NHTSA Complaint #11290321 — 2014 KIA SOUL

ON 05/07/2019, I TOOK MY CAR TO JOE MYERS KIA FOR A REPAIR IN REGARDS TO SAFETY RECALL SC176. MY CATALYTIC CONVERTER WAS REPLACED AND MY CAR WAS RETURNED TO ME ON 05/13/2019. ACCORDING TO SAFETY RECALL SC176 BULLET 4, THIS RECALL WAS TO PREVENT EXCESSIVE EXHAUST TEMPERATURES, WHICH COULD CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE PISTON CONNECTION ROD. DAMAGE TO THIS ROD COULD PUNCTURE THE ENGINE BLOCK, ALLOWING OIL TO ESCAPE AND POTENTIALLY CONTACT A HOT EXHAUST SURFACE. WEEKS AFTER MY CAR WAS REPAIRS I NOTICED THAT MY CAR WAS NOW BURNING OIL AT AN EXCESSIVE RATE, AND I WAS NOW REPLACING OIL EVERY 1,000 TO 1500 MILES. THIS ISSUE CONTINUED FROM JUNE THROUGH OCTOBER. I HAD THE CAR EXAMINED FOR OIL LEAKS, BUT NONE COULD BE FOUND. AFTER MY 10/06/2019 OIL AND GENERAL SERVICE, IT WAS SUGGESTED THAT THERE'S A CHANCE THAT OIL WAS GETTING INTO THE ENGINE BLOCK. ON 12/05/2019, MY ENGINE BEGAN TO MISFIRE AND KNOCK LOUDLY WHILE TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 70 MPH. AFTER GETTING THE CAR OFF OF THE HIGHWAY AND INTO A GAS STATION I CHECKED THE DIP STICK. IT INDICATED THAT THE ENGINE DID NOT HAVE ANY OIL IN IT, BUT THE OIL LIGHT NEVER CAME ON. I ALSO HAD AN OIL SERVICE IN OCTOBER AND HAD NOT DONE MUCH DRIVING SINCE THEN. ON 12/07/19 I TOWED MY CAR TO MY MECHANIC AND AFTER EXAMINATION INFORMED ME THAT PISTONS 3 AND 4 WERE MISFIRING AND WERE DAMAGED. I CONTACTED JOE MYERS KIA, AS THEY WERE THE ONES THAT RECENTLY REPAIRED MY CAR UNDER RECALL SC176, AND WAS INSTRUCTED TO BRING THE CAR TO THE NEAREST KIA DEALERSHIP FOR EXAMINATION. ON 12/10/19 I TOWED THE CAR TO FREDY KIA FOR AN ENGINE DIAGNOSIS AND FOLLOWING DAY I RECEIVED A CALL NOTIFYING ME THAT MY 1.6L ENGINE THREW A PISTON ROD AND I WOULD HAVE TO GET THE ENGINE REPLACED. THE SOUL ONLY HAS 109,775 MILES ON IT, IS SERVICED REGULARLY, AND BARELY AVERAGES OVER 12,000 MILES ANNUALLY.