2001 Kia Optima Consumer Discussions

KIA Dealership Service Experiences

Re: 2001 Kia Optima transmission problems [mickeyrom]

Written by: marhar60 on Mar 10, 2009 01:46 PM

OMG-thanks for the feedback. I have invested about $3500 in the car including the $3000 I gave my neighbor for it last summer. I work just 10 miles from home and didn't want a car payment. I had done some research and saw that people were having problems with timing belts at 60k miles so I asked him to replace the timing belt (and water pump - I think -even though it was ... Read More...

Re: 2001 Kia Optima transmission problems [marhar60]

Written by: mickeyrom on Mar 10, 2009 11:19 AM

You're welcome :) IMO it depends how much you got in the car,and how much it will cost to fix it.I would take it to a KIA dealer first,you can try contacting KIA for the nearest location.Then you can always go to a tranny shop.Where I live,there is one shop that does transmissions.I think they charge around 1.5 K for a rebuild. Read More...

Re: 2001 Kia Optima transmission problems [mickeyrom]

Written by: marhar60 on Mar 10, 2009 08:29 AM

Well, at least now I know-thanks for the reply. The big decision now is whether it's worth the money to fix it -- assuming I can find a reputable service dept. Any thoughts on (a) best place to take it and (b) is it even worth it? Fredericksburg is a long way to go but worth it if I can drive the car another couple of years. Read More...

Re: 2001 Kia Optima transmission problems [marhar60]

Written by: mickeyrom on Mar 09, 2009 02:34 PM

Don't confuse a 2001 KIA with the ones built after 2006.There is a quantum difference in quality,although in 2004 and 2005 the Optima got decent reviews,not so the ones older than that.Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Read More...

2001 Kia Optima transmission problems

Written by: marhar60 on Mar 09, 2009 02:22 PM

I purchased my Kia last summer. It had 58,000 miles. I have replaced the battery and timing belt - now the transmission is giving problems. Service station repair guy I really trust says he can't get into it but I should take it to dealer. I live in Alexandria, VA. Sometimes it's okay but then I accelerate and not much happens. Any thoughts or recommendations before ... Read More...

Kia Optima 2006.5-2008

New to Optima

Written by: dkh1967 on Oct 18, 2008 11:15 PM

Bought a 2007 with 14k on the odometer a couple of weeks ago from CarMax. My 2001 Ford Focus hit 99k and started falling apart at all ends. Read many articles on the net before I decided to buy this car. Tried out Camry and Accord but they were out of my price range. I guess it's true that those two hold strong resale value. What I read on the Optima... it's well built and ... Read More...

The thing is is that things like

Written by: iluvmysephia1 on Jan 18, 2008 06:07 AM

ESC and ABS are nice safety additions, but, are they totally and really necessary? I am not sold that they are. What's wrong with careful and steady and intelligent driving? The Hyundai Sonata was being put down by several people early on(the newly re-designed Sonata built in Alabama I'm talking about here)for having a front seat that bent down too much at the ... Read More...

Kia Optima 2006 and earlier

Re: 2001 Kia Won't Start [mickeyrom]

Written by: csandste on Dec 21, 2007 08:46 PM

Mickeyrom-- I think this is the older engine which did have a timing belt (4 cylinder), not the one we have. I think it's closely related to the engine on my 01 Elantra and the bill quoted was roughly equal to what I paid for the 60K. I can't for the life of me remember if that engine was interference or not but not changing the timing belt on schedule will be looked upon ... Read More...

Re: 2001 Kia Won't Start [bblackman]

Written by: gatorfan80 on Dec 20, 2007 10:37 PM

The suggestions at Kia Consumers are completely bogus. I'm being told that because my car died the other day a 2003 Kia Optima that I've never had problems out of they won't garauntee the warranty b/c I didn't have the timing belt replaced at 60,000 miles. When I asked the local dealer what they charge to have that replaced they said $852.00 b/c they can't just replace ... Read More...

Re: 2001 Kia Won't Start [haefr]

Written by: kar4x4 on Feb 09, 2007 05:23 PM

What happened with getting your engine replaced? I am going through something similar with my 01 Optima. I bought the car in Sept 2005 with 38000 on it. I only have receipts from the time I have owned the car. They are telling me I have to have all the records from when I didn't own the car. I don't know what to do... I do know they are telling me a bearing went out. I have ... Read More...