE IS NOTHING HE COULD DO TO HELP. HE SAID THAT IT SEEMS TO BE THE COMBINATION OF THE ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION AND THAT SINCE IT SEEMS TO BE JUST A CHARACTERISTIC OF THE CAR, THERE WOULD BE NOTHING THAT KIA WOULD DO. I AM CONCERNED THAT THIS VEHICLE CAN CAUSE AN ACCIDENT UNDER NORMAL DRIVING CONDITIONS. SINCE IT IS A 6 CYLINDER, I WOULD BELIEVE THAT IT SHOULD GET UP AND GO WHEN YOU NEED IT. I ALWAYS NEED TO BE AWARE THAT I CANNOT RELY ON THE CAR TO GET IN GEAR QUICKLY. THIS IS UNSATISFACTORY, AND I HAVE NEVER HAD A VEHICLE REACT IN SUCH A WAY.*AK

NHTSA ID

10093245

Incident

May 18, 2004

Mileage

5,000 mi

THE CONSUMER APPROACHED A DRIVEWAY WHICH HAD A SLIGHT INCLINE. THE CONSUMER GOT OUT OF THE VEHICLE WITH THE ENGINE STILL RUNNING AND THE DRIVER'S DOOR OPENED. AT LEAST TWO MINUTES LATER, A CLICK WAS HEARD AND THE VEHICLE ROLLED BACKWARDS UNTIL IT HIT A TREE. A KIA REPRESENTATIVE CAME THREE DAYS LATER, INSPECTED THE VEHICLE, AND CLAIMED NO RESPONSIBILITY. *AK *SC *JB

NHTSA ID

10089431

Incident

Jul 9, 2004

Mileage

1,500 mi

1. SINCE NEW, 2004 KIA SORENTO 5-SPEED TRANSMISSION HAS HAD A GRIND WHEN SHIFTING BETWEEN LOWER GEARS. I BROUGHT PROBLEM TO ATTENTION OF BERLIN CITY KIA DEALERSHIP IN BURLINGTON VT DURING MY FIRST ROUTINE SERVICE. THEY CONFIRMED THE GRIND AND ELECTED TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION AS AN ATTEMPTED SOLUTION. 2. THE PROBLEM CONTINUED WITH THE NEW TRANSMISSION, AND IN FACT HAS GOTTEN WORSE, PARTICULARLY ON COOLER MORNINGS. I HAVE HAD IT BACK FOR THEM TO REPAIR THE PROBLEM, AND HAVE BEEN ADVISED THAT KIA IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM ON THESE PARTICULAR TRANSMISSIONS, BUT HAS NO SOLUTION AT THIS TIME. 3. I BELIEVE A RECALL IS IN ORDER, AS THE TRANSMISSIONS ARE KNOWN TO BE DEFECTIVE BY THE MANUFACTURER. *AK

NHTSA ID

10079086

Incident

Mar 9, 2004