"How reliable is the 2004 Kia Optima?"

"Based on 306 NHTSA complaints, the 2004 Kia Optima has a median complaint mileage of 80034 miles. The most common issue is LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES."

"What are common problems with the 2004 Kia Optima?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2004 Kia Optima is LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES, accounting for a significant portion of the 306 total complaints filed."

2004 Kia Optima: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 306 complaints

306

Total Complaints

80,034mi

Median Mileage

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

48,817 25th Percentile

80,034 Median Mileage

106,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

STRUCTURE:BODY

AIR BAGS

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

SUSPENSION

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

STRUCTURE:BODY:DOOR

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH

SUSPENSION:FRONT

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"MY 2004 KIA OPTIMA PULLS TO THE LEFT. IT WILL PULL YOU INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC. YOUR WEB PAGE DOESNOT HAVE KIA LISTED AS A VEHICLE CHOICE. *AK"

"DEFECT: KIA OPTIMA 2004 MANUAL TRANSMISSION WHEN SHIFTING FROM SECOND TO THIRD GEAR, ENGINE OFTEN SURGES AFTER YOU REMOVE FOOT FROM GAS PEDAL CREATING AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS DRIVING CONDITION. IT WILL SURGE TWO TIMES OUT OF THREE. DEALER STATES THAT THE MFGR STATES THAT THE ENGINE SURGE IS COMPUT..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28