NHTSA Complaint #11307736 — 2014 KIA FORTE

THE CAR IN QUESTION IS A 2014 WITH ABOUT 160K MILES, BOUGHT USED ON 12/2019 FROM DEALER WHO SOLD IT TO PREVIOUS OWNER. LOW OIL LIGHT WAS FLICKERING. CHECKED LEVEL AND NOTHING SHOWED ON DIPSTICK, DESPITE OIL CHANGE AT DEALER BEFORE PURCHASE. ADDED A QUART AND DECIDED TO GO TO OIL CHANGE PLACE. WHILE ACCELERATING IN TO TRAFFIC, ENGINE WAS HESITATING THEN LOST NEARLY ALL POWER ACCOMPANIED BY LOUD RATTLING (LIKE MARBLES) FROM ENGINE. MANAGED TO GET OFF ROAD WITH ENGINE GETTING INCREASINGLY LOUDER AND VIBRATING BADLY, CLEARLY OUT OF BALANCE SOMEHOW. ENGINE STALLED AND WOULD NOT RESTART. AFTER TOWING TO MECHANIC, THEY ALSO NOTED THAT IT WAS RUNNING VERY ROUGH. CHECKED OIL AND NOTED THAT IT WAS FULL OF METAL SHAVINGS. I'VE ATTACHED A PHOTO OF THE OIL CONTROL VALVE PACKED WITH THESE SHAVINGS. TECHNICIANS ADVISED THAT ENGINE WAS A TOTAL LOSS. THE 2.0L ENGINE IN THIS CAR IS THE EXACT SAME ENGINE BUILT IN THE EXACT SAME TIME PERIOD THAT KIA WAS FORCED TO RECALL (SC147) IN OTHER MODELS BUT FOR NO APPARENT EARTHLY REASON IT WAS NOT INCLUDED! HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN? WHY WASN'T THE ENGINE RECALLED ACROSS THE BOARD? ALL SYMPTOMS NOTED IN THE COMPLAINTS HERE AND IN THE RECALL MATCH: SUDDEN LOW OIL LEVEL, LOSS OF POWER, METAL SHAVINGS WORKING THEIR MAGIC THROUGHOUT THE ENGINE INTERNALS, CATASTROPHIC FAILURE SOON AFTER. REPLACEMENT ENGINES SEEM TO HAVE BEEN DISCONTINUED AND AREN'T AVAILABLE IN THE REBUILD MARKET. I'VE ALREADY SUNK MONEY ON TOWING AND DIAGNOSTICS ON THE THING, AND I'M GOING TO HAVE TO PAY TO GET WHAT IS BASICALLY A BRICK RIGHT NOW TOWED BACK TO THE HOUSE. I'M GOING TO TRY ONCE AGAIN TO GET THROUGH TO SOMEBODY AT KIA CUSTOMER SUPPORT, BUT I THINK WE ALL KNOW HOW THAT'S GOING TO TURN OUT, DON'T WE?